Royal Oak rocker goes from Lollapalooza to children’s author
Paula Messner was a regular on Detroit area stages for years, performing with punk rock groups such as the Roommates, Motor Dolls and Vertical Pillows.
When the Royal Oak resident had kids, she took a couple of years off from performing. But it wasn't long before she came back to it.
“I took literally two years off, and then I just thought, ‘I have to play again,'” she says.
This time around, she wanted to make original children's music. It made sense, while she was a new mother.
In the early 2000s, Messner formed The Candy Band with area moms. The group took off in a big way. Pretty soon, The Candy Band found themselves performing at major music festivals such as Lollapalooza and getting press on NBC's “Today Show” for their unusual pop-punk children's songs.
After The Candy Band called it quits, Messner started performing her original pop-punk children's tunes around Detroit with her own project, Miss Paula and the Candy Bandits.
This summer, Messner released her first book, “Miss Paula's Six-String Stories.” It's a children's book that tells the stories behind eight of her songs. She says she loves writing children's music, because she has the flexibility to write about anything imaginable, from favorite pizza toppings to Barbie dolls.
One of her first songs was called “Ken Lost His Head,” a story inspired by her two daughters who would play with their Ken dolls and, mysteriously, Ken's head would often go missing.
“I've always loved writing poetry and songs, so writing kids' music was really natural for me, because I can sing about the craziest stuff,” she says. “It doesn't have to be about relationships and partying like my old bands.”
Messner opted to include sheet music and a discussions section in the book, which makes an interactive activity book for kids.
“I included the sheet music, because I thought, maybe it will inspire some kids to want to play,” she says. “On the last page, I put a book discussion area with questions, kind of like what you see in books for book clubs, but the questions are, ‘How many dinosaurs can you name?' and ‘How many toppings do you like on your pizza?'”
The visuals in the book, illustrated by Marty Blackwell, are bright, colorful and retro.
Messner is thrilled with how it turned out.
“I love having something tangible that will never go out of style,” she says. “When I first started doing music, we'd put out a 45 or album, and then CDs took over. Now, nobody is buying CDs. But, a book, to me, is timeless, and nothing will ever replace it. It's a piece of art.”
To order the book and learn about Messner's upcoming shows, visit MissPaulaMusic.com.