What We Learned About Teaching and Creativity by Commissioning a New Podcast Theme Song

The theme song of a podcast may only play for a few seconds at the beginning and ending of an episode, but the short clip sets the tone for the show.

In searching for a theme song that fit, I spent hours clicking around on online music libraries including the Free Music Archive for songs with just the right mix of seriousness and playfulness to encapsulate our weekly interview show about the future of learning. And I felt lucky to find an electronic artist who put out unique yet catchy tracks royalty free (which fit our price range).

We’ve used tracks by this artist, who goes by Komiku, for years now as our theme music. And I’ve long wondered who this artist is. And I wanted to thank them. So for this week’s episode, I tracked down the source of this music and asked for an interview.

It turns out that Komiku, whose first name is Rose but who asked us not to give her full name (she also makes music under the pseudonym Rrrrrose Azerty, lives in Marseille, France and makes a living as an independent creator and music teacher). She has strong feelings about the importance of infusing creativity into even the most mundane parts of everyday life. And the song we’ve been using has a surprising origin story.

For this week’s EdSurge Podcast, I talk with Komiku about her philosophy or music, the unusual music workshop she teaches, and her advice for educators. And you can listen in on the process as we commission Komiku to make us a new theme song for the EdSurge Podcast — and hear the debut of the resulting score.

Listen to the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or on the player below.