Listen Up with Ash McGregor

Hooligan Hefs is the Western Sydney rapper putting Australia on the map. We go right back to the beginning growing up in the 2767, Doonside, making music in a mate's wardrobe with soundproofing and doing it purely for the boys before the rest of the world caught on. We get into what it really means to come up in Western Sydney, why staying independent when the label contracts started rolling i...

Kita 's story is one of naivety, guts and manifesting things into existence (which we do a lot of in this episode). We dive into the story that took her from SoundCloud demos and cold-emailing management teams to touring with Dua Lipa and pitching Fisher's 'Atmosphere' . One thing you'll learn quickly: rose-coloured glasses may get you further than you think in this industry. W...

If you're into Ocean Alley or SIX60, South Summit are a band to get on your radar. Today I sit down with Zaya and Nemo, one half of Australia's most exciting reggae-rock acts. In this episode, we go right back to growing up in a 3,000-person mining town in the Pilbara of Western Australia, moving to Perth on rugby scholarships, boarding school, and the random Covid jam session that turned into the...

Ten years ago, Caleb and Kieran of Spacey Jane were busking on the main street of Geraldton, getting paid $20 to play Riptide on repeat. Today, Spacey Jane are the face of Australian indie rock and they've just released their rawest project yet, Exit Wounds . In this episode, I sit down with two of my good friends to take it all the way back to day one: how a mum asking a favour at a high scho...

Genesis Owusu has built a reputation as one of the most fearless and genre-defying artists in modern music. From the explosive success of albums like ' Smiling With No Teeth ' and ' STRUGGLER ' to praise from public figures as unexpected as Barack Obama, Genesis' creations have aways been larger than life. Now, with his third studio album ' REDSTAR WU & THE WORLDWIDE SCOURGE ' , he’s turning h...

Melanie C , best known as Sporty Spice from the Spice Girls, is one of the most recognisable voices of a generation, she redefined pop music and global fame in the late ’90s. In this episode, Melanie takes us back to growing up just outside of Liverpool, being handed a flyer to audition for what would become the Spice Girls, and her first impressions of the group that would change her life forever...

Vanessa Amorosi had one of the most explosive starts to a career in Australian music history. Within a year of releasing her debut music, she was performing on one of the biggest stages in the world - opening and closing the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. But the story started long before that, years of dedication and grinding. In this episode, Vanessa takes us back to growing up in a very musical hou...

Canadian rock band The Beaches have spent years building their story from teenage bandmates to one of the most exciting names in modern rock. In this episode, sisters Jordan and Kylie join the podcast to take it all the way back to their first band Done with Dolls , and the early years of growing up making music together. We talk about navigating the music industry as a female rock band, the momen...

Sydney psych-rock project Velvet Trip might feel like a new name on the scene, but the journey behind it is anything but conventional. In this episode, Zeppelin Hamilton takes us back to the beginning, growing up surrounded by some of the world’s best blues musicians in his family home, and nearly taking a completely different path as a professional skateboarder. From hitchhiking from Sydney to Da...

Meg Mac has been one of Australia’s most distinctive voices for over a decade. From her breakout track Known Better , which exploded on triple j Unearthed, to fan favourites like Grandma’s Hands and Roll Up Your Sleeves , she’s built a career defined by powerful vocals and deeply personal songwriting. Her 2019 album Matter of Time even debuted at #1 on the ARIA charts cementing her as a staple of...

Wisp's breakout single Your Face exploded online and pulled her straight onto the global stage, almost overnight. But behind the viral moment is an artist who grew up immersed in discipline and craft. Raised in San Francisco, Wisp trained as a ballerina and violinist before stepping into shoegaze - a genre known for both devotion and scrutiny. In this episode, we talk about what it really means to...

Cavetown grew up uploading songs to YouTube at 14, building a global audience before he’d even finished school. What began as bedroom covers and self-produced tracks quietly turned into billions of streams and one of indie pop’s most devoted fanbases. But growing up online comes with its own challenges. In this episode, Cavetown reflects on evolving in public, from being known for the songs he wro...

Hazlett didn’t grow up chasing music, nor fame and fortune. He started his solo career at 26 after years of playing bass and a stint in advertising. In this episode, Hazlett reflects on what it really means to back yourself later than most, the leap that took him from Australia to Sweden, and the creative partnership with producer Freddy Alexander that helped shape the sound he’s now known for. We...

New Zealand brothers Balu Brigada have been building this for years. Writing everything themselves, producing everything themselves, no shortcuts. With their latest album Portal, that steady grind turned into real momentum. Nearly 5 million monthly listeners, global tours with Twenty One Pilots , and a fanbase that’s catching up. In this episode, we talk about the shift from early R&B influenc...

Before stepping on stage for one of his biggest Australian arena shows, YUNGBLUD sits down for a conversation about identity, ambition, and the weight of legacy. In this episode, we go deep into the creation of his third studio album 'Idols', an album born from pushing himself to the brink, questioning the persona he built, and rediscovering who he is. YUNGBLUD opens up about chasing something rea...

Good Neighbours didn’t expect this to work. After years of trying to make it in music, the duo started Good Neighbours as a one last chance. No expectations, no long-term plan. Then Home took off, and everything changed. In this episode they open up about the moment they almost quit music for good, how a project started on a whim became their breakthrough, and the full-circle reality of sitting in...

Few bands have left a mark on Australian music quite like The Temper Trap . From their early days in Melbourne to the slow-burning rise of Sweet Disposition , the band became one of Australia’s most beloved exports. In 2025, The Temper Trap returned with Giving Up Air , their first new music in nine years, marking the beginning of a long-awaited new chapter. Recorded live on stage at Beyond the Va...

I'm backkkk! Happy 2026! Silly season has truly been silly, lots of food, lots of events, lots of gigs and rounding out the year at Beyond the Valley. Let's catch up! Plus, I want to put you on to the act that has SZA talking, Maden Lane . ------ Podcast setup brought to you by RØDE: RCDUO PodMic NTH-100 PSA1+ WS14 As part of the RØDE Affiliate Program, purchases made through  ⁠⁠⁠https://brandstor...

Nashville pop artist Thomas Day has lived multiple versions of an artist’s dream. After breaking through as a teenage heartthrob on America’s Got Talent, Thomas signed to a major label and was quickly positioned for pop perfection. But it wasn’t until he stepped away from polish and leaned into raw, imperfect recordings that his music truly connected; culminating in the breakout success of “ She G...

SIX60 are New Zealand’s biggest band, and their rise is anything but conventional. Formed while studying in Dunedin, the group slowly built a grassroots following before becoming a stadium-selling force across Aotearoa. Along the way, they’ve rewritten the rules of success for Australasian bands, including a period during COVID when they were one of the only bands in the world able to tour, sellin...

Australian producer CYRIL has become one of the country’s most unlikely success stories. From growing up regionally, experiencing homelessness, and battling drug addiction; all while never letting go of his passion for producing. In just two years, he’s amassed over 1.8 billion streams and quickly became one of Australia's biggest exports. In this episode of Listen Up with Ash McGregor , CYRIL ope...

Larissa Lambert is one of Australia’s brightest R&B stars with over 200 million streams to the name.  Her story has never been linear - it’s a series of sliding doors moments. In this episode, we trace the chain of chances that built her career: from her pizza shop boss who paid for her to attend a talent camp, to saying yes to an X-Factor girl group in 2014, to backing herself as a solo artis...

Florence Road are one of the most exciting new bands to erupt out of Ireland. They’ve gone from making noise in a backyard shed to catching fire online, selling out rooms, and landing on massive international festival lineups and tour supports. In this episode, the band sits down with Ash McGregor for a proper introduction: their childhoods in Ireland, how they formed, and the moment a viral clip...

It's gigs on gigs on gigs over here! Let me catch you up on what I've seen lately and why we need to support local emerging artists when internationals tour. Plus you need to learn about Pamela. , Sophian and this stunning collab between Joan & the Giants and Seb Szabo . Listen to all the tracks here: ⁠⁠⁠The A-List⁠⁠⁠ , updated every Friday. ------ Podcast setup brought to you by RØDE: RCDUO P...

Royel Otis join Ash to reminisce on the last 5 years, from writing songs in Sydney sunrooms to accidentally blowing up and becoming a household name. Royel Otis are a Sydney-born indie duo (Royel Maddell and Otis Pavlovic) who formed in 2019. Their 2024 debut album PRATTS & PAIN broke into the ARIA top 10, and by the end of the year they’d sold out shows globally, played major festivals and qu...