New Yellow Wiggle Tsehay Hawkins talks diversity and her desire to inspire kids from all backgrounds

The Wiggles newcomer Tsehay Hawkins is only 16 years old, but already she is a trailblazer in her field.

The teenager's fate was sealed one eventful morning last year when she was asked if she wanted to be the new Yellow Wiggle after the departure of Emma Watkins. Hawkins excitedly jumped at the opportunity and has since made the role her own. 

With bright sunflowers in her hair — Tsehay means 'Sun' in Amharic, the official language of native Ethiopia — the teen is proud to showcase her heritage and culture for Wiggles fans across the globe.

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"It's honestly a blessing. I feel like I'm very, very lucky to be part of the stepping stone into showing this multicultural community in Australia and showcasing that," she tells 9Honey Celebrity.

"I guess kids see what's accepted in society through the media and they follow that. Seeing people of colour on screen when I was little used to make me feel so much more confident in myself."

For Hawkins, watching Disney's The Princess and the Frog character Princess Tiana — who she said had the same dark skin and hair as herself — gave her hope that she can achieve anything she set out to do. 

"It wasn't the fact I didn't notice on mainstream media that there weren't as many people of colour. But when you do see someone like yourself, it stands out to you and you feel really proud," she said.

"So if I can help inspire kids to be who they are and just pursue their dreams, no matter what their background is or where they came from, it's really, really cool."

Hawkins' The Wiggles bandmate Simon Pryce, aka the Red Wiggle, says the children's group cannot be more excited with Hawkins joining the group, as they wanted the new lineup to represent all their fans.

"We wanted The Wiggles' world to reflect the world we live in, which is why we introduced new Wiggles of all different heritages and cultural backgrounds, so children can see themselves reflected on the screen and think, 'Well, that can be me one day," he tells 9Honey Celebrity.

"So they might not feel so marginalised and feel inspired and feel like they can achieve things and do things."