CoComelon Puts a ‘Peaceful’ Spin on ‘Farmer in the Dell’ & More Nursery Rhymes for New ‘Lullabies’ Album

When families think of CoComelon, they might instantly imagine an upbeat kids’ song like “The Wheels on the Bus” — which has 9 billion-plus views and counting on YouTube. But for the preschool brand’s latest release, they’re slowing things down — way down — to help families with bedtime.

CoComelon’s new 30-track Nursery Rhyme Lullabies album takes some of the most recognizable kids’ songs (yes, even “Wheels on the Bus”) and turns them into sleepy-time anthems — and Billboard Family is exclusively premiering a “peaceful” new spin on “The Farmer in the Dell” below.

Josh Embury, director of music at Moonbug Entertainment, tells Billboard Family that “Farmer” was one of the “more interesting challenges” of the project, “Because it is naturally such a playful, upbeat song. We wanted to soften it without taking away the melody and repetition that make it so recognizable. It also became one of my favorite transformations. There is something really special about hearing a song associated with movement and play take on this peaceful, comforting quality.”

Hear the new version below:

After all the familiar tunes CoComelon has tackled over the years, Embury said he and the team felt this was an organic next step. “Nursery rhymes are often some of the first songs children hear and some of the first songs parents remember sharing with them,” Embury tells Billboard Family. “Because those melodies are already so familiar, it felt natural to reimagine them for a quieter part of the day. We slowed the tempos and used gentle acoustic instrumentation and warm arrangements to create music that feels calming without losing what children already love about the songs.”

The team also recognized that “bedtime is not always an instant transition from a busy day to sleep, especially with young children,” and they’re hoping the new project helps quiet down an often-chaotic night. “We would love for these songs to become a comforting part of families’ nighttime routines and help them share a quiet moment of connection at the end of the day.”

The project comes at an exciting time for CoComelon too: September marks the 20th anniversary of the CoComelon YouTube channel.

“It is both really exciting and a little crazy to think that CoComelon has been around for 20 years and a song like ‘Wheels on the Bus’ is still appearing on the Billboard charts,” Embury says of their blockbuster signature hit. “It speaks to how timeless these songs are and how each new generation of families can make them their own. Looking ahead, there are so many places we want to take the sound of CoComelon, and this album feels like the tip of the iceberg for what is possible.”

Other big things on the horizon: CoComelon: The Movie, hitting theaters on Feb. 27, with voice-acting work from R&B superstar SZA and original music from pop hitmaker Justin Tranter.