Double J (radio station)

ABC Dig Music was founded in November 2002. It emerged from formats developed by Bill Gates and Phil Cullen at ABC Coast FM, which broadcast an adult alternative music format and was for many years ABC Radio's only continuous stream. It was part of a suite of three digital channels, alongside Dig Jazz and Dig Country.^[1]

Some ABC Local Radio, ABC Radio National and Triple J music programs were also broadcast on ABC Dig Music.

In July 2009, Dig Radio, Dig Jazz and Dig Country was rebranded as the launch of digital radio stations ABC Dig Music, ABC Jazz and Country.

In October 2013, Dig Music was repositioned to become a sister station of Triple J.^[2] It would rebrand to Double J, a homage to the original name of Triple J, which was 2JJ (also pronounced Double J).^[3]

The final Dig Music broadcast was a 48-hour loop of 13 different versions of "Express Yourself" by N.W.A, including covers by the Audreys, Darren Hanlon and Wagons. The song was chosen in homage to a 1990 industrial action by Triple J relating to their censured airplay of "Fuck tha Police".^[4][5]

Double J was relaunched at 12 p.m. on 30 April 2015. Former Triple J presenter Myf Warhurst was named the first announcer, hosting the Lunch program. This launch was broadcast simultaneously on Triple J.^[6]

On 19 January 2015, the station broadcast a special day of programming, Beat the Drum Again, to mark Triple J's 40th anniversary. It included programs staffed by historic personalities such as Mikey Robins and Helen Razer, Angela Catterns, Chris & Craig, Roy & HG, and rebroadcasts of the original station's first hour on the air, and Midnight Oil's 1985 "Oils on the Water" concert on Goat Island (which was part of the station's 10th anniversary).^[7]

In March 2022, a group of female Australian singer-songwriters wrote to federal communications minister Paul Fletcher and shadow communications minister Michelle Rowland requesting that Double J be granted an FM licence to enable the station to have a broader reach by allowing it to expand into regional areas of the country.^[8]

Missy Higgins, Kasey Chambers, Kate Miller-Heidke, Sarah Blasko, Vikki Thorn and Deborah Conway said that ageing female artists get much less exposure on FM radio than their male counterparts and noted there was no female equivalent to male-orientated FM station Triple M. They said Double J was a station that played a lot of new music by female artists over the age of 30 but its reach was "severely limited". They said an expansion of the station by granting it an FM license, enabling access to a much wider audience, could be a way of getting closer to equality. The women also launched a Change.org petition to garner support from fans.^[8]

In response, Rowland and shadow arts minister Tony Burke said moving Double J onto the FM band would be a positive step for Australian music. They said if the Opposition was elected to power at the 2022 Australian federal election, they would examine the issue and work with the ABC and ACMA and consult with musicians.^[9] However, they didn't commit to the plan outright.^[9]

While visiting the Byron Bay Bluesfest during the campaign, opposition leader Anthony Albanese said if his party was elected at the election, they would commission the ABC to undertake a feasibility study into extending Double J into regional areas.^[10] Albanese declared: “I want more people in regional Australia to experience the joy I have of listening to Double J, singing along to songs they love or maybe discovering something new."^[11]

As of 2024, the line-up on Double J includes:^[12]

• Mornings: hosted by Dylan Lewis, and Zan Rowe on Fridays^[13]
• Lunch: hosted by Karen Leng
• Arvos: hosted by Stacy Gougoulis
• The Block Party: hip hop music; hosted by Hau Latukefu
• Tower of Song: interviews with influential songwriters; hosted by Henry Wagons
• The J Files: music documentaries; originally aired on Triple J between 1996–2007; hosted by Caz Tran.

Double J also plays archive content from Triple J, including Live at the Wireless performances.

Long-running music director of Triple J, Richard Kingsmill, hosted a program from 2016–2023 called The Funhouse which was one of Double J's longest-running specialty shows at over 350 episodes.^[14] It became available to stream as a podcast on ABC Listen and Spotify.^[15]

Zan Rowe's Take 5 podcast won Gold at the 2020 Australian Podcast Awards for Best Radio Podcast, and Inside The Big Day Out won Silver for the Best Documentary Podcast.^[16]