Last Thursday from 3pm-6pm, 4ZZZ was set up at Goolwal Goolwal BIGSOUND for an outside broadcast celebrating First Nations music!

The afternoon was hosted by Tabatha, our First Nations Community Engagement Coordinator and host of Soul-Jah Sistars and Kihi of Indigi-Briz. They brought several artists to the airwaves including Coloured Stone, Roger Knox and Tasman Keith.

It was a very special afternoon of storytelling, inpiring conversations and amazing music. Thank you to Tab and Kihi!

Our first collaboration night with Season Three as curated by Pale Interior sold out! Thank you so much to everyone that came along!

Handpicked by Dane and Klaire who host the program, the amazing lineup features Blind Girls, hotchkiss and yorohaerte. It was a really special celebration of Magandjin's DIY community and the local screamo bands at the core of Pale Interior.

A huge thank you to Season Three for making these community led and focused nights possible. The 4ZZZ x Season Three takeovers will happen the last Thursday of each month and will be curated by a different 4ZZZ program. They are all put on by community for community and would not be possible without the support of our friends at Season Three! A thank you to Natalia and TJ 4ZZZ volunteers for doing sound for the night too.

RandomiZZZed has just announced the release of Alive @ Midnight - Volume 1! The compilation features 17 emerging and established musicians from various artists from predominantly Magandjin/Brisbane.

Most of the performances were recorded live to air during the broadcast of RandomiZZZed each week on Thursday midnight into the early hours radio.

Alive @ Midnight - Volume 1 is a tribute to the creativity, musicianship, good humour and resilience of the musicians who braved a late-night appearance on late night live radio for long-form conversations and intimate, lo-fi performances.

On the release, Owen who hosts RandomiZZZed says, ‘The motivation for this release was to share the raw and intimate experience of having musicians performing live in studio in the late hours. The vibe is friends sitting around the kitchen table in an old Queenslander having a bevy, a yarn and singalong."

Alive @ Midnight - Volume 1 is out September 8th and will be available through Bandcamp with proceeds to be donated to 4ZZZ.

4ZZZ is a finalist for the CBAA Award for Excellence in Community Engagement!

The nomination is for our 50th Anniversary Programming and Events! Last year, 4ZZZ had countless panels, exhibitions, music gigs and events in celebration of the 50th year of the station. From ZED50, to Zed Talks discussing First Nations and Queer broadcasting, bush walks, boat parties and more!

This award nomination goes to all our volunteers, staff and community members that worked tirelessly to make sure all the events happened, to those that attended an event or have been apart of the station's journey in some shape or form.

A shoutout to other community radio stations that are also finalists in the category including:

• 40th Birthday Events Series - 3MDR 97.1 FM
• Where Communities Speak for Themselves - 3ZZZ
• CAAMA Radio x TikTok Live: Expanding Community Broadcasting CAAMA Radio
• Celebrating 50 Years of Broadcasting - Let's Celebrate - 3MBS Melbourne 103.5FM
• Heart For The Homeless (Perth) - Sonshine (98five)

Thank you to all of our community, listeners and volunteers!

Thank you so much to everyone that came out for Sounds Like Community Radio on Wednesday! It is truely one of our favourite days of the year, particularly the opportunity to celebrate all that is community radio with stations across Australia and the artists at the centre of it.

Out in the carpark and Studio 3, we got to revel in the bands at the heart of commuity radio from around Australia including Milly Strange, Djawarray, Public Figures, Say True God?, Super Hotel and Joey Leigh Wagtail.

A massive shoutout to Daria from The Arrivals Lounge and Exit Stage Zed and Claire from Right Here Right Now and The Hangover for hosting the afternoon across the airwaves. They had moving and really beautiful conversations with different community stations across Australia all about community, connection and music. 

Last week during BIGSOUND, 4ZZZ was apart of the AMRAP Listening Sessions where artists were able to meet music directors and volunteers from community radio stations and learn about how to get their music heard.

Our amazing music department wizard, Daria, represented 4ZZZ at the session and helped countless artists learn about our music processes, how to submit music and get heard across our 102.1FM airwaves.

Thank you so much to Daria! If you missed the session and want to learn about how to submit your music to 4ZZZ and get in touch with our music department, click here!

Our incredible longtime volunteer and announcer, Dr. Heather Anderson is a finalist in the Women in Music Awards for the Music Journalist Award!

This category recognises a female or gender-diverse music journalist, blogger or editor who has made a creative contribution and courageous impact in truth telling and innovative reporting in the Australian Music Industry.

Dr. Heather Anderson’s book, People Powered Radio, is central in capturing the oral and archival histories of 4ZZZ. The rich and deeply researched book documents the lasting contributions that 4ZZZ has made to promoting independent music, producing alternative news and fostering community.

This achievement is a real testament to the importance of Heather's book and the hard work, love and passion that went into People Powered Radio.

Huge congratulations to Heather!

That Sound over The Fence Festival was such a lovely day full of community and amazing music with bands that we know and love at 4ZZZ! 

Thank you so much to Jack and Branko from Zang! Records for the amazing festival, all the incredible bands that played, 4ZZZ volunteers that worked the event and everyone who attended.

All profits from the event were donated to 4ZZZ. Your support keeps us alive and on-air, broadcasting local music that you wouldn’t hear anywhere else!

We've wrapped up Radiothon, our biggest subscriber drive and annual fundraiser of the year!

We want to say a massive thank you to everyone who subscribed during the campaign! Whether it was your first time subscribing to 4ZZZ or you've been apart of the 4ZZZ family for decades, your support keeps us alive and broadcasting underrepresented voices and perspectives that you wouldn't be able to hear anywhere else.

At 4ZZZ, programs and announcer's have autonomy to platform their passions. We're only able to amplify the sounds, ideas and issues of our community because of our subscribers. Thank you so much for supporting independent media!

We also want to say a huge thank you to all of our volunteers. Everyone packing your subscription packs, putting extra effort into their Radiothon special show, selling merch or working door at a Radiothon event is a volunteer. We wouldn't be here without our incredible volunteers.

Thank you so much for your support and keeping us alive!

A couple months back, Dr. Heather Anderson was a speaker at the TEDxBrisbane. Her talk, "Why Minority Ideas Change The World" explored the power of community radio to promote social justice. The talk has now been published and is available to watch!

As a long time Zed volunteer, community media scholar and journalist whose work examines how alternative media creates spaces for voices excluded in mainstream narratives. It was such an insightful and inspiring talk!

The first few days of interaction with the video have an impact on the future visibility of the TEDX video of Heather's speech, so if you have a spare second, we highly recommend giving it a listen. 

Watch Heather's Talk Here...