Six Rolling Stone Australia staff members each chose three Australian songs in a preview published on July 25, 2025, ahead of triple j’s Hottest 100 of Australian Songs countdown on July 26, 2025. The eighteen picks are personal editorial selections. They are not the official countdown result, and the feature does not explain how the official countdown was voted or where any song finished.
What the feature is, and what it is not
- Publisher and date: Rolling Stone Australia, published July 25, 2025.
- Event previewed: triple j’s Hottest 100 of Australian Songs, a special mid-year countdown scheduled for July 26, 2025. triple j announced it in June 2025 as part of its 50th birthday celebrations.
- Stated focus: the feature describes the countdown as concentrating on “the homegrown artists and tracks that have resonated across generations, and helped define our nation’s sound.”
- Format: six staff members, three picks each. It is not a single ranked staff ballot, and the feature does not assign points or positions to any song.
- Not established: the official voting rules, eligibility criteria and final placement of any song. Nothing in the feature should be read as a prediction of the official result, and the picks are not attributed to triple j.
The six staff lists
The table lists every pick in the order the feature gives them, with each contributor’s title as printed in the feature.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
100 Singalong Songs For Kids | $13.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
|
Walt Disney Records Music CD Teaching Material (M14028) | $4.02 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
|
Music From Great Australian Films (Film Score Re-recording Compilation) | $39.95 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
|
50 Australian Top Ten Hits 1956-1977 | $54.80 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
|
Arhnhem Land: Australian Aboriginal Songs | $8.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| Contributor | Role | Song | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neil Griffiths | Editor-in-Chief | “Two Strong Hearts” | John Farnham |
| Neil Griffiths | Editor-in-Chief | “Innerbloom” | RÜFÜS DU SOL |
| Neil Griffiths | Editor-in-Chief | “Shooting Stars” | Bag Raiders |
| Lars Brandle | Print & Industry Editor | “Cattle and Cane” | The Go-Betweens |
| Lars Brandle | Print & Industry Editor | “Sweetness and Light” | Itch-E and Scratch-E |
| Lars Brandle | Print & Industry Editor | “Better in Blak” | Thelma Plum |
| Conor Lochrie | Deputy Editor | “Comfort” | Julia Jacklin |
| Conor Lochrie | Deputy Editor | “We Will Always Love You” | The Avalanches |
| Conor Lochrie | Deputy Editor | “Work/Life, Gym Etc” | The Shifters |
| Denise Barnes | Head of Organic Video & Social | “Pretty Lady” | Tash Sultana |
| Denise Barnes | Head of Organic Video & Social | “So Caught Up” | The Teskey Brothers |
| Denise Barnes | Head of Organic Video & Social | “Marinade” | Dope Lemon |
| James Di Fabrizio | Head of Creative Strategy | “Into Your Arms” | Nick Cave |
| James Di Fabrizio | Head of Creative Strategy | “Across the Night” | Silverchair |
| James Di Fabrizio | Head of Creative Strategy | “Nakamarra” | Hiatus Kaiyote |
| Sarah Downs | News Writer | “The Less I Know the Better” | Tame Impala |
| Sarah Downs | News Writer | “Are You Gonna Be My Girl” | Jet |
| Sarah Downs | News Writer | “Pressure” | RINI |
What the contributors said
The feature gives individual reasons for some picks. These are staff opinions and recollections, not verified facts or objective rankings, and each quote is attributed to its speaker below.
Neil Griffiths on “Shooting Stars”
Griffiths, Editor-in-Chief, wrote: “It may have been picked up globally as an internet meme, but Australia was blasting this song well before then.” The point is about the song’s domestic history rather than its international profile.
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Denise Barnes on “Pretty Lady”
Barnes, Head of Organic Video & Social, wrote: “It’s the ultimate pick-me-up — I probably listen to it at least ten times a week.” Her pick is framed around personal listening habit.
James Di Fabrizio on “Nakamarra”
Di Fabrizio, Head of Creative Strategy, wrote: “But it all started right here, in Collingwood, with lyrics inspired by the ancient red soil of Australia.” His comment places the song’s origin in a specific Melbourne suburb and in its lyrical source.
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- Full length CD with 30 classic Disney favorites performed by various artists
- Released in 2008
- Produced by Walt Disney Records
Conor Lochrie on “Comfort”
Lochrie, Deputy Editor, wrote: “Jacklin is one of Australia’s finest songwriters because she writes from the heart.” The comment is a judgment about Julia Jacklin as a writer rather than a claim about chart performance.
Patterns across the eighteen picks
The lists can be read in a few ways. These observations are our analysis of the picks, not a ranking supplied by the feature.
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →- Genre spread: the feature frames the selections as spanning Australian pop, rock, electronic, indie, punk and soul, so the lists do not cluster around one sound.
- No repeats: all eighteen songs are by different artists, and no song appears on more than one list. The six staff members did not converge on a shared core.
- Established and newer names: the lists mix long-established acts such as The Go-Betweens, John Farnham and Nick Cave with names that are newer by comparison, such as RINI and Tash Sultana.
- Familiar and less obvious picks: several choices, such as “Two Strong Hearts” and “Into Your Arms”, are widely recognisable songs, while others, such as “Marinade” and “Nakamarra”, are the kind of pick a reader is less likely to hear on a general playlist.
Listening to the picks
One contributor mentions Spotify Song Radio as a listening context for a pick. The feature does not extend that suggestion to the full list, so readers who want to hear all eighteen songs will need to search for each track individually.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What this article does not report
The feature was published before the countdown aired, so it cannot tell you how the songs finished. For the official ranking of the Hottest 100 of Australian Songs, consult triple j’s own published results for the July 26, 2025 countdown. The Rolling Stone picks are a separate, editorial set of opinions.
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