The Hollingsworth Family: Javoris Hollingsworth (top left), Graceyn "Gracie" Hollingsworth (top ... [+]
Starting two years ago with mostly double-digit views per video, the Hollingsworth family never imagined that their children's YouTube series "Gracie's Corner" would grow into a national sensation racking up tens of millions of views a month.
The animated sing-a-long series features an adolescent Black girl named Gracie, singing and dancing to catchy tunes on topics ranging from the ABCs to loving one’s hair. The series drew 77 million YouTube views in July, according to analytics site Social Blade, up from 7.2 million views in February.
Videos typically range from 3 to 5 minutes, but given the show’s recent success, the Hollingsworth family said longer videos are “in the works.”
"We're trying to put together a long-form where you get to learn more about Gracie and her family,” Javoris Hollingsworth, the show’s co-creator and executive producer, told For(bes) The Culture in a recent episode of Instagram Live show #CultureTalks. “She'll go on cool adventures and the whole nine. It would be a full narrative."
Hollingsworth and his wife, Arlene Gordon-Hollingsworth, are the show’s co-creators and parents of 10-year-old Graceyn "Gracie" Hollingsworth, whom the show is based on. The show has a diverse cast of characters alongside Gracie, and they all sing and dance to classical nursery rhymes and original songs infused with genres like reggae and hip-hop.
The family said their purpose for creating it stemmed from the desire to provide their children with enriching and diverse content during the pandemic.
"[L]ike a lot of people, we were quarantining," said Gordon-Hollingsworth, adding that they were looking for ways to entertain their children while they worked. “One day Javoris said, 'I've noticed that there are not a lot of cartoons or learning content where the children look like our children.’ And he said, 'We need to do something about it.'"
With backgrounds in chemistry, education and psychology and limited knowledge of video editing and producing, the couple began researching YouTube and the fundamentals of creating content for the platform. Since launching in June 2020, "Gracie's Corner" has now gained more than 700,000 YouTube subscribers and more than 100,000 followers across its social media platforms.
"Honestly, it's been unreal," said Hollingsworth. "As an educator, I was aware of the impact I was having in the classroom setting. But, to see how this content has been able to resonate with people on a global scale, it's just been crazy."
Hollingsworth and Hollingsworth-Gordon work side-by-side to write and produce the songs for "Gracie's Corner," sometimes even bringing in live bands and musicians to create hits like their remix to the nursery rhyme "Bingo." The family enlisted an animator to help bring their ideas to life visually.
As the family continues to churn out more content, the popularity around "Gracie's Corner" has also attracted outside interest from companies.
"There's been a lot of outside interest, ranging from smaller companies to bigger companies to major networks,” Hollingsworth said. “But, at the same time, we're trying to be very careful about which deals we even entertain or accept because with what we started, there's a purpose."
Hollingsworth added: "Maintaining that directional control to ensure children of color will continue to be at the forefront of what we're doing, that's something that we never want to see change."
Gracie's parents say it's been a joy watching their daughter flourish and gain more confidence playing Gracie, and that's a sentiment Gracie wants to pass on to the children watching.
"I want the kids to enjoy the songs and have fun while doing it, have a great life, and be successful like me," said Gracie.
To watch the interview with the Hollingsworth family, click here.
