Imagination Movers return to Chatham

The Imagination Movers story is the ultimate example of the power of imagination. In 2003, four New Orleans friends – Rich Collins, Scott Durbin, Dave Poche and Scott “Smitty” Smith – had an idea. They thought kids wanted and deserved music that spoke to them, not down to them. So, they started gathering after their kids’ bedtimes to write songs and brainstorm ideas about a children’s television show. Two years later, they had become the latest sensation of their musical city, attracting parents and children alike with an eclectic pop sensibility and lyrical turns about healthy snacks and playing catch and conquering childhood fears of bedtime. Lines to the Movers’ shows stretched for blocks.

When the levees broke after Hurricane Katrina, the far-reaching disaster turned the Movers’ world upside down, but it didn’t put an end to their dream. Even while band members salvaged their belongings from flooded homes – and Smith reported to his day job as a fire fighter and first responder – they never stopped living according to the Movers’ motto: “Reach high, think big, work hard, have fun!”

This motto has served the band well. Not even the Imagination Movers themselves could have fully imagined their breakthrough success. The Movers partnered with Disney in 2007 and filmed 75 episodes of their Emmy Awardwinning series over three seasons. The show airs in more than 55 countries and they’ve sold half a million CDs and DVDs to date.

Critical acclaim for the Movers includes nods from Entertainment Weekly and The New York Times, which reported the Movers are “prized by many parents for non-condescending lyrics and music that evokes the Beastie Boys or Red Hot Chili Peppers.” Parenting magazine praised the band’s “dash of rebellion” and songs that are “fresh and treacle-free.” National television appearances include The View, Live with Regis & Kelly, and Good Morning America. The Movers earned a Daytime Emmy Award from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for outstanding original song in the children’s show/animation category. The series is currently aired internationally on the Disney Junior Channel.

Imagination Movers are currently developing an animated series “Super Movers” in partnership with Toronto-based 9 Story Media Group. The series is tentatively scheduled for a 2016 debut.

The Movers’ season three soundtrack, “Back In Blue,” was released in 2013 and debuted as the No. 1 children’s album on iTunes in Canada, No. 2 on iTunes in the U.S. and No. 2 on Amazon.com. Their ninth release, “Licensed to Move” will debut in early 2015. The CD will be bundled with a DVD that contains a live concert performance as well as music videos.

The Movers are known as a high-energy, interactive live music act. Over the last decade they have entertained more than a million fans in North America, Europe and Asia. Their 2011 “In a Big Warehouse” tour attracted 150,000 fans and was one of Pollstar magazine’s top 100 tours of the year (one of only two family acts on the list). According to thousands of fan reviews on Ticketmaster.com, Imagination Movers ranks as the No. 1 rated major touring act for families. With 98 percent of concertgoers recommending a Movers’ concert to friends and family.

Over the past two years alone the Movers have rocked packed houses in the U.S., Canada, Japan, Guam, Spain, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and Dubai and will be embarking on another tour of Canada in 2015.