Entrepreneurship as Child’s Play: Creating Content for Kids
Ryan Kaji is living the content creator’s dream.
The Hawaii resident – he moved to the Aloha State from his native Houston with his family during the pandemic, in 2021 – is one of YouTube’s top earners, with a paycheck of some $30 million a year and a net worth estimated at $100 million. On his Ryan’s World channel, he shares his sense of wonder and adventure with 41.7 million subscribers. He has lent his name and/or likeness to hundreds of products across the globe. A feature film based on his channel is scheduled for a wide release in the U.S. in August, 2024.
The kicker: Kaji won’t even enter his teens until two months after his feature film debuts.
Welcome to the lucrative, ever-expanding world of content for kids, where programming aimed at the 6-and-under crowd is big business. Gone are the days when children’s programming was largely produced/distributed by PBS or its affiliates (if it was educational and/or earnest), and blockbuster programs and household name stars were created by entertainment juggernauts like Disney, CBS (the original home of PeeWee’s Playhouse), or Nickelodeon.
Today, thanks to apps that make creating content simple and inexpensive, low- or no-cost distribution channels like YouTube and Instagram, and children’s (and parents’) seemingly endless appetite for viewing and streaming, the dream of being the next big thing in kids’ programming can be a fairy tale with a happy ending.
DEMAND AND SUPPLY
Much as well-meaning parents intend to keep their kids off of screens, there is no question that G-rated content aimed squarely at teaching and entertaining kids –and can be put on autoplay – is a gift from above.
“Of course, I swore I wouldn’t just plop my kids in front of the TV,” says one mom who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of being judged by other parents from her kids’ school – even though she’s certain they, too, are relying on what she calls electronic daycare. “But the truth is, there’s a lot of great stuff that’s free, fun, and feels totally safe and wholesome. Some we watch as a family, and other stuff I feel completely comfortable leaving my kids to watch on their own.”
What about when her toddlers become more tech-savvy and might be able to bypass parental controls or go beyond apps designed just for kids? “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” she sighs. “But for now, I’m grateful that all this stuff is out there for them.”
The “all this stuff” the conflicted mom refers to is a mix of content, live and animated, from a wide swath of sources. The reach and impact of both traditional providers and programming has shrunk considerably. In 2015, Cartoon Network (which started as an outlet for airing animated content in Turner Network Television’s library), Disney Channel, and Nickelodeon averaged 500,000 or more viewers daily in the 2-11 age group alone, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Last year, the combined daily audience of adults and children was less than 200,000 for each of the three networks.
That’s not to say that the big names have become irrelevant. When The Hollywood Reporter did its inaugural list of “The 75 Most Important People in Kids’ Entertainment” last year, there were plenty of names from such likely suspects as Disney, Pixar, PBS, Sesame Workshop, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks Animation, and The Jim Henson Company. But the list was also populated by relative newcomers, niche players, and stars themselves, both kids and adults, who made it to the big time without the initial boost of a big-name studio, star, production company, or distributor behind them.
Here is a look at some of the people who, like tykoon Kaji, have cracked the code of content for kids.
BLIPPI
A scandal erupted in the world of kids’ entertainment in 2021 around Blippi. With his goofy clothes, oversize orange glasses, and wink-and-you’ll-miss-it dose of adult sensibility, Blippi could easily be mistaken for the love child of Urkel and PeeWee Herman. Like Ryan Kaji, Blippi got his start on his own YouTube channel, in 2014. Unlike Kaji, Blippi was a made-up character, carefully constructed with exaggerated details to be welcoming and non-threatening to parents and kids alike.
Blippi – whose name was chosen because of its silly, ear-pleasing sound and easy pronunciation – was the invention of Stevin John, an Air Force veteran who worked in video production and as a marketing consultant. John’s 12.4 million subscribers saw him playing Blippi as he embarked on educational visits to farms, museums, and everything in between. That is, they saw him until May, 2021, when John was replaced in the videos by actor Clayton Grimm.
Irate parents stormed social media on behalf of their confused kids. YouTube, John, and Grimm had to explain that Grimm, who had portrayed Blippi in live-action performances going back to 2019, was taking over on-screen because John was taking a step back in anticipation of the birth of his own child. Distracify’s Leila Kozma likened it to Sammy Hagar taking over from David Lee Roth as Van Halen’s front man. “Maybe he wasn't as good, but they still sold a lot of albums,” she wrote.
Indeed, it doesn’t look like Grimm stepping in has been more than a blip in Blippi’s trajectory. In addition to the videos, Blippi live-action and animated content can be found on a variety of streaming services, and there are movies and merchandise, in addition to the live musical performances.
MS. RACHEL
If Blippi is the id of kids’ content, Ms. Rachel – aka Rachel Griffin Accurso – is the superego. As sincere as John is slick, the former New York City music teacher started her YouTube show, Songs for Littles, as an outgrowth of helping her language-delayed son learn to speak. With more than 11 million subscribers across YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, her show features a diverse cast and crew, and both well-known kids’ songs and content created by her husband, Broadway composer and music director Aron Accurso. He appears in her shows as the character “Herbie.”
In addition to creating her programming, which has the motto “Learn, Bond, Thrive,” Rachel received a second master’s degree, in early childhood education, and is represented by talent powerhouse CAA. Ms. Rachel and Blippi teamed up for joint appearances on each other’s shows in July, 2023, and have become friends not only in reel life, but in real life.
TABITHA BROWN
The rare crossover talent aiming as much for an adult following as for a pre-school fan base, the Emmy-winning Brown is a multi-hyphenate: actress, writer, producer, chef. Her show, Tab Time, is geared for family viewing – kids ages three to five, and their parents – with the goal of “helping kids live their best life.” She was named No. 2 on The Hollywood Reporter’s 2023 list of “The most powerful People in Kids’ Programming” and was described as a “modern day Mr. Rogers.” She has some 9 million followers on social media.
It could be argued that Brown is in fact living her best life. A stalled show biz career saw her leave entertainment for retail and time taking care of her ailing mother. Her attempts at reviving her career were slow at best; in October, 2017, she became an Uber driver. Two months later, the passionate vegan did a review of a vegan BLT from Whole Foods and she was hired as a brand ambassador. She launched a TikTok channel that was a mashup of sharing recipes, advice, family time, and cooking segments.
Creators for Kids Hit the Motherlode
Entertaining small fry can be big money. Here is a look at the estimated earning power of some of the top names in the business.
Family from Baby Shark
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Don’t let the simplicity of the syncopated music and limited lyrics of the original Baby Shark Dance video, released in 2015, fool you. That one video, the brain child of South Korean educational brand Pinkfong Co., has generated in excess of $22 million in revenue just from views on YouTube. Merchandising brings in millions more.
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Stevin John, Blippi’s creator (and for many kids and their parents, the one and only Blippi) sold Blippi to Moonbug Entertainment for $120 million. In late 2023, John’s net worth was estimated at $345 million by Medium.
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In 2023, Australian animated series Bluey was the most watched show for kids, and the No. 2 streaming show, second only to Suits. While the brand is worth an estimated $2 billion, Bluey’s creator, Joe Brumm, is reportedly worth a relatively modest $10 million.
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Mr. Beast (aka creator and star Jimmy Donaldson) is living up to his name. His outrageous stunts and a Feastables food line generate some $600 million to $700 million a year – almost all of which Donaldson reinvests in content, according to Time.
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Anastasia Sergeyevna Radzinaskata, the 10-year-old Russian-born star of YouTube series Like Nastya, is estimated to be worth north of $250 million. Her videos, dubbed in a dozen languages, range from edutainment to children’s songs to unboxings.
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SpongeBob SquarePants created in 1999,is perhaps the OG of contemporary animated content for kids. It is Nickelodeon’s highest-rated series and Paramount Consumer Products’ top earner, pulling in more than $13 billion from merchandising.
