We are so excited to welcome an incredible group of new programs to the Community Radio Network (CRN) for you to enjoy throughout 2026. We get to know the program makers behind these new shows by asking them some questions about their program, their station and what inspires them to make radio every week. If you're already a subscriber we look forward to hearing what you and your listeners think of this new programming, and if you haven't subscribed to the CRN yet there's never been a better time
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You may recognise Donskibeat and her incredible sounds from a short run in Extras last year – we loved it so much we decided to bring you Salt Peanuts all year round.
If you’re not familiar Salt Peanuts is designed for the curious listener ready to climb the jazz tree. Swinging from be-bop to hip-hop and everything in between. Whether you're drawn to the sophisticated harmonies of classic jazz, the groove of contemporary soul-jazz, or the experimental edges where genres blur, there’s something here for you.
What inspired you to start Salt Peanuts?
Sharing my music collection has always been a joy. There’s a special magic in uncovering the stories behind the records—the labels, the artists’ backgrounds, and the connections that tie everything together.
When the chance to try my hand at radio came up, it felt like a natural extension of my passions. Music has always been a source of inspiration, and writing has been a way for me to express that. Jazz, in particular, offers both a sense of freedom and structure, and it fascinates me on so many levels. It’s relaxing, meditative, and nourishing for the soul.
What makes you most excited about joining the Community Radio Network?
What excites me most about joining the CRN is the incredible opportunity to share diverse and contemporary artists with a wider audience. I’ve always been passionate about sharing new or lesser known music, and CRN provides a platform to introduce emerging voices. There’s something uniquely fulfilling about presenting listeners with fresh sounds and new artists they may not have encountered otherwise, helping to broaden their musical horizons.
I’m excited about being part of a network that amplifies diverse voices and ideas and connect with a larger dialogue creating meaningful conversations and a sense of belonging for all involved.
Salt Peanuts will broadcast on CRN on Fridays at 18:04 AEST/AEDT - 55’50 duration
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The Sound of Now - JOY 94.9
The Sound of Now is the home of the new music you need to hear. Hosted by passionate music fans Triana Butler and Alana Rosso, it's a weekly look at the best, most talked about, and most exciting new music, particularly highlighting new releases from Australian and LGBTQIA+ artists. Each week you'll hear the biggest new releases, new artists you need to know, the acts touring the country right now, and the latest releases from Australian and LGBTQIA+ artists. Australia's music scene produces some of the best, most forward-thinking music in the world, and The Sound of Now seeks to bring those artists front and centre.
How and when did you first connect with community radio?
Triana: I started really young! I got my start at SYN FM in Melbourne, and then after graduating from SYN moved to JOY, just as I began coming out publicly as trans.
Throughout my career, radio has been the perfect space to consciously practice being the version of myself that I want to be.
Alana: JOY has been my first foray into community radio! I'm still pretty new to the industry but I've learned a lot since joining the JOY team.
Shout out one Australian artist you think more people should be listening to right now!
Alana: Triana and I are obsessed with Blusher - from their unbelievably catchy pop songs to their mesmerising choreography, they're the girl band we need in 2026. They're gaining more and more fans every day, but I still think they're not getting the listens they deserve!
Triana: I mean, this is the whole show, right? You could ask us this any given week and we’d both have different answers for you. How can I choose one? I’m a huge fan of Mallrat, Ninajirachi, 2charm, and Cry Club. I think FRIDAY* is doing some really fun creative work right now, and I can’t wait to see how that project evolves. RARIA is a pop superstar in the making. It feels like Robert Baxter being a superstar is inevitable. Rieplay has massive potential as a music producer, and Yorke has an unreal work ethic. It’s a really exciting time to be around Australian music.
The Sound of Now will broadcast on CRN on Fridays at 22:00 AEST/AEDT - 55’50 duration
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The First Australian Music Hour - Main FM
The First Australian Music Hour is a weekly music program that platforms First Nations artists. It gets across a range of musical genres and features established, well known performers as well as emerging young artists.
Presented by Steve Norwood the show draws on commercially available recordings as well as music that's made in remote communities plus the occasional interview.
Tell us about your station! What do you love most about being a broadcaster at MainFM?
MainFM has a truly diverse array of programs and some very talented presenters. It's great to have a station that supports its community and fosters a sense of camaraderie.
What inspired you to start The First Australian Music Hour?
I've always enjoyed Australian music and have an interest in music that helps people connect. My first show played a mix of bands but as I expanded my library of Indigenous Australian performers, I’ve specialised in a show that played that music.
I think music is a great vehicle for reviving and preserving Australian indigenous languages.
What 3 words best describe your show?
Reconciliation. Diverse. Welcoming.
The First Australian Music Hour will broadcast on CRN on Mondays at 22:00 AEDT/AEST - 55’50 duration
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Dr Cat is putting science under the microscope and bringing the joys of science to the airwaves. Explore everything, from the ever-expanding cosmos to microscopic cells in our bodies, and the animal QUEENdom to biases inherent in machine learning algorithms.
Each episode breaks down concepts you may have heard of but might not totally cell-ebrate – yet – alongside chats with LGBTQIA+ scientists (and their allies). It’s a space to learn, laugh, and experiment with ideas at the intersection of queerness and science.
joy
What’s been a highlight of your program so far?
Coming up with punny episode titles has been really fun – think “Cloudy with a Chance of Bias” for an episode on bias in AI and the data cloud and “Nature Bi Design” for one on animals that swing both ways.
Some of my favourite episodes have been playful takes on LGBTQIA+ stories in science. For example, I’ve explored the queer stories in space (e.g. same-sex hook-ups between Greek Gods in the constellations and non-binary star systems), and animals that change sex or go for same-sex sex.
I also have to mention that time I sang on air, revising the words to pop songs to teach scientific concepts!
What makes you most excited about getting your program out on the Community Radio Network?
Getting Science Queeries out on the Community Radio Network means the chance to connect with even more people and communities.
Community radio is all about sharing stories and perspectives that don’t always get mainstream airtime, and I love that I can bring queer, curious, pun-filled science to listeners right across the country.
The idea that someone, somewhere, might tune in and feel a bit more seen – or a bit more excited about science – is pretty amazing.
Science Queeries will broadcast on CRN on Tuesdays at 10:32 AEST/AEDT - 27’50 duration
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The Tuckshop - 2SER
The Tuckshop is your place to dig into the best new Australian music. From rock to pop to hip hop and soul, hosts Mick Radojkovic and Jules LeFevre will bring you the freshest new tracks from all around the country. Plus, catch interviews with your favourite emerging and established Australian acts.
This show will give you the information you want to know about the newest homegrown music, as well as bringing you new Indigenous music every week, songs from artists you’ve probably not heard of but need to know and all the background behind them so you too can promote your favourite new artist to your friends and family!
Tell us a little bit about yourself!
Jules: Hello! I’ve been a music journalist for over a decade now. These days you’ll find my writing work in The Sydney Morning Herald and the Australian, and I’ve written for a wide variety of publications over the years – including Rolling Stone, NME, Vice, The Big Issue, and more. Aside from all that, I’m a mad Sydney Swans fan, and I live in Sydney with my partner, my two cats, and a steadily growing army of houseplants.
Mick: A lifelong Australian music and radio fan who used to sneak into my favourite radio station at the age of 15 just to feel the thrill of being on air! I’ve written about music for over 20 years and still strive to listen to as much new and love music as I can in between watching footy, cricket and my waistline!
Tell us about your station! What do you love most about being a broadcaster at 2SER?
Jules: I love the sense of community and the passion that every host and producer has for their show.
Everyone deeply cares about what they’re working on – whether that’s music, politics, art, culture, local news. In a city as big and chaotic as Sydney, 2SER still feels like a genuine community station.
Mick: 2SER is the best of everything you want in a radio station. Informative, independent news, up-and-coming journalists that bring fresh community stories to air accompanied with a wide array of music shows that cater to every taste and are not afraid to bring you something new! It’s a privilege to be a part of a station that is powering towards 50 years on-air.
What 3 words best describe your show?
Jules: Eclectic. Fun. Passionate.
Mick: What Jules said!
The Tuckshop will be broadcast on CRN on Thursdays at 22:00 AEST/AEDT - 55’50 duration
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Radio Reversal - 4ZZZ
Radio Reversal brings together original research, interviews, field recordings and in-studio discussions to ask big questions about the world around us. We explore exciting examples of collective resistance, activist scholarship and creative rebellion, offering a critical look at the everyday work of political transformation and the struggles we encounter along the way.
What inspired you to start Radio Reversal?
Radio Reversal began in 2012 when our OG producers, Briohny Walker & Fern Thompsett, had just finished their honours degrees in anthropology and philosophy respectively, and were in the process of figuring out what the heck to do next. They had been experimenting with philosophy reading groups and book clubs, and realising that there was an appetite among our friends and peers for fun and accessible discussions of big philosophical and political ideas.
The program emerged during the same period of time as our sister project, Brisbane Free University, hot on the heels of the major revolutionary struggles of the late 2000s and early 2010s - including the Occupy movement, the Arab Spring, and the first Black Lives Matter movements. The show was part of a wave of anarchist programming that sought to create space for DIY education and learning; finding ways to share ideas and build new knowledge together, without a paywall.
This remains the core commitment and driver of Radio Reversal: a dedication to making political theory accessible and joyful, and to amplifying the incredible work that communities are already doing to make another world possible.
What makes you most excited about getting your program out on the Community Radio Network?
We are excited about the opportunity to get our programming out to a wider audience, and to ensure that the incredible voices we broadcast each week can be heard across the country.
We feel very lucky to have the kinds of conversations that we get to have on the radio each week, and we want to share them with as many people as possible! Agitate, educate, organise!
Radio Reversal will broadcast on CRN on Thursdays at 18:32AEST/AEDT - 55’50 duration
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Short Form Content
From Pillar to Post - CBAA
The CBAA’s own podcast connecting communities and changemakers will be now also available on the Community Radio Network!
Hosted by CBAA Political Reporter Noah Secomb, each approx.14-minute episode offers a fresh, accessible space for socially and politically curious Australians aged 18–30 to explore the stories that impact our communities. While created with young listeners in mind, From Pillar to Post is for anyone interested in real conversations about the way decisions are made, and felt, across Australia.
Through thought-provoking discussions that centre lived experiences, community voices and independent media, the podcast builds connections between the decision-makers in government and the grassroots practitioners reporting on the issues that matter.
From Pillar to Post will broadcast on CRN on Tuesdays at 13:04 AEST/AEDT - Approx 14’00 duration
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Coming to the grid from this month catch a weekly two-part short broadcast of all the best match highlights from the season. Presented by AFL Indigenous Broadcasting with NIRS.
AFL Match Highlights will broadcast on CRN on Mondays at 17:30 AEST/AEDT - Approx 10'00 duration