About Derek
Derek McKinley started SING SONG PARTY TIME PRODUCTIONS back in 2015 as a way of bringing together his most creative passions; music, teaching, and acting.
Primarily a singer and songwriter, Derek has curated a whimsical set of heartfelt songs that, along with his humour and joy, create a fun and entertaining live FAMILY MUSIC SHOW!
Singing and playing music has always been a huge part of Derek's life as far back as he can remember...from playing with bands, djing and event planning, all the way to performing singing telegrams dressed as a penguin and a gorilla! The idea for writing children's music and entertaining with SING SONG PARTY TIME all started in 2005 while he was teaching English in Japan to kindergarten children. He has always held a strong passion for music and views it as a fun way to bring people together. Some of his favourite examples of this are in the songs and performances of Raffi, Fred Penner, Dan Zanes and of course the ever-funky YoGabbaGabba!. Applying the "party factor" to his lesson plans while teaching in Japan really made the classes exciting and interesting for his students. Years later, after having his own children, he found himself constantly picking up the guitar and singing as a means of educating them and just plain having a blast! The joy on their faces was enough to make him want to share the fun with more people through festival appearances, birthday parties, songwriting workshops, music/movement playgroups and all sorts of events!