In how many wonderful ways are we different from each other? What if all the world were to rejoice in each other’s differences? Based on the picture book by Peter Spier, PEOPLE is an animated movie that features 10 original songs by major recording artists and voice talent including James Earl Jones and Hume Cronyn.

We decided to commission a few original songs to illustrate the themes of the project, and asked Jason Miles to supervise and produce. I never dreamed he would come up with 11 of the best songs I’ve ever heard in my 20 years in the music business, or that we’d be able to attract so many wonderful artists to perform them. Jason and I drew upon our contacts — some of the songwriters and artists are people we’ve worked with before, and they immediately grasped what we were trying to accomplish. Jason also asked some of the best musicians on the planet to contribute their talents, and they added their own instrumental passion to the tracks. We wound up with an incredibly strong, coherent, and consistent album, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do. We don’t talk down to children at Lightyear. Children deserve music that’s as good as adults get. A great album for kids should be great, and then adults will be happy to hear it over and over again on those long car rides.