From 2009 through 2012, Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Jennifer "JWoww" Farley were known as part of the partying crew on MTV's The Jersey Shore. They then moved on to their own spin-off reality show Snooki & JWoww.
Now, the BFFs — who both have kids — have "swapped bottle service for bottle feeding" with their new show Moms with Attitude, from AwesomenessTV's digital millennial mom network Awestruck.
It may seem odd to have the former party animals helm a show about motherhood, but Polizzi and Farley's online series, available on Verizon's go90 platform and YouTube, is just the latest example of the digital entertainment industry's efforts to expand content geared toward millennial moms over the past year.
The digital entertainment industry has already successfully captivated younger viewers with mobile-first content and online videos. But a chunk of key consumers in the millennial age group have grown up and become parents. To keep up with the aging demographic, the industry needed to expand its offerings.
Data from Goldman Sachs found almost all new moms —about 90% of the 1.5 million new mothers in 2014 — are in the millennial age group.
An estimated 73% of millennial moms surveyed by parenting website BabyCenter said they watch short-form content on their smartphones. (The survey polled 1,118 women in the U.S. over the age of 18 with a median age of 32).
Noticing the lack of content available for millennial moms online, DreamWorks-owned AwesomenessTV announced in April that Awestruck would fill that void by providing solely mom-geared content.
"Millennial moms are digitally savvy, globally conscious and defined by more than just motherhood, yet they are surprisingly underserved," Brian Robbins, chief executive and founder of AwesomenessTV, said in a statement in April. "We recognized a similar opportunity when we launched AwesomenessTV as teen viewing habits were dramatically shifting to online video. Awestruck will engage millennial moms as their viewing behaviors make a similar shift."
The company's network features female-centric scripted and unscripted programming — including comedy, drama and docu-reality series as well as talk shows. It also showcases both digital stars and celebrities. The network began rolling out content on Verizon's go90, YouTube and Facebook Video in the fall.
Earlier this year, actress Zoe Saldana also teamed up with the platform. The Avatar star, who is also a mom, and her production company Cinestar, will create both unscripted and scripted content for Awestruck.
For Polizzi and Farley, their digital show was an opportunity to document their filter-free experiences navigating the new world of motherhood.
"We're really trying to learn from millennial moms and help millennial moms," Farley told Mashable in a phone interview following the show's launch. "Whether it's do it yourself projects, which Nicole loves, or cooking which I enjoy...it's just a very interactive experience with our viewers."
"I think a lot of fans are happy we are back," Polizzi added. "It's nice we can talk with them on YouTube and Twitter...and answer their questions. We didn't get to do that before because it was reality TV."
So far, fans of the duo have had fairly positive responses to the show.
Even before the creation of Awestruck, parent-centric channels were becoming increasingly popular on YouTube.
At the 2015 Streamy Awards, parenting channel "What's Up Moms" took home the award for "Best Kids & Family Series."
With more than 150 million views, the channel has become a go-to for parents of all ages who look for tips and lifestyle videos online. The What's Up Moms team has even collaborated with First Lady Michelle Obama.
"I think being a parent is wonderful and fulfilling, but it is also a little lonely and isolating," Elle Walker, one of the What's Up Moms founders and video bloggers, told Mashable in a phone interview. "We like to give parents information, but also something they can relate to."
However, two years ago when What's Up Moms was created, Walker and co-founder Meg Resnikoff said video content catered toward moms was definitely not as popular as it is now.
"It's actually like a cool thing to do now," Walker said. "We really love that there are so many moms online."
But the growth of the genre did not surprise them.
"Millennials are growing up," Resnikoff said. "And they grew up with Internet, searching for information online. The [growth of the genre] is just very organic and authentic, and I think that's part of the reason we've been successful."