When Emma Watkins walked away from The Wiggles, she left one of the world’s most successful children’s entertainment franchises to tackle the significant risk of building her own.
Now, as Watkins expands her Emma Memma Jungle Picnic Tour with additional dates across Adelaide, Brisbane, Cowra, Moonee Ponds and Perth – part of a national run celebrating her new album – that decision is proving to be the foundation of an entirely new children’s media company.
“Leaving The Wiggles was such a big jump,” Watkins admitted to Mediaweek.
However, that jump marked a structural shift, and not just for Watkins but for the entire children’s entertainment landscape.
First, she moved from being a performer within a global IP machine to a founder building one from scratch. Incredibly, this was done without institutional backing, external capital, or a guaranteed distribution.
Emma Memma. Source: Emma Watkins
From performer to IP owner
Watkins’ departure followed years at the centre of one of Australia’s most globally recognised children’s brands, performing as the Yellow Wiggle.
But unlike traditional talent exits, her move was underpinned by academic research and a long-term creative strategy.
At the time, Watkins (or rather, Dr Watkins) was deep into a PhD exploring sign language and performance alongside children’s communication and linguistics. This work would ultimately shape the creative architecture of Emma Memma.
“Maybe because I was in that academic headspace and so focused on the research that my supervisor and I at the time thought that this was, you know, a profound time to do it,” she said.
By ‘it’ Watkins means launch an entire children’s brand… from scratch.
What emerged was a new intellectual property platform built around accessibility, education, audience participation, and cultural representation. Crucially, it is owned entirely by Watkins and her husband, musician Oliver Brian.
When Mediaweek asked Watkins how she felt seeing her creation not only come to life, but also enjoy the success that it has, she replied: “I think that if I’d spoken to you maybe two years ago, I probably wouldn’t believe you in a way,” she said. “It’s only really now that people are like, “oh, I understand what Emma Memma is about.”
Throughout our conversation, Watkins is gentle, and her demeanour is genuine. It becomes clear that she isn’t in the business of children’s entertainment for the spectacle; she is driven by a sincere mission to better the lives and learning of her audience.
Elvin Lam, Emma Watkins and Oliver Brian with their ‘Best Children’s Album’ ARIA, which they have won twice. Source: Instagram
Building without a safety net
Unlike traditional children’s media launches, Emma Memma was not commissioned by a broadcaster or funded by a production partner. Instead, Watkins built the business independently, growing it incrementally through live touring, recorded music, digital content, and merchandise.
“Because we’re so independent, we’re actually not funded by anything,” she said.
The company operates with a lean structure. They contract performers, creatives, and interpreters as needed, rather than maintaining a permanent production workforce.
“It’s like the world’s biggest startup. That’s what I call it. It’s literally just my husband and me 24 hours a day,” she laughed.
The production model also embeds accessibility at its core. This includes deaf creatives across direction, illustration, choreography, and performance.
“We have done a lot of consulting work alongside our deaf team – we have a deaf director, a deaf illustrator, and they’re all casuals.”
Touring drives the next phase of growth
The Jungle Picnic Tour represents the most expansive national run yet for Emma Memma. It invites children to sing and dance while integrating Auslan interpretation throughout every performance.
The expansion follows strong demand during the initial 39-city run, marking a turning point for the brand, according to Watkins.
“Honestly, it feels like probably in the last three months, the pennies have dropped externally and internally,” she said.
“Even though we’ve been doing the same thing, it’s just working now.”
Elvin Melvin and Emma Memma. Source: Facebook
A different model for children’s media
Emma Memma now operates as a fully independent children’s entertainment brand.
It spans touring, music, and retail while retaining full ownership of its intellectual property. Watkins believes that independence has allowed the brand to develop authentically.
“There’s a constant battle whether, you know, you want to let a big party in and then wanting to retain the rights just so that we can get it correct,” she explained.
At its core, the project remains driven by a broader educational mission.
“We know that we want to bring more integrated media to children right across the board,” she said, adding that her main dream “is to have Auslan in every school.”
Every performance embeds sign language linguistics into the storytelling, creating layers of meaning that go beyond simple entertainment.
“Everything that’s on the Emma Memma stage has sign language linguistics, and people who come to our show get it instantly,” she said.
The founder leap paying off
The expansion of the Jungle Picnic Tour signals a brand entering its next phase. Emma Memma is transitioning from an early-stage creative experiment into a scalable national children’s media platform.
For Watkins, the decision to leave the security of The Wiggles was a significant risk. But as the tour grows and audiences continue to expand, that founder leap is proving to be a durable path forward.
For tickets and tour information, head to Live Nation.
Main image: Emma Memma. Source: Live Nation