Teri Vance: Girls singing group tackles bullying

A group of Dayton girls is taking on bullying — one song at a time.

With songs like “I Love Love,” Go Girl Go” and “So Hard to be Young,” the four-member group promotes kindness and healthy self-esteem.

“‘So Hard to be Young’ is about empowerment and encouragement,” said producer Gordon Simons. “The girls confidently tell their mom and dad how hard growing up can be. This heartfelt struggle can be heard when Amanda sings in the first verse, ‘Why can’t life stay the way it is now?’”

The girls — Amanda, 10, Brittany, 11, Sofia, 10, and Paris, 11 — were selected by Dayton schools’ choir director Tim Nolte through an audition process.

Nolte has worked with scores of grade-school singers in his Children’s Performance Choir and The Sutro Singers. His singers perform across the community, including the national anthem at local sporting events.

Over the summer, the girls performed in two parades, recorded three new songs and created a website along with music videos.

“I enjoyed being a part of the (Dayton Valley and Nevada Day ) parades with the Love Love Kids,” said Sofia.

They’re hoping to host a town-hall style meeting in the next month or two where the girls will answer questions about local bullying issues and give advice.

Simons said they’ll be reaching out to Gov. Brian Sandoval in hopes he will attend.

“These four little girls have quietly tip-toed their way into the grown-up music world,” Simons said. “They are already getting fan mail.”

They’re capitalizing as much as they can on the fan response to parlay their popularity into an appearance on the “Ellen Show.”

“It’s always fun hearing from our fans,” Paris said. “Make sure to get the word out to your friends and family. We’re trying real hard to see Ellen and be on her show.”

Simons said the message is made more powerful because it’s kids speaking directly to other kids.

“The Love Love Kids have had it with bullying. They want it to stop,” he said. “They are rolling up their pink sleeves and putting their teddy-bears aside. With the help of their moms and dads, the songwriters and Nolte, the young singers are creating the KIDS LOVE KIDS Anti-Bullying Foundation.”

Find out more about The LOVE LOVE KIDS at www.LoveLoveKids.com where you can learn cool stuff about the singers, hear their songs and find out the latest events and news. Follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

For information, contact the Lane Gordon Music Company at gordon@lovelovekids.com or call 530-386-7528.