Children's music in Australia devel

Children's music in Australia developed gradually over the latter half of the 20th century. The most recognised performers in that period were those associated with the long-running Australian Broadacsting Corporation series Playschool, including veteran actor-musician Don Spencer and actor and singer Noni Hazlehurst.

Children's music remained a relatively small segment of the Australian music industry until the emergence of groundbreaking children's group The Wiggles in the late 1990s. The multi-award-winning four-piece group rapidly gained international popularity in the early 2000s and by the end of the decade they had become one of the most popular children's groups in the world. The Wiggles now boasts a huge fanbase in many regions including Australasia, Britain, Asia, and the Americas.

In 2008 The Wiggles were named Business Review Weekly's top-earning Australian entertainers for the fourth year in a row having earned A$45 million in 2007.[14] They have been called "the world's biggest preschool band" and "your child's first rock band".[15] The group has achieved worldwide success with their children's albums, videos, television series, and concert appearances. They have earned seventeen gold, twelve platinum, three double-platinum, and ten multi-platinum awards for sales of over 17 million DVDs and four million CDs.[16]

By 2002, The Wiggles had become the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's (ABC) most successful pre-school television program. They have performed for over 1.5 million children in the US between 2005 and 2008.[17] They have won APRA song writing awards for Best Children's Song three times and earned ADSDA's award for Highest Selling Children's Album four times.[16] They have been nominated for ARIA's Best Children's Album award fourteen times, and won the award eight times.[18] In 2003, they received ARIA's Outstanding Achievement Award for their success in the U.S.[16]