by Lilya Murray

It’s a sentiment echoed by many fans within my music circles about Triple J’s Hottest 100 each year. Why aren’t more Australian artists featured in the top 100 songs of the year? In 2024, only 29 Australian artists featured in the Hottest 100. This was a significant drop from 2023, which featured 52 local artists, and 57 from 2022. This begs the question, where did they go?

It’s not a simple question to answer, either. Brief research indicates that Triple J had a restructure in the last year which may (?) have resulted in fewer local artists in the countdown. But the Hottest 100 is famously voted by listeners, so the problem is likely to reside in audience’s attitudes toward local acts.

These attitudes are prone to tall poppy syndrome. This is a cultural phenomenon that Forbes Magazine defines as being the urge to bring someone down or criticise them for achieving success in any particular field. The name derives from the idea that everyone is ‘cutting down’ the tall poppy in order to tear them down.

Australia is well known for the tall poppy syndrome in its music industry. Artists such as Kylie Minogue, Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker, and Ruel have discussed the diminishing effect it has on their careers, in contrast to the vast difference in the United States’ cultural approach toward openly supporting artists.

Breaking into the US market is an aspiration for many musicians, as it catapults their career to impossible highs. The ability to pursue a creative passion before an audience that does not judge others for doing so goes a long way in bolstering an artist's success.

In Australia, most of our music on commercial radio stations and music charts (ARIAs) tends to be dominated by artists who have achieved fame internationally, rather than local artists. Only five out of the Top 100 Singles on the ARIA charts for 2024 were Australian, one of which was Riptide by Vance Joy, released in 2013.

That is an abysmal statistic, given the incredible talent of Australian artists this year and every other year. Commercial radio stations have a 20-25% quota to play Australian artists, and many fall within 20% depending on the station.

This isn’t to say there is no support for local acts, or that international music is bad. Triple J claims that it plays “over 50% of Australian music each week” and “8 out of 10 of the most played artists” on the station are Australian.

There have also been a number of government measures enacted over the last few years to protect Australia’s music industry, especially following COVID-19. Legislation passed in 2024 ensured live music venues could not be shut down over noise complaints, and provided extended trading hours with an “80% reduction in liquor licensing fees”.

The Live Music Australia Program provided grants totalling $20 million to growing Australian acts over the years 2020-24, to support live music and festivals. This initiative has since concluded.

If Triple J plays Australian artists frequently, and the government is providing support to our music industry, what is the reason people still aren’t listening to Australian artists? 

I believe the answer lies in the tall poppy syndrome and the cultural attitudes Australians have toward Australians making art and being ambitious. These attitudes are not only widespread throughout the arts, but also in society in general.

Without cultural support, it is very difficult for local artists to achieve exposure to establish a foundation for their career, let alone a thriving one. And nothing can be done to make people care, regardless of how many governmental measures are in place.

International artists have likely overtaken Triple J’s Hottest 100 for 2024 because cultural support for musicians is larger overseas, and Australians are drawn to established acts before supporting their own talent. If we want to celebrate Aussies at the same level, we should start to lift them up at the grassroots of their career.

Maybe we’ll see them overtaking the Billboard Hot 100 and the Grammys!

Lilya Murray is a third-year student at UNSW, currently completing a Bachelor of Media, majoring in communications and Journalism. You can most likely find her rearranging playlists and listening to a different song on repeat each week, or reading in a book, in which case you won’t find her.