YouTube, France Télévisions and Paris-based studio TeamTO are seizing on the cross-generational appeal of iconic tunes to capture co-viewing audiences with: Behind the Beats.

The CG-animated series (26 x five minutes) breaks down popular music genres such as new wave, G-funk, rock ‘n’ roll, K-pop and reggae—with stories about the artists who pioneered them.

Created by Baptiste Jaquemet, Behind the Beats is produced by TeamTO and music rights management company 22D Music Group, in partnership with pubcaster France Télévisions, which will air it in November. The series will also launch on YouTube Originals and the YouTube Kids app in November.

Patricia de Wilde, director of marketing and new business at TeamTO, tells Kidscreen that Behind the Beats is intended to be a “conversation starter” between younger (tweens and teens) and older (parents, grandparents) viewers. First presented at Cartoon Forum 2019, the series combines the nostalgia of classic hits and family-friendly narration to appeal across generations, she says.

“When kids see the show, it will get them thinking. We want them to start questioning what they’re listening to,” de Wilde says. Music can serve as a gateway to learning about the broader history of different eras, which is a learning opportunity not as commonly presented to school-age kids outside of music education programs, she notes. “What was really exciting to see when working on this series is that pop music is always directly related to its time, to what is happening politically and socially.”

The biggest challenge was getting permission to use songs. Scripting and research for each episode took place only after the rights to specific songs were cleared, a process that was managed by 22D Music Group.

“The music business is quite different from the TV business that we know, so these were uncharted waters for us,” de Wilde says, adding that 78 songs were ultimately cleared for the first season, with three in each episode. Artists featured in the series range from Blondie to Snoop Dogg.

TeamTO’s Corinne Kouper and 22D’s Emmanuel Deletang are credited as producers on the project. Craig Hunter (YouTube) and Pierre Siracusa (France Télévisions) are the creative leads, with YouTube’s Zoë Di Stefano also on board as a creative executive.