Nickelodeon takes on CoComelon with first original animated series on YouTube

If the 90s are coming back into style, then it’s time for a new era of Nickelodeon cartoons, and that’s exactly what the Paramount-owned network is providing. A western series called Kid Cowboy is described as the first original animated series Nickelodeon has ever developed for YouTube.

That description comes from The Hollywood Reporter, which noted that Kid Cowboy is available through a different show’s YouTube hub. The Nick Jr. hit Blaze and the Monster Machines has brought more than six million subscribers to a namesake YouTube channel, and Nick is harnessing that built-in audience to give Kid Cowboy a rip-roaring start.

Kid Cowboy’s adventurous spirit is reminiscent of Dora the Explorer; its big-eyed, big-headed, three-dimensional animated characters bear a closer resemblance to the most popular children’s fare on YouTube. In particular, Kid Cowboy seems to be after the audience that delivers billions of daily views to channels affiliated with the CoComelon franchise.

Nickelodeon’s YouTube original is appealing to those kids through sing-songy content produced by industry leaders. Kid Cowboy creator Freddy Wexler is a Grammy nominee, as is co-executive producer and co-composer Emilio Estefan.

“Ninety percent of all kids are on [YouTube]. It has 60 to 70 percent more reach among kids than Netflix does. Kids spend 80 minutes a day watching content there, and its influence on the biggest IP is super clear,” Nickelodeon EVP of Unscripted and Digital Franchise Studio Ashley Kaplan

told THR. “It probably has the most critical role in how kids discover shows, brands, toys, music, culture.”

Though Kid Cowboy is Nick’s first animated original on YouTube, the network is well aware of the platform’s influence within the world of children’s media. Albie Hecht, one of the architects of the golden age of Nicktoons, became the Chief Content Officer at creator-facing media company pocket.watch. Then there’s the case of current Nick President and Paramount Co-CEO Brian Robbins, who previously led digital network AwesomenessTV before assuming his current position.

Since 2018, when Robbins became Nick’s President, the network has found ways to stay connected with YouTube stars like Guava Juice and JoJo Siwa. There have also been content initiatives that pair popular creators with established Nickelodeon IP like SpongeBob SquarePants. Animation, however, is a space where Nick’s YouTube operation has a lot of untapped potential. Kid Cowboy is boldly venturing into that wilderness.