Levity Beet and I have long been admirers of each other’s inventive musical material. With five awards for Best NZ Children’s Album between us, we decided to write and produce a new collaborative album called beetBITE.

Ross Payne is the designer, animator and director of our fab new animated music video, A Pirate Meets A Flea.

Ross is well known to fleaBITE fans for his work on Don’t Sit Under The Poo Tree, Probably Papakura and In The Orchestra. Inspired by the old 2D Warner Brothers cartoons, his animation flows seamlessly, lovingly hand-drawn frame by frame.

Over the past few years, I am thankful to report the status of children’s artists and music in New Zealand has risen considerably.  With the backing of APRA (Australasian Performing Rights Assn), Recorded Music NZ, NZ on AIR, and luminaries such as Arthur Baysting and Suzy Cato, the events are now truly celebratory.