And The Guardian have published the most guardian piece in response:
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I really like Andrew Stafford as an author and a journalist (Pig City is a terrific read if youâre interested in the history of Brisbaneâs music scene), but yeah, that piece is quite the overthink and very Guardian.
And does anyone really reckon he chose all ten songs himself?
It wouldnât surprise me if he did - unless someone is playing an incredibly long game curating what we know about his musical tastes, his choices are pretty consistent with what heâs said in the past about Australian music.
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Turning the Hottest 100 into an Australian-only chart would surely kill its relevancy and the fun of it.
Plus the media attention for the countdown shows nobody is listening to radio anymore.
Itâs a shame triple j bares the full brunt of criticism when radio is losing relevancy everywhere and its doing the best it can with ABC budget cuts. They donât even have the budget to put out podcasts for shows. And commercial stations arenât playing even a fraction of local music in primetime but that never gets any media attention.
triple jâs Home & Hosed and the general playlist of triple j is stacked with local music, and passionate presenters. Ash McGregor from Home & Hosed does great TikTok livestreams while she presents her show and suggests Australian acts for commenters based on artists they like. I donât see any commercial stations doing the same kind of work. Like A Version is a hit on YouTube and social media.
Maybe people should focus more on the impact of platforms like Spotify, which barely pay artists while its billionaire CEO can invest $700 million into AI defence startups.
Or the way commercial radio and TV avoid new Australian artists like the plague. Spicks & Specks is still deferring to The Living End and Kate Ceberano as musical guests when they could be propping up new talent.
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Been listening to Triple J Unearthed on DAB+ lately. I enjoy it a lot. ALL of it is new Australian music.
It occurred to me⌠Why not make this what Triple J IS?? Forget just the Hottest 100, turn JJJ into a national youth station with an FM licence that ONLY plays new, local music.
Whatâs the worst that can happen? They lose listeners? If anything they might gain some!
I think much like the ABC in general itâs best not to think of anything JJJ does in terms of ratings or profit because thatâs not the idea. Itâs a public service, those who listen will appreciate it. And if they just fucked off overseas music entirely I think people would appreciate it in the long run
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I think Iâm going to have to agree with this. Almost every year an artist wins Triple Jâs Hottest 100, itâs an international artist. If you want a Hottest 100 featuring international artists, then it has to go to the Sydney duo as Ben Lee said. That way JJJ can have an Aussie version of their Hottest 100 countdown all the time and to give more local artists Down Under a voice, and to save Aussie music on FM altogether.
Remember that the ABC is a government broadcaster so I wouldnât imagine theyâd care if a heap of people listened to it or not, at least it would be an alternative platform for those wanting different music, i.e local music and music not heard on the Top 40 commercial radio stations. Specifically for that niche. There is a market for Aussie music and there are people that will enjoy it. The format also needs to change. It needs to be 100% Aussie music and no international artists. Like JJJ Unearthed.
Decided to cast my last-minute sorta votes. Voting closes in around an hour (probably less by the time this post shows up), typing this as of 4:10pm AEST. Anyway, I went for rock music in this list. I couldâve voted for more if it hadnât have been for JJJâs 10-song limit.
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Voting has closed on Hottest 100 of Australian Songs.
Now we have to wait for the countdown on Saturday week (July 26) from 10am AEST.
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A very Triple M Playlistesque selection there, I like it
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The Hottest 100 has always had international artists, so it isnât a new thing. And international artists have also been a key part of the Triple J playlist since the beginning as well. Banning the internationals isnât the answer.
Except very few will actually care about the Aussie Hottest 100 and only focus on the international one.
While I do get that the ABC is far less focused on ratings than the commercials, they still have to justify the existence of their programming. Triple J, like every other part of the organisation, needs to earn its keep to continue to be funded.
Again, that would be moving away from what Triple J has done for the 50 years it has been broadcasting. Banning international acts wonât save Triple J, it will just drive more people away to where they are being played.
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Maybe, just maybe the kids listening to Triple J arenât interested in the music being made in this country right now. The results donât lie, itâs what the listeners want.
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I actually disagree, I think they are conditioned by American cultural hegemony into thinking thatâs what they want.
Letâs think about it - go to any cinema in Australia and youâll be hard pressed to find a film that isnât from the US. Are we really to believe that Americans are just that good at filmmaking, that itâs a natural selection sort of process on a level playing field, where the US just consistently produce all the best films the world has to offer and this is the free market just doing its thing? Something in the water over there that just makes them the best?
OR is it that theyâve got a global stranglehold on the market, enforced by the corporations they set up and entrenched in all of our brains for generations now?
I think the same goes for music⌠When I listen to Triple J Unearthed radio I donât hear a drop in quality personally. I hear a lot of acts who to my ears are just as good and just arenât being given a chance, largely thanks to an industry set up to funnel money to the US and to the streaming giants.
Maybe 100% Aussie-only for JJJ would be excessive but something close to this would mean that JJJ take a brave stance towards changing the culture, which is what they were always meant to do. They donât have to chase ratings and compete with KIIS, thatâs part of what makes them great.
My partner is studying the Irish language and always listens to RaidiĂł FĂĄilte from Belfast online. Iâm told they have a policy over there: Only one hour of English language songs allowed per day. I respect this a lot. Maybe JJJ could take the equivalent approach? 10% songs from overseas maximumâŚ
The problem with only 10 per cent international is that youâll end up with 90 per cent Australian and 10 per cent American.
Triple J has done well showcasing overseas artists not from the US, particularly NZ and the UK. Thinking The Wombats, BENEE etc, artists that your average listener might think is Australian. So a blanket cut on international artists is going to see less diversity and cut off listeners from hearing a bigger variety of global artists on radio all together.
Maybe non-American music should get 25%?
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Ash McGregor leaving Home & Hosed. Anika Luna taking over from August 4.
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