"Go, Slow, and Whoa Foods" Hits Jackpot Thanks to New Hip Hop Song

Posted June 14‚ 2010

"Pack it up. Pack it up.
It's lunchtime.
Pack it up, pack it up with your vegetables.
Pack it up, pack it up with your breads and fruits."

These are just a few of the lyrics of a hip-hop song and video called "Pack it Up," based on the We Can!® "Go, Slow, and Whoa" foods chart (1.6 MB). The song/video is making its way up the charts among Las Vegas preschoolers and their parents.

"Pack it Up" is one of three "All 4 Kids" videos that are part of a complete curriculum called All 4 Kids: Healthy, Happy, Active, Fit funded by the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension and the USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education program, which addresses childhood obesity in preschoolers.

Each video is in a different musical style and promotes one of the following messages: healthy eating (Hip Hop), physical activity (Country), and self acceptance (Latin). They were created by exercise physiologist Anne R. Lindsay and her colleagues at the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension (UNCE).

"If you mix music, dance, and a message—it works!" said Lindsay, a UNCE assistant professor who's recorded two albums of her own; performs locally; and is the guitar player featured in the country music video on physical activity. "We produced CDs along with the three videos to distribute to preschoolers who took part in our program, so that they could then take the CD home and extend the lesson to the whole family."

To make sure the CD would appeal to both parents and kids, the team chose music that had cross–generational appeal and would get the whole family grooving to the beat. The music is so appealing that its popularity has stretched all the way down to the Strip.

Lindsay's musical connections made it all possible because local musicians—including the rap artist Ginisis TNB who sings the "Go, Slow, and Whoa"–based song—volunteered their talents. In fact, the videos are so popular that the initial order of 2,000 CDs from the December 2009 launch is long gone. Lindsay and her team have ordered more, and posted the videos on YouTube for broader appeal, too.

You can view the video, "Pack it Up," based on "Go, Slow, and Whoa" here: http://www.extension.org/pages/Instructional_Videos.

Lindsay says that you know something is a success when you have the kids singing it and then going home and asking Mom, "Where's my 'Go' food?" when they get their snack or lunchbox.

Pack it up, indeed.