“It had a vibe. A good vibe.” -Student from Delaware Creole 4 Kidz! residency
Welcome to our Creole Culture Lab, the place where Creole for Kidz and the History of Zydeco was incubated 25 years ago! It’s also a place to become culturally literate about American roots music.
Creole for Kidz and the History of Zydeco program, is an innovative, high quality, multicultural performing arts music and information program. Since it was created in 2000, it has reached over 250,000 K-12 and college students, parents and educators at 100’s of schools, art centers and festivals around the globe! It has helped inform and engage student, youth and family audiences in Australia, Mali, Paraguay, Seychelles, Dominican Republic, Russia, Ukraine and all over North America.
Download our nine page study guide here
Download new 4-page color brochure about Creole4Kidz!
“They were mesmerized and couldn’t take their eyes off you.” – Carson Center staff
Photo below Carson Center for the Performing Arts, Paducah, KY 2025. 1700 students at a sold out school time performance.
Simien not only entertains, but also helps raise the cultural IQ of his youth, student and family audiences. He has led the charge to educate student audiences about Creole culture and zydeco music -from the remarkable Hancher Auditorium in Iowa City to Berklee College of Music, Boston – to the prestigious Ordway Performing Arts Center in Saint Paul, MN.
Video below compliments of Kentucky Performing Arts, Louisville, MY. 2025 multi day residency with smaller outreach activities at an elementary school and community center showing the versatility of the group in these settings.
Creole for Kidz and the History of Zydeco performance and companion CD is centered on the history and evolution of this unique American roots music. Zydeco is the traditional music of Black and mixed race, French speaking Creoles of south Louisiana. Fact.
Menu of services, outreach activities and residency work:
- Student matinee performances at PAC’s of all sizes from 350-2500, 45-60 minutes
- In-school performances for entire student body or specific grade levels, 200-800 students, 45-60 minutes
- Residency work that includes multiple in-school, theatre and other outreach performances, 2-5 days or longer
- Residencies can be stand alone Creole4Kidz!, but they are often part of a main stage/season concert
- Residencies can also include outreach to after school programs, senior centers, correctional centers, libraries
- These various outreach residency activities are typically lec/dems with music, information and always audience participation
- Study guide download
- Terrance also offers a Creole Cooking demo as part of the residency work, which has become a highlight of their residency work!
Disney and Zydeco
In 2009 Simien got a call from a really great man who is now President of Walt Disney Music, to collaborate on a song with Randy Newman for their Oscar nominated “The Princess & the Frog” animated film. This was historical for Disney and for young African American girls, who for the first time had a princess of their very own – created in their image. It was definitely time and this is still a very big deal for Louisiana and New Orleans as this was the first time Disney set a story in a specific city, educating millions of families about New Orleans and its unique culture. It focused not only on the traditional Disney love story, but also on the music and culinary traditions of New Orleans including the French Quarter, Creole gumbo, jazz, gospel and zydeco. All firsts for Disney! See for yourself and hear the word zydeco actually spoken in the film as well.
“Hey cousin Randy, you ready for a little bayou zydeco?“
YouTube video from The Princess & The Frog film “Gonna Take You There” with Terrance
The images of a caterpillar accordion, played by Simien, and a rigid bug underbelly frottoir (zydeco rubboard) also played by Simien, are truly magical! And just like that, zydeco became immortalized in a Disney classic film! Simien’s student audiences everywhere sing along with the band when they perform the song from the film that Terrance worked on with Randy Newman, “Gonna Take You There”! In fact since the film debuted, we’ve discovered that for many people it was there very first introduction to zydeco. A world of gratitude for that as well, Disney!
In 2024 Disney opened a new ride based on the film, “Tiana’s Bayou Adventure” at Walt Disney World, Florida and Disneyland in California. 50 million people visit these parks each year, giving us millions more opportunities to build and educate the next audience of New Orleans jazz, gospel, funk and zydeco music lovers! Meet the Zydeco critters, Gritty the girl rubboard player and Apollo on accordion!
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There’s always more history and context.
When Taj Mahal Spoke, Terrance Listened
This important project all started with a conversation Terrance had with his good friend, mentor and ethnomusicologist, Taj Mahal, who insisted Terrance tell his story through song. When Taj talks, people generally listen – intently! Especially Terrance. Simien took Taj’s considerable knowledge into the Creole Culture lab because he’d long been frustrated by the lack of representation and resources dedicated to the Creole culture in his own home town.
Over the years there has been a concerted effort and considerable resources dedicated by cultural organizations and elected leaders, to raise the awarens about the Cajun or Acadian culture and its rich history. However, the Creoles had been largely been left out of the conversation. It’s improved some, but when he started this project in the late 1990’s, there was little to no information readily available. Terrance got after it, hard! He was determined to create content about his people, culture and the music. He hunkered down, did months of research, wrote original songs and narration for his recording project of the same name.
Simien became a thoughtful cultural advocate in zydeco music long before anyone in his music community began educating students, youth and family audiences about Creole culture and the history of zydeco music.