2Day FM To Double Down On Australian Music With Category Change

Sydney’s 2Day FM have doubled down on their commitment to new Australian music, officially becoming Australia’s only metropolitan station to commit to 25% Australian music, with an ACMA category change reflecting their “Hits Before They Hit” format. 

As reported in The Music, Australian radio stations currently self-report their formats, resulting in being able to choose their own format-based quota. While for decades most networks reported under category A for Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR) / top 40 formats (which requires 25% local content), this changed, with stations en mass re-categorising themselves to new formats with lower quotas in 2018/2019 following questions from the music industry around compliance. 

Prior to their shift to the “hits before they hit” format in March, 2Day FM was reporting under the “easy listening” category with a mandate of just 10% local content, but Commercial Radio Australia confirmed to The Music that the format was officially changed this year to category B (hot adult contemporary), moving into line with its peers Nova and Kiis. 

2Day FM have subsequently confirmed that the station has recently shifted to a category A (top 40 / CHR) to represent their progressive, “Australian friendly” music stance, unveiling a raft of new measures to accompany the change to celebrate Aus Music Month. According to the self-categorisation regulation model, 2Day FM now becomes Australia’s only ACMA-registered metropolitan top 40 radio station.

Kiri Martin, Hit Network Senior Music Director, said: “2DayFM is playing more Australian music than ever before, and this November we will dial that up even further in support of AusMusic Month. There are so many great emerging Australian acts, and I’m very proud that they can find a home on commercial radio on 2DayFM.” 

The station’s AusMusic Month commitments will ramp up with Australian artist music features and interviews with emerging talent, support for Aus Music t-shirt day and a six-hour marathon of Australian music from 9am - 3pm on ARIA Awards day, November 19.

The station notes that since its ‘Hits Before They Hit’ format kicked off earlier this year the station has supported new music from artists like Kita Alexander, Ocean Alley, Tobiahs and more. They were also the first commercial station to give across the board support to Keli Holiday’s Dancing2. The station’s AusMusic month plans also cryptically include a “sneak peek at an event you won’t want to duck”. 

Head of Hit Metro Content Amanda Lee said: “AusMusic Month and the ARIA Awards are vital moments for our industry. They shine a light on the incredible creativity and talent coming out of Australia. 2DayFM backs local artists to make sure the best new Australian music is heard, celebrated, and supported.”

With the gauntlet now thrown down to their ambiguously-formatted rivals, it remains to be seen whether Nova (currently streaming with the tag line “Sydney’s Hit Music Station”) or Kiis (currently streaming with the tag line “Sydney’s #1 Hit Music Station) may also reconsider whether they are in fact also category A “contemporary hit radio” formats, or stick to their current “adult contemporary” category B designation, which sees their Australian commitment five percent less than 2Day FM.