NHK Launching Daily Children’s Series

NHK has lined up a brand-new daily children’s series for its spring schedule, The Wakey Show.

Premiering on April 2 at 7 a.m., The Wakey Show is aimed at elementary school kids before they head off to school. The series is led by Wakey, who is a DJ, and his puppet friends as they open the door to knowledge through games, exercises, dance, music, food, fashion, comical skits, manga and more.

Drawing from the diverse educational content of NHK’s educational TV channel, the 20-minute edutainment show marks the first time in three years that NHK has launched a new daily program for children.

Partnering with Sesame Workshop, the program will have a weekly segment featuring Elmo. “Elmo’s Like It Rap” will invite children across Japan to share who they are, what they like and what they’re proud of through the power of rap. This will be the first time in 22 years that original Sesame Street content will appear as a regular program on NHK.

NHK Educational Corporation’s Masakazu Sato, producer of The Wakey Show, commented, “In Japan, 7 a.m. is a valuable time when the entire family is together in front of the TV. By sharing with the children interesting insights from various fields every day, we hope to convey and nurture a sense of appreciation for the world that we live in.”

Sato added, “We’re excited to be working with the Sesame Workshop to introduce ‘Elmo’s Like It Rap,’ a segment designed to foster children’s emotional well-being. By using rap—a style so popular among kids today—we hope to encourage children to be open about their feelings.”

Manabu Nagaoka, VP and general manager of Sesame Street Japan, said, “As societal and academic pressures on Japanese children continue to grow, it is increasingly important to foster environments that strengthen emotional health, self-esteem and resilience. By giving children a platform to express themselves and share their feelings, ‘Elmo’s Like It Rap’ helps build children’s confidence, reduce stress by encouraging them to express themselves and encourage positive communication.”