Stephanie Brown has spent a lifetime creating music. From sharing stages with legends like Etta James, Cyndi Lauper and Patti Smith to writing her own award-winning music, she’s experienced moments many musicians only dream of.
Yet for all the highlights of her career, Stephanie never imagined that her most rewarding work would begin with a homework sheet.
Today, she’s the creative force behind Spellodies!, her award-winning family band that helps children master difficult spelling words through music, turning frustration into confidence and learning into fun.
And as she reflects on the path that brought her here, she can’t help but feel she may have found the dream she was searching for all along.
“When I was a kid, I wanted to write music for Disney films,” she says.
“So writing music for kids has always been in there somewhere. It’s a challenge to create those magical moments where song meets character and drama.”
The power of music
It all began with the word “because”. When Stephanie’s eldest son Freddy, now nine, started school, he came home with a list of difficult spelling words. Like many parents, she watched as homework became a battle.
“The instructions were to write it five times in a row and then repeat it, and he didn’t want to do that,” she explains.
“It was a bit of a struggle.”
Determined to find another way, Stephanie and her partner, musician and producer Fen Ikner, 47, decided to draw on their decades of musical experience. Together, they wrote a song inspired by Freddy’s favourite band, The Ramones, to help him remember how to spell the word correctly. The results surprised everyone.
“Music is so powerful as a memory tool,” the 45-year-old explains.
“Not only did it work for him, but his brother Charlie, who was only three, also recited the spelling. It was useless for him at the time because he was still learning his letters. But we thought, ‘Oh, this could be helpful.’”
With a list of 100 words for Freddy to master, they realised that they had barely scratched the surface on song ideas. As they built out their catalogue – including rock banger Night Light and country ballad Other – they teamed up with literacy advisor Alicia Marsh to ensure the songs weren’t just entertaining, but genuinely effective learning tools.
Their big break
Yet convincing people that spelling songs could be exciting wasn’t always easy.
“When I tell people that we write spelling songs, they automatically think, ‘That’s the most boring and dull thing I’ve ever heard of,’” she laughs.
“But they’re not. They’re really fun songs first and foremost, and they secretly sneak the spelling in.”
But after the release of their first album, If You Can Yell It, Then You Can Spell It!, last year, exciting new doors have opened. This year, Spellodies! took home both Best Children’s Music Artist and Best Children’s Music Video at the Aotearoa Children’s Music Awards, with the treasured Tui now sitting proudly on the family piano.
They’ve also written scripts for the return of Suzy Cato’s beloved You and Me and created the theme song for the new children’s series Mr Hugo’s Little Library.
Despite the accolades, Stephanie says one of the most fulfilling parts is seeing Freddy and six-year-old Charlie’s creativity flourish. Not only do they serve as drummer and shaker player, respectively, but as the target audience, they run every idea past them. And Stephanie happily admits that they are responsible for many of the band’s funniest ideas.
“We had finished making the music video for our song about the word Thirst and Freddy said, ‘I think this would be funnier if I pour a glass of water on your head,’” recalls Steph.
“And he was totally right – it was the funniest part of the video.”
Born to make music
Though he’s only nine, Stephanie says she can already tell that Freddy’s heart belongs to music. And while she and Fen are all too aware of the struggles of making a living as a musician, she knows she would never stand in the way of his dreams.
“Freddy is a natural – he’s never thought twice about it,” Stephanie says.
“He’s been playing drums since he was four and even before then, he was setting up his own drum kits with the kitchen stools and cushions. “I don’t think you can dissuade someone from being a musician – it’s a way of life. But he will definitely grow up knowing the realities of a music career.”
Spellodies! is performing a free show at the Auckland Town Hall on Sunday, September 27 at 10am as part of the We The Young Festival.
Visit spellodies.com to buy the album and activity book.
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