I’m sorry if I scared off all the young millennial parents with that title, but I feel that this channel has been unfairly ignored. Cocomelon, a YouTube channel and streaming show founded in 2006, is currently the most watched YouTube channel in America, and the second most subscribed channel in the world. With 116 million subscribers and over 100 billion views in total, this channel is a complete powerhouse in the world of music.
And it’s dedicated entirely towards kids aged 1-5 years old.
Cocomelon’s primary content is 3D animation depicting preschool age children with their families living their lives and learning life lessons, often accompanied with a musical number.
“Wait wait wait wait wait. Is this that Johnny Johnny Yes Papa thing?”
No, that’s actually an entirely different channel called Loo Loo Kids. They have 44 million subscribers. And that video has 5.5 billion views. But even with those insane numbers, one can only dream of beating out Cocomelon.
Now you may be surprised to see that Cocomelon has been around for so long, but the channel has underwent many changes over the years. It started out as “ThatsMEonTV” in 2006 with a more traditional 2D art style focused on the alphabet, and in 2013 it changed its name to “ABC Kid TV” and started uploading nursery rhymes. Then in 2018 it adopted the 3D animation style and name that we know and love today.
This video below from TheTekkitRealm on YouTube explains how Cocomelon managed to get as big as it is today. Start watching at the 2:08 point.
Ever since this successful rebrand, Cocomelon has broadened their horizons to include multiple platforms and languages. Nine episodes were put on Netflix in 2020 and the show finds itself on the Daily Top 10 list of most watched programs almost every day. In 2020 the channel added videos in Spanish and Portuguese. Earlier this year they added Mandarin Chinese, Arabic, and German. They even have videos on another channel with sign language!
The channel’s most viewed videos are all compilations of nursery rhymes and songs meant to depict everyday life for young families. These include “Bath Song”, “Beach Song”, “Wheels on the Bus”, and “Yes Yes Vegetables Song”.
Okay, okay, I get it. You’re confused as to why I would be talking about something like this on this website. I mean, we normally talk about Tyler, the Creator and music festivals. But to be honest, I’ve known about the existence of Cocomelon for about a year now, and based on what I had heard online I couldn’t decide if it was the greatest kids channel in the history of television… or the downfall of the next generation. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just the internet being dramatic again. Anyway, I just thought that, considering how influential and widespread this channel is, it should at least be something you should know about. Even if you’re not one of the parents that’s been hearing this intro at least twenty times a day.
