The Children's Music Web Awards 2008

Frequently Asked Questions

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Who's doing this?

Pickleberry Pie Incorporated, and its independent affiliate, the Children's Music Web. We're a non-profit dedicated to promoting children's music, storytelling, kid's comedy, children's radio, and other children's audio worldwide. We are frankly disappointed with the fact that decisions in other audio awards are made without involving kids. In some cases, one or two adults decide on the fate of hundreds of recordings. In other cases, Hollywood names win over lifelong children's artists. We thought it's about time to let the kids really decide.

Why do you charge a fee?

We refuse to use advertisement, and yet the awards process is very expensive. The stickers cost money, the boxes cost money, the mailings cost money, the printing costs money. Since each individual recording is sent to a possible total of 6 different places (minimum- and some outside the US), you can imagine our per-entry costs. We charge a fee to cover this. We have also offered a waiver of fees to those individuals ( not corporations) who can't possibly afford it.

Why do you need 7 copies of each recording entered? Other awards programs just ask for two.

Because we use them all for the voting process- three for the finalist round, three for the winner round, one for backup purposes. The reason why other awards programs ask for so few copies is that so few people listen to it. Wouldn't you rather have your recording reviewed by six groups of kids instead of just one adult? We ask for one additional recording as a "safety" because sometimes judges tell us that they can't play a cd, so we need to send them another copy.

If you are not a finalist and you'd like your recordings back, please send along a SASE with your entry and a note atesting to this fact. Recordings not used in the judging process will be donated to classrooms for their use.

Is this a vanity award? I mean, if I pay enough money, am I going to win?

Absolutely not. The people who run the awards and collect the fees have no influence whatsoever on who wins. It's the kids who decide, kids who are 99.99% unknown to us. Again, the reason we charge a fee is so that we can process and mail the recordings out to the families and schools in a timely manner. If you need a waiver of the fee, ask for it.

Didn't PJ used to run the awards? Why do we send the entries to Oklahoma now?

PJ has some responsibilities and family obligations this year that will keep her from devoting time to the awards. Lisa Harper has graciously stepped in to help. All of the inquiries and packages should now be directed to her. And incidentally, although Lisa's significant other is a children's musician of renown, we have taken steps to assure that there is no conflict of interest in regard to the judging of the awards.

Remember, the new address for submission of materials is

CMWA/Pickleberry Pie Special Account

2419 North Monroe Street

Stillwater, Oklahoma 74075-2124

Should I send along press material, 8 by 10 glossies, etc with my recordings? Will they be passed on to the judges?

Please don't, and no, they won't. We just can't afford it. The only additional thing that is passed onto the judges is the English translations of material in another language. Didn't you guys listen to Al? Save a planet, save a tree!

Book and recording packages are the exception- those are passed on in their entirety.

Why do you have so many different age range categories? I think my recording is good for all ages.

Because often a song for toddlers may not be appropriate for older kids- and vice versa. We are trying not to compare apples to oranges.

Some candidates place their recordings in several age range categories. We've found that it's rare that a recording wins for many age range categories- sometimes two, but rarely three. We recommend that you look at the age range of the kids in your concerts, and take a cue from that.

Do you take recordings in languages other than English?

Yes, it's our goal that the awards be world-centric. However, we are currently only able to guarantee that recordings entirely in Spanish, French, or Hebrew ( or English) will be auditioned by native speakers of these languages. Many recordings feature one or two songs in other languages: that's OK. Songs or stories in other languages will also need English translations available to the judges.

Several of the winners in past years have featured songs or stories in languages other than English.

We'd love to hear a recording entirely in Urdu, but we're currently not set up for it.

If you've entered a recording before, can you enter the same recording again?

Yes, there are no restrictions on the number of recordings or the times you can enter.

I'd like a delivery receipt for my entry so I know it got to you OK. Will you be there to sign for it?

Nope, Lisa will not always be there to sign for it during the day. She may be chasing Evalyn's parakeet down the street. Lisa lives in a safe neighborhood so it's OK to mark your package "leave on porch." Please don't make Lisa have to go stand in line at the post office to retrieve your package. It makes her eyebrows wrinkle.

We had a situation a few years ago in which PJ's postperson wouldn't leave something on her porch because it needed a signature. PJ didn't hear about it, so they sent the material back. The applicants almost missed being in the awards because of this. Again, we can't emphasize this enough,

do not require a signature!

If you want to know if your package arrived, email lisah@montyharper.com

Who are your family judges and who are your judging classrooms? Do you ever get inappropriate judges?

All of our judges come to us through our website. They simply volunteer. We've had judges from Paraguay, Hungary, Great Britain, Korea, Italy, Singapore, South Africa, and of course Canada, Australia, and the United States. We've had hundreds of families from big cities and small towns worldwide. Most of our judges have been with us for years- they reapply each year because they love participating and applaud the process of letting kids have a voice.

Yes, we've had a few 'inappropriate judges"- but they are weeded out by the second year. And since each recording is heard by three families and, in the case of finalists, three classrooms, the possibility of damage from "inappropriate judges" is lessened.

Do you need more judges? Can I announce the program in my concerts? Can my family judge?

Yes, yes, and yes, but any judging family that is related or associated with an entrant does not judge the category that the entrant has entered. We have ways of knowing.

Why not just have experts judge the music or stories? Don't they know best?

Think, do you agree with every expert you read in the paper? And the problem with having just one expert judging the music is this: it's just one opinion. I don't know about you, but my friends have an entirely different collection of music than I have, and so be it. Different people have different tastes. We like having a range of opinions from your intended audience: kids.

How many recordings does each judging family or judging classroom audition? Do you send every recording in a category to a family?

No, we make random sub-groups within the categories, and assign each judging family or classroom only to a sub-group, or about 5 recordings or less. They have six weeks to get the results back to us. That way, we guarantee that each recording or video gets a fair review.

How do you get a Judge's Special Award?

The Judge's Special Awards are nominated by the families who participate in the finalist round. Sometimes they nominate candidates in the current program, other times they nominate recording from the past. The final awards are decided by consensus in an online meeting toward the end of September.

Can we see what the families and kids have said about the recordings?

Yes, without the judge's complete name. We have little forms that our judges fill out, and if you are a winner in any category, you will receive the (optional) judge's comments in your package of stickers. This is a real plus about our process- imagine the bragging rights as you put these comments on your website, your cd, or your mom's bathroom wall.

How do you let the kids vote without influencing them?

We're not naive in thinking that very young children can't be influenced in their voting. We try to counteract this possibility by having three geographically different classrooms or daycare centers vote. Over the years, we've found ways to help the kids identify their favorites by using non-reading methods such as linking a recording to a toy or photo... For instance, "Dinosaur's Day" could be auditioned with a plastic dinosaur nearby.

We've found this to be very successful and accurate.

Besides the stickers, what do you get if you win?

Well, you get a nifty certificate that you can hang on your wall. You get the kids' frank comments for use in publicity materials. You get the announcement publicity through our site and through other announcements of the awards. And then you get bragging rights. The stickers themselves come with a certain cache; reviewers, teachers, and parents have come to recognize the awards as a symbol of parent and kid approval.

Most importantly, you'll get the genuine knowledge that kids worldwide love your recording.

Whoops, I missed the deadline! Can I still submit my material?

We have a small amount of wiggle room on the deadline. Please email lisah@montyharper.com and ask her if she's sent out the packages in the categories you're entering. If not, you'll need to OVERNIGHT material to her to get it in by the mailing day. This is obviously an added cost to you so we don't recommend it.

SPECIFIC CATEGORY QUESTIONS

Your categories used to be time-dependent. Why did you change?

To simplify the process, and because we found the time restriction to be too, well, restrictive. Other than "Best New Artist", we saw no reason to highlight the release date of the recording. Our new stickers will also reflect this- no date will be put on them. You are free to use the date of the award in your publicity materials, however.

I have a recording that is part stories, part music. Which category should I chose?

We'd recommend the storytelling categories.

I have a compilation recording- lots of different artists. Which category should I enter?

Chose an appropriate age range in the music categories.

We have a great song on our first album, with a very cute arrangement. Unfortunately, we didn't write it. Can we submit it for a "Best Song" award?

We're sorry, but no. Your or your band must own the copyright in order to submit in the Song categories.

We have no restrictions in regard to copyright in the other categories, however.

I have just one recording out- all music for kids age 7 to 11. Which category do you recommend?

Enter your recording in Best Recording for Older Kids. It's a bargain to enter the second category, so you might consider picking a song for a song category, or submitting for "Best New Artist" as well.

I've been on the music scene for years, but this is my first all-children's recording. Can I enter for Best New Artist?

Yes, you can, if your recording for kids has been released in the time frame.

FEE QUESTIONS

I have two recordings- one eligible for "Best" and one for "Best New Artist ". If I enter them in one category each, what is my fee?

$120 total- $70 for the first entry,$50 for the second.

I have just one recording out, but I'd like to enter it in Best- Younger, Best Song- Younger, and Best New Artist - Younger. What would be my total fee?

$170- $70 for the first category, $50 each for the other two.

I want to enter my recording in Best-Preschool and then chose three songs to enter in Best Song- Preschool. What would be my total fee?

$220- $70 for the first entry, 3x 50 or $150 for the other three.

My company, Singing Pig Productions, has a roster of five children's artists. We'd like to submit an entry for each of them. Do we pay $70 or the $50 level for each?

$270- 70 for the first artist, 50 each for the others. If they submitted one entry each separately, it would cost more- $350 total. So be nice to them and do this for them.

I'm Canadian. How can I send you my fee?

The best way is to go to your bank and have a cashier's check made out to Pickleberry Pie Inc Special Account in US dollars.

I'm a struggling young European children's musician, and I don't have much money. Can I apply for a fee waiver? Will the judges know?

Yes, you can apply for a maximum of two entries on a fee waiver, and no, the judges won't be told this information. They never know who got a fee waiver- it's confidential. We know there is a cost to send 12 CDs across the water, and we take that into account. Please note that a fee waiver limits you to two entries maximum- you cannot pay for some and get a waiver for the additional entries.

Take me back to the main awards site.