After half a decade of steering triple j’s Home & Hosed and championing some of Australia’s brightest new stars, Ash McGregor is back with a brand new mission – and she’s calling it Listen Up.
Billed as a bold new podcast-meets-community, Listen Up is part deep-dive interview series, part tastemaker guide, and part cultural movement, creating a space that brings heart, context, and ~actual human connection~ back to music discovery in a world overrun by algorithms.
“Fans are craving a human voice”
“Fans are craving a human voice,” McGregor shares in a press statement. “Listen Up is about meaningful connections – giving artists the space to tell their full story, and giving fans a place to find new favourites they won’t get from a playlist shuffle.”
The podcast will drop two episodes a week, mixing longform sit-downs with big names and spotlight sessions for the next generation of artists. Early guests include Calum Hood (5 Seconds of Summer) and viral rap star YNG Martyr, with episodes recorded at Spotify Studios in Los Angeles.
But Listen Up is shaping up to be more than just another podcast. Beyond Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube, the community will also live on TikTok, Discord, Patreon and IRL events, complete with livestreams, curated playlists and fan participation. Think of it as a global artist lounge with an Aussie soul.
Supported by Untitled Group (the powerhouse behind Beyond The Valley and Pitch), Listen Up will also hit the festival circuit this summer, hosting a live deep-dive session from the Beyond The Valley podcast stage.
Earlier this year, McGregor was awarded the Creative Australia Fellowship for her contribution to Aussie music culture – a fitting nod to someone fast becoming the modern Molly Meldrum: trusted, authentic, and deeply passionate about amplifying creativity.
From MTV to triple j, McGregor has built her rep as one of Australia’s most empathetic and well-researched interviewers – the kind of host artists actually want to talk to. With Listen Up, she’s doubling down on that ethos, creating the music conversation fans have been missing.
Keep an ear out for Listen Up dropping weekly across all platforms very, very soon.
Further Reading
Dr. Karl Breaks Down The Scientific Accuracy Of Addison Rae’s ‘Diet Pepsi’
triple j’s Hottest 100 Of Australian Songs: The Complete List
triple j’s 100 Best Unearthed Discoveries: The Complete List
