Conversations with Kevin Hoban

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin Hoban.

Hi Kevin, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
The road to becoming a YouTube Kids star is long and VERY winding!

In college, my best friend Jordan and I formed a band (at Northwestern University) that was one part music act and one part comedy variety show. We would perform outside on campus during the day to get a laugh or smile from students going to class. We noticed that young children walking by liked our act the most. The seed was planted.

After graduation, Jordan and I moved to Los Angeles. I produced TV shows for Nat Geo Channel, and Jordan acted and tutored kids. We linked up with a kids party agent named Silly Sally who liked our act and agreed to start booking us to perform at preschools and birthday parties. We realized we couldn’t just perform as two guys singing songs, so we created the characters “Captain & Cat.”

Over the next 10 years, we became very well known across Los Angeles for our Musical Bubble Show. We wrote and sang original songs, and made the biggest bubbles you’ve ever seen! For the finale, Jordan (Cat) would stand on his head, and I would put him head-to-toe inside of a giant bubble! We called it “the most dangerous move in bubble entertainment.” We honed our act by played in every neighborhood of Los Angeles, for every demographic—including for celebrities and for the princess of Saudi Arabia!

When Covid hit in 2020, live performance stopped, so we decided to start a YouTube Channel so we could continue entertaining kids remotely. We recorded our original songs and filmed music videos and sketches for kids to watch online.

In 2023, our song “Jen the Fire Engine” won the award for the “Best Children’s Song of the Year” in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest — the highest honor you can achieve in kids music, short of winning a Grammy. Our music video for the song went viral on YouTube, and that’s when YouTube Kids noticed us. They reached out to invite us to become a featured channel on the YouTube Kids platform, meaning that our videos would be highlighted on the main page of the app — it’s like being on the home page of Netflix, but for the biggest kids streaming platform in the world! Suddenly, our entire channel went viral, and began generating millions of views. Our videos were featured next to behemoths like Paw Patrol, Miss Rachel, Blippi and Disney shows.

For the first time, Jordan and I decided to pursue Captain & Cat full time. We expanded our distribution to include classrooms, where teachers now include our videos on their curriculum. We are now traveling the world and making educational videos for kids about everything from how an apple is grown, to the history of Texas, to professional golf tournaments!

We are blessed—and still surprised—to meet fans everywhere we go! It’s truly a dream come true!

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There were so many times along the way when we felt like no one was watching, or no one cared, or we weren’t making any progress. But because we enjoyed the work, and we were working together as best friends, we kept doing it, regardless of whatever notoriety we were or were not getting. And eventually, it hit big.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We produce a hit YouTube Kids channel that makes educational videos for children ages 3 to 8. Historically, we are best known for a viral music videos. More recently, we have become very well known for our long form educational episodes about healthy food and how it’s grown. We are also expanding into a travel series for kids and a professional sports series for kids.

What set us apart from the rest is our humor, our music, our ability to make educational topics fun and engaging for kids, and our tone, which has often been compared to Mr. Rogers meets Wild Kratts.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
We are always looking to partner with teachers and schools who want to include our educational content as part of their curriculum — totally free of any charge.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.captainandcat.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/capandcat/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/capandcat/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/captain-and-cat
• Twitter: https://x.com/capandcat
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@capandcat