Ms. Rachel Announces Debut Album With Mr. Aron, 'I'm So Happy'

Ms. Rachel, the music educator whose YouTube channel has become a fixture in households with toddlers, will release her debut album with her husband, Aron Accurso, on Sept. 25.

The 23-track record, "I'm So Happy," reimagines fan favorites from their show along with childhood classics. It was co-produced by Accurso and Grammy winner Scott Riesett, and principally arranged by Accurso, who worked with a team of 19 vocalists and 42 instrumentalists.

"Music is such a wonderful way for people to bond, for parents to bond. I know from the minute my kids were born, we're singing to them," said Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Griffin Accurso. She launched the channel in 2019 with her husband, known online as "Mr. Aron."

She said she wanted young listeners to hear live instrumentation. "I am a music educator, so I get excited about kids hearing a real clarinet on 'Icky Sticky Bubble Gum' and kids getting excited about hearing more real instruments," she said.

The album also has instructional aims. The song "I Could Be Your Friend," she said, gives children a script for building social skills. "We're always thinking about all kinds of kids, whether they have disabilities, whether they're autistic," she said. "We just want the world to feel like it's helpful to all children and the musical worlds as well."

The arrangements range widely by genre: the single "I Love a Rainbow" is a bossa nova number, while the pair's version of "Old MacDonald" leans bluegrass.

"Music is at the heart of our show," Accurso said. "And so, we've always wanted to release the music and have families experience the music away from the screen." He said the goal was to inspire "living room dance parties, because that's what we love with our children."

Ms. Rachel has drawn attention in recent years for using her platforms to speak about humanitarian crises, including children in Gaza and those detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She recently commented on the death of 18-year-old Nolan Wells in Mississippi, writing on Instagram: "We know the investigation and everything that followed would have been different if Nolan Wells were white and his friends were black. Nolan and his family deserve justice."

"I view myself as an advocate for children's rights so anytime they're being violated by anyone anywhere, I want to be speaking out," she said.