Avianna Sabangan, 5 years old, center, cheers while sitting on the shoulders of her dad, Arnel. Nearby, her mother, Maria, dances at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

The security line stalled because of him. Dressed in an impossibly fashionable sage-green-and-cream gingham outfit, he stumbled and fell on the ground in front of me, and was in no rush to get up. The people standing in line weren't annoyed, even though they might have been at some other show. After all, he couldn't have been more than 2 years old.

The tumbling toddler was part of the boisterous crowd that turned out on this sunny Wednesday afternoon for a sold-out show. Ranging in age from 1 month to roughly 40-something years old, they came to downtown San Francisco's August Hall from all over the Bay Area, and even outside of it, to catch one of Live Nation's hottest tours - Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno. Tickets were $30 for general admission and $105 for VIP, which included a meet and greet with the artist. Even the babies pay.

Ravers of all ages pack the dance floor at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

(Left to right) Naia Diaz, three and a half years old, hangs out with Kash Ryder Garcia, 4 years old, on the dance floor at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. Naia attended the event with her father, Justin Diaz, and Kash with his father, Chris Garcia. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

DJ Lenny Pearce cheers onstage at the Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

A young raver cheers on the dance floor at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Pearce has carved out a powerful niche throwing these so-called "baby raves" across the world. What exactly are they? Well, they're raves. For babies. Past security and inside the venue, everything glows. Flashing lights illuminate pint-sized tutu skirts, hair scrunchies and miniature cloud-shaped purses. Part Willy Wonka, part Vanilla Ice, Pearce - who DJs hourlong sets for audiences largely new to the world of solid foods - is rarely seen without his pair of ivory, rectangular sunglasses or beaming smile.

Minutes before he's set to perform, a toddler crawls across the stage and onto the DJ platform before being scooped up by a frenzied dad. The energy becomes electric, and I realize I've been misusing the word "shrieking" my entire life until this moment.

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Pearce finally emerges onstage, flanked by a giant inflatable ice cream cone and a pair of 10-foot-tall rainbow lollipops. His head is mostly shaved, revealing several tattoos - the remainder of his hair is slicked back in a turquoise man bun. A 34-year-old Australian and father of two, he's at once everything you would and wouldn't expect a children's entertainer to look like. A variety of doughnut pool floats adorn the DJ booth in front of him. My eardrums ache from the shrieks.

DJ Lenny Pearce performs onstage at the Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

The set begins with familiar melodies that quickly morph into something more Electric Daisy Carnival, less Sesame Street. Children's classics like "The Wheels on the Bus" and "Itsy Bitsy Spider" get the EDM treatment, complete with throbbing beats and baby-friendly bass drops. Pearce's setup is capped at 95 decibels, loud enough to get the crowd pumped, but intended to be safe enough for tiny eardrums.

Throughout the show, the artist jumps behind the DJ panel, waving glow sticks in the air as smoke shoots out on either side of him. A team of venue employees appears to be constantly mopping up spills on the floor. Despite being sold out, the room feels spacious, which makes sense given that the majority of the attendees weigh no more than 30 pounds.

And there is more dazzle to be had here. A neon face-painting and braiding station is set up in the upstairs balcony area, and families gamely dole out between $15 and $20 for the extra flair. The bars also have a signature cocktail for the evening: the Humpty Dumpty, made with gin, cucumber, mint, lime and soda, for $18 dollars.

A sign lets adult ravers know what cocktails are available at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

One of the families in the audience drove over two hours from Stockton specifically for this show. "It's upbeat and makes him tired," says Erick Gatchalian, gesturing to his ecstatic 3-year-old. For the couple and many other parents in attendance, this marks their child's first rave experience, though certainly not their own.

Erick Gatchalian hangs out with his child Ezekiel Clario at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Jackie and Chris Valadez hang out with their 11-month-old daughter, Amira, at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Willow Reid attends Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party with her 1-month-old child, Onyx, at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Jacktlin Medina hangs out with her goddaughter Micaela Medina, 2 years old, at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Halfway through the set, the crowd erupts when Kuma The Monkey - part of the Lenny Pearce universe - makes his entrance. The furry, turquoise, Teletubby-esque character bounds around the stage with Pearce to the delight of screaming fans. At some point, a huge inflatable rubber ducky gets tossed around the audience.

Kuma The Monkey joins DJ Lenny Pearce onstage during the Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

A young raver watches the packed dance floor from the balcony at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Ravers of all ages pack the dance floor at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

Then the energy drops as quickly as it rose. Parents begin trickling out of the venue around 6 p.m., exhausted toddlers with rainbow-painted cheeks wilting in their arms. The same kids who were careening across the floor minutes before now sleep through the final bass drops of "You Are My Sunshine."

Pearce recently announced a second leg of his US tour, with 30 dates across the country beginning in October. He's slated to return to San Francisco for a show at the Midway on Nov. 22, with tickets already "blowing out," according to Chad Heimann, a talent buyer at Live Nation.

Nova Reid, one and a half years old, holds a glow stick and sucks on a pacifier while sitting on the shoulders of her dad, Jeff, at Lenny Pearce's Toddler Techno party at August Hall in San Francisco on June 25, 2025. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

"It's so nice to see parents being happy with their kids," says Ben Pells, who handled the braiding at the event. He and his partner, Inez Pells, who was in charge of the face painting, are part of the West Coast leg of the tour as ElevatedMindDesigns, her business. Though they don't have kids yet, they hope to someday, and appreciate how family-oriented the whole production is - many crew members brought their children along with them. "If we brought a kid, no one would notice," he said.

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