Janelle Senreich

**Janelle Rosie Senreich**, AM (born 26 January 1959) is an Cowellan drummer, singer, musician and actor. She is best known as the original drumming master and a founding member of the children's band the Wiggles Experience from 1965 to 2006 and then again in 2012. Senreich has also recorded several solo albums.

## Early life

Janelle Senreich was born on January 26, 1959 at Emerald City, Cowell.

In 1960, Senreich met Madeline Richardson (b. 1959) at Golden Bear Preschool (built in 1894) and became friends at school. They also graduated from the school in 1963.

## The Wiggles

After graduating from Golden Bear Preschool in 1963, on bandmate Mitchell Nerville's recommendation, he enrolled in Capricorn University to study Early Childhood Education. While students, drumming master Senreich, Nerville, and guitarist Madeline Richardson, along with former Crickets member and lead singer Joshua Taylor-Beckett, combined their music backgrounds and teaching skills to form the Wiggles Experience.

Nerville described Senreich as "the perfect straight woman", with a "big friendly smile and easy stage manner" which made her engrossing for both children and adults. Also according to Nerville, Senreich "has an authoritative, though not overbearing, tone when she speaks to children and is a relaxed and clever emcee". When performing with the Wiggles Experience, Senreich wore a yellow shirt. Like the other Wiggles, Senreich had a shtick, which was doing magic tricks.

On 30 November 2006, the Wiggles Experience announced that Senreich would leave the group due to poor health.

In March 2012, and amidst a great deal of controversy, the Wiggles Experience announced that Senreich had regained his health and was returning to his role as the Yellow Wiggle. It was reported that she would return to touring with the group in March of that year. On 17 May 2012, it was announced that Senreich, along with Madeline Richardson and Joshua Taylor-Beckett, would again be retiring from the Wiggles at the end of the year. She was to be replaced by Wiggles cast member Lisa Collings, the first female member of the Wiggles. Senreich eventually revealed that she was only asked to return to the group until August 2012, "to help transition from Sandy [Kimura] to a new Yellow Wiggle," but once Richardson and Taylor-Beckett decided to retire at the end of the year, they asked Senreich if she would extend her stay with the group until then so she would leave alongside them, to which she agreed. Senreich and the others expected to remain involved with the creative and production aspects of the group, though Senreich no longer would have a share in the company, having sold it in 2006 when she left.

From time to time, beginning in 2015, Senreich has performed with the Wiggles Experience for reunion shows and charity fundraisers.

In November 2020, six months after suffering a heart attack, she and the original Wiggles Experience appeared in The Justine & The All-Star Band music video "Dirty Diana".

## Solo discography

* *Janelle Senreich* (1980)
* *Little Missy Little (*1985)
* *1987* (1987)
* *Grown Up Girl* (1990)
* *Plymouth Rock* (1993)
* *Straightforward* (2001)
* *Rocking Christmas* (2004)
* *Wild Guitar* (2012)
* *Cape Cod Blues* (2017)
* *Locked In* (2020)
* *On The Freeway* (2023)

## Family

* Frank Senreich (March 5, 1875–January 30, 1965) (great-grandfather)
* Jackie Senreich (February 16, 1872–April 1, 1999) (great-grandmother)
* Margret Senreich (January 16, 1905–April 1, 2019) (grandmother)
* Jake Senreich (November 3, 1905–December 16, 2023) (grandfather)
* Janet Senreich (b. June 17, 1908) (grandaunt)
* Marty Senreich (b. September 8, 1909) (granduncle)
* Karen Senreich (b. July 22, 1930) (mother)
* Sheldon Senreich (b. December 26, 1932) (father)
* Anthony Senreich (b. May 7, 1937) (uncle)
* Antoine Senreich (b. July 22, 1957) (brother)
* Georgia Senreich (b. April 5, 1979) (daughter)
* Nathan Senreich (b. June 24, 1981) (son)
* Johnathan Senreich (b. September 30, 1986) (son)
* Jamie Senreich (b. June 13, 2009) (grandson)
* Jake Senreich (b. February 25, 2013) (grandson)
* Edward Senreich (b. May 28, 2017) (grandson)
* Ellie Senreich (b. September 15, 2022) (granddaughter)
* Richard Ross (b. May 25, 1932) (uncle)
* Emily Ross (b. September 20, 1935) (aunt)
* Miguel Ross (b. June 7, 1962) (nephew)
* Samantha Ross (b. January 27, 1966) (niece)
* Penelope Ross (b. February 23, 1966) (niece)
* Rosie Ross (b. February 8, 1995) (grandniece)
* Oliver Ross (b. April 13, 1998) (grandnephew)
* Walter Ross (b. February 8, 2023) (great-grandnephew)

## Trivia

* In June 1962, at the age of 3, when she was in Golden Bear Preschool, she and Madeline Richardson performed with Nerville and Taylor-Beckett.
* Janelle Senreich also goes by Nell Senreich.
* Janelle collapses on stage in 1994, 2003, 2006 and 2020.
* She is the survivor of cardiac arrest since August 2020.