Gotye takes out number one spot on Hottest 100

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26 Jan 2012

This year’s number one spot on Triple J’s hottest 100 was secured by Gotye, with the song Somebody That I Used To Know. He's no stranger to the Hottest 100, having landed songs in the 2010 and 2006 lists.

2011 was the biggest year yet for Gotye and the year in which the world finally woke up to his talents according to triple j’s hottest 100 voters.

"This song took a long time to come together," Goyte (Wally De Backer) told Richard Kingsmill. "I'm no stranger to taking long times to finish some songs, but it didn't feel as laborious, somehow, or as much of a challenge as this. Somebody That I Used To Know felt much, much closer to the too hard basket a lot of the time and felt very close to me going, 'No, I can't actually listen to this song any more.'"

triple j’s Acting Music Director Nick Findlay said of the song: “It was pretty obvious from the first time we started playing Somebody That I Used To Know, back in July, that we had something truly special in our hands. It was how quickly it rose to being one of the biggest songs on the planet, that really took us all by surprise. It is a satisfying acknowledgement of just how much of a musical mastermind Wally DeBacker is.”

Around the country triple j listeners held hottest 100 Australia Day parties in what has become an Australia Day radio tradition. The countdown began at midday and parties all over the country were acknowledged on air as part of the day long special programming on the ABC’s national youth network.

Over 1700 parties were registered in NSW, with about 1100 held in Victoria.

Each year more and more people have their say in the world’s biggest musical democracy and this year was no exception. 158,258 voters from 144 countries registered 1,378,869 million votes (up 9% on last year) in triple j’s Hottest 100. Add to that 3924 Hottest 100 parties held by listeners across Australia and internationally – and this was the station's biggest poll yet.

2011 was an incredible year for Australian music with 34 Australian artists and 44 Australian songs claiming their place in the Hottest 100. Making an appearance were old favourites Bluejuice, Jebediah, Hilltop Hoods and The Grates. As well as artists making a name for themselves in recent years like Architecture In Helsinki, Art vs Science and The Jezabels. With triple j’s playlist including 50% Australian music in 2011, it is great to see this reflected in our listeners’ tastes.

2011 was also a huge year for Unearthed artists. The ongoing success story of 2010 Unearthed J Award winners Boy & Bear, who took out two places in 2010 Hottest 100, sees them land another three spots in this year’s Hottest 100. Unearthed High alumni Stonefield and Snakadaktal both made an appearance, as did 2011 Unearthed J Award winners Ball Park Music. With the launch of triple j Unearthed on digital radio earlier in 2011, not only are triple j unearthing more artists than ever, more triple j listeners are discovering artists through this expanding channel.

The top ten songs for 2011 were:

#10: Hilltop Hoods - I Love It {Ft. Sia}
#9: The Jezabels - Endless Summer
#8: 360 - Boys Like You {Ft. Gossling}
#7: San Cisco - Awkward
#6: Lana Del Rey - Video Games
#5: M83 - Midnight City
#4: Boy & Bear - Feeding Line
#3: Matt Corby - Brother
#2: The Black Keys - Lonely Boy
#1: Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know {Ft. Kimbra}

For the full list, click the link below.

This year’s record breaking Hottest 100 campaign comes off the back of a huge 2011 for the station; with triple j enjoying its highest ever 5 capital city reach of 1.462 million listeners a week and an average weekly share of 5.3% (including a 15% weekly share among 18-24 year olds).

triple j Manager Chris Scaddan says “triple j’s Hottest 100 really does stop the nation every year on Australia Day as millions of young music lovers all over the world listen to the countdown. It shows that triple j is at the centre of conversations about new music in Australia, whether that’s on the radio, online, mobile, Facebook, Twitter or other social media. This year was another triumph of great music and big parties right across the country. We have a ball doing the Hottest 100 every year and hope that you do too.”

Gotye takes out number one spot on Hottest 100

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