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Ten minutes north of Indianapolis, in a city called Carmel, something strange was going on in the middle of the night. While his wife and the kids were sleeping, Emmanuel Carter was freestyling about spiders.

In normal times, auditions for 鈥檚 new original early learning series would have taken place in-person, but in October 2020, candidates were invited to record their demo reels at home. 鈥淚 had just gotten home at 1:30 a.m. from taping a virtual benefit for the Keep Indy Creating Relief Fund,鈥� Carter recalls, 鈥渁nd I saw this invitation, and I was like, I cannot miss this opportunity.

So I had my family all shuffle into another room, because it was going to get loud, and I recorded the audition from 2:00 to 6:00 a.m.鈥� With no time to research spiders or even to write lyrics down, he simply improvised on the spot.

He felt he was onto something when he showed his wife the recording. 鈥淪he started crying,鈥� he says, 鈥渁nd through her teary eyes, she said, 鈥榊ou are going to change the world.鈥� And it鈥檚 really true: these types of shows changed my 飞辞谤濒诲.鈥�

Sean Farrell, senior vice president of content and strategy at Noggin, noted that not only was Carter right for the part, but his audition inspired changes to the program鈥檚 format to incorporate much more singing and dancing into the show that became known as Noggin Knows. 鈥淭here is no barrier between Emmanuel and the viewer. He has a unique ability to reach through the screen and make you feel like he is talking just to you. With our little-kid audience, this direct and personal connection is so important. We see kids talking back to Emmanuel while watching episodes as if he is right there with them. It’s a wonderful gift.鈥�

mixes education and entertainment. Carter describes it as 鈥渁 virtual preschool classroom that helps kids learn readiness skills through a series of themed lessons alongside their favorite Nick Jr. characters and me as their teacher.鈥�

Inspiration

When it comes to getting up in front of a camera, Carter cites the influence of three legendary hosts: 鈥淸Reading Rainbow host] LeVar Burton, who taught you the wonders of books; Bill Nye the Science Guy, who taught you the wonders of the world; Mr. Rogers, who taught you the wonders of yourself. Those three shows together built up the way I saw the 飞辞谤濒诲.鈥�

Musically, Carter is also the product of his influences鈥攁nd then some. 鈥淚 grew up listening to my mother and my grandma sing gospel all the time,鈥� he says. 鈥淥n cleaning days, they would blast gospel music all throughout the house.鈥� Disney soundtracks, with their lyrics about following your dreams, were the next big phase in his development. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 where I got an ear for orchestration,鈥� he observes. And then came the King of Pop. Carter grew up idolizing fellow Hoosier State icon Michael Jackson. 鈥淗e changed my entire perspective of music. Seeing what he could do, I knew that it was possible to be able to do what I wanted to do in the entertainment industry, no matter where I was from.鈥�

Beyond TV and musical inspirations, one person stands out as Carter鈥檚 greatest source of motivation鈥攈is mother, Cindy Carter. He never met his father, and he and his two younger siblings grew up in a household with their mother and grandmother. 鈥淢other didn’t have a lot growing up,鈥� he states, 鈥渟o she taught us to value what we have and to value who we are.鈥�

Religion played a big part in his upbringing, and the family went to church every Sunday. A poster bought in a religious bookstore hung on his wall with the message: You Are an Original. Just Ask Your Creator.

鈥淚 grew up,鈥� Carter says, 鈥渨ith this with deep-seated idea that there was nobody like me. And that’s the idea that my mother put inside of me.鈥� Carter and his wife have three sons: Aidyn Storm (9), Avalon Rain (5) and Axel Thunder (1), and he strives as a father to instill in them the same degree of confidence. 鈥淭hey take up a great deal of my time,鈥� he says, 鈥渂ut the way they take it up is one of the most wonderful uses of my time ever, because I love watching these little guys grow into these charismatic, loving young dudes.鈥�

Education

Although we鈥檝e all learned a lot about teleconferencing in the past few years, a preschool show isn鈥檛 a classroom, but it can certainly spark something, and as Irish poet William Butler Yeats wrote, 鈥淓ducation is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.鈥� For Carter, it鈥檚 all about conveying a sense of wonder. 鈥淓verything is still so amazing to a child,鈥� he says. 鈥淓verything is still exciting. Everything is still magical.鈥�

Buckle your seatbelts, kids, because Noggin Knows is taking you on a trip around the U.S. to discover science, nature and other cultures. Your travel companions include such familiar faces from Nick Jr. as Molly from the Bubble Guppies, Skye from PAW Patrol and Santiago from Santiago of the Seas. In the course of detonating what he describes as 鈥渁n explosion of awe鈥� (take that, W. B. Yeats), Carter also focuses on social emotional lessons. 鈥淲e’re not just learning about dinosaurs and space,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e really want to be all in on inclusivity. As a Black man, I am so grateful to be inspiring all those children who might feel underrepresented to go out and be the person that they know that they can be.鈥� In the wake of George Floyd鈥檚 murder, he says, this mission took on added urgency.

Another perk of the job is gaining knowledge that he can share with his children. 鈥淭he more you teach, the more you learn about what you’re teaching.鈥�

Connection

June 2021 was an extraordinary moment to launch a new show for kids. The education component matters, of course, but we鈥檙e all asking ourselves what 鈥渘ormal鈥� early learning means anymore. Families are stressed, and their children feel it, whether or not they understand what a pandemic is. Noggin Knows has an added responsibility of connecting the kids who aren’t experiencing the world the way they’re supposed to.

Carter says this responsibility permeates everything about the show. 鈥淲e鈥檙e putting something that’s trustworthy on the screen for children who are missing out on anything that they would’ve had in school socially or emotionally,鈥� he says.

His warmth and enthusiasm jump out of the screen, and the children are eating it up. 鈥淚 get so many messages on Instagram,鈥� he says. 鈥淧arents send me videos of their children following the lessons and dancing along.鈥�

In an uncertain and sometimes frightening world, Carter might be the high-energy host children need today. 鈥淚f I’m on the screen,鈥� he says, 鈥渁nd I’m showing you this wonderful world, then I think I’ve done my job. Because the world is only as scary as we let the children believe it is.鈥�

This story originally published on Early Learning Nation and is now archived on 蜜桃影视. Learn more here.