Teddy James
AFA Journal staff writer
February 2011 – Parents of small children know that kids enjoy listening to the same music and watching the same videos over and over. So, for every parent in a minivan who cannot handle another Barney episode or rendition of Old McDonald Had a Farm, there are the three musical dads better known as the Go Fish Guys – Jamie Statema, Jason Folkmann and Andy Selness.
According to Statema, Go Fish “makes great music for kids that won’t drive parents bonkers.” The idea behind the music comes from personal experience.
Selness recounted, “My kids take my iPod and run through all the music on it. It is funny to me because they land on stuff that is the farthest from what I would have expected. It’s not kids’ music they listen to most of the time. It is just fun and upbeat music like TobyMac.”
I think people have a stereotype when they think of kids’ music,” said Folkmann. “We found you can break those rules.”
The group’s biggest hit so far is Christmas With a Capital C. It has over 16 million hits on YouTube and has caused much controversy. Statema said, “When I wrote it, I had just heard a rant by comedian Brad Stein. I had to include him on the song. But it got me thinking about how every year you hear the debate about whether it is better to say ‘Merry Christmas’ or ‘Happy Holidays.’
“Our goal in this song is to get beyond that. The bottom line is the fact that the name of Christ has always elicited a hot or cold response. Even on YouTube, there are 14 or 15 thousand comments. It’s funny to me because people either love or absolutely hate that song. There is really not much middle ground.”
Over the past few years, Go Fish has expanded its focus to include vacation Bible school curriculum. “Our very first kids’ CD was called Splash,” Statema said. “We kept hearing over and over from a lot of churches that would bring us in that the adults loved it, the kids loved it and everybody was learning something about God.
“Then we began hearing about churches using the music as a part of their VBS. They would basically keep the theme but rewrite the curriculum and find new music because they could not stand what was put out for them. Finally a light bulb went on and we realized we could put something together that could be very focused and purposeful and be done professionally.”
One thing that is missing from the Go Fish Guy’s VBS starter kit that is present in others is a catalog to buy more stuff. “Most other starter kits you buy are big packets full of stuff with a catalog pushing you to buy more,” Statema said. “When you get our starter kit, it is much smaller. It is as compact as we can make it and very user friendly. Instead of putting our resources and time into toys and trinkets, we have put the bulk of our time and energy into the music, videos and Bible teaching. We have discovered that children’s pastors are some of the most creative people in the world. We just want to give them the tools that are hard for them to create on their own.”
Part of the experience of the Go Fish VBS material is that the kids get a very behind-the-scenes look at the band. Another bonus is that this curriculum isn’t designed to be replaced every year. “We have talked about doing a five- or six-year program,” Statema explained. “By the end of the program, you have all new kids and can start all over. You can revise and update to make it better. We are also moving all our VBS stuff into a nonprofit. We don’t make our living off this. We travel and do concerts and sell CDs and that is how we make a living.”
For those who are scared of leading a VBS, the group has a simple word of advice: “Know your Bible and be faithful to teach it.” Statema said, “The great thing about kids is that they don’t care how cool you look or what your image is. You just need to love on them and share the gospel. Forget about the frilly stuff. We reject the notion you must have so much hype to effectively share the gospel. Scripture is sufficient.” 
The Go Fish Guys’ vacation Bible school curriculum Backstage with the Bible and their DVDs are available at most Christian bookstores. They are also available at www.gofishguys.com.
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