“I’m in my happy place.” Aimee Craig’s wild radio ride

When Aimee Craig and Harry Boucher were recently catapulted 90 metres into the air on a daredevil amusement attraction called the Gold Coast Slingshot, it was a fitting metaphor for the wild ride that awaited them.

Eight years ago, Aimee and Harry were mates working together on Melbourne community radio.

Tonight, they officially go national on SCA’s Hit Network – hosting The Summer Hot Hits.

And they’ve both been working their tails off in the lead up, hosting the Harry & Aimee Sunday Breakfast show together on 90.9 Sea FM.

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Ahead of their first show on National Nights, Radio Today caught up with Aimee – Sea FM’s Workday Announcer – who says “I feel so lucky to be working with Harry.”

Of their weekend show, Aimee says “The beauty of it is we’re genuine friends who aren’t afraid to zip-line over crocodiles and laugh at ourselves, but can also get a little vulnerable on air with the Gold Coast.”

“It’s rogue, silly and fun.”

It’s also the realisation of a dream.

“I’ve been chasing a media career since the days my sister and I forced family and friends to watch our ‘TV shows’ and theatrical performances,” Aimee laughs.

Growing up in Melbourne, Aimee says “It was always a loud, music-filled, people-everywhere kind of home.”

Radio officially came into Aimee’s orbit when she started a Diploma in Broadcast Journalism at Swinburne University.

One of the radio units in the course required students to create and broadcast a radio show on community station SYN.

Aimee was immediately hooked.

“I just never left. It became my happy place and the start of everything for me.”

Media and drama were Aimee’s strongest subjects in high school.

“I knew I wanted a career in the industry, but I wasn’t sure exactly where I’d fit,” she says. “I dreamed of doing TV, hosting red carpet events or my favourite reality shows.”

Aimee honed her craft at SYN, broadcasting across Breakfast, Afternoons, weekend specialty shows and everything in between.

She also became a trainer, teaching media courses to other volunteers, university groups and TAFE courses across Melbourne.

Aimee even taught young people in an all-boys youth prison how to create their own podcasts, an experience she says was a real eye opener.

“Driving out to regional Victoria a few times a week to build real connections with them and help them create truly one-of-a-kind content was something I’ll never forget.”

Aimee hustled hard in her pursuit of her on-air goal, demoing for every regional show across SCA and ARN whilst gaining as much experience as she could.

There was also a stint in Canada, where Aimee completed an internship with Virgin Radio in Toronto and taught radio courses to kids at a summer camp.

Just before the Covid years kicked in, Aimee flew home to Melbourne, where she started as a street teamer with NOVA Entertainment, working her way up to Promotions Manager and casually producing for Kate, Tim & Joel.

But the on-air itch never went away.

Aimee kept pulling on-air shifts at both SYN and JOY Media to rack up her ‘flying hours.’

Then a daytime announcing position became available in Bendigo.

“With Mel Tracina and Maddy Rowe’s encouragement (and a good word to my future boss, Leroy Brown – thanks, Mel & Maddy!), I landed the gig,” Aimee smiles.

And she’s never looked back.

“I’ve worked in Bendigo and Hobart, and now I’m loving life on the Gold Coast.”

This year, in addition to hosting Sea FM Workdays, Aimee and Harry – an announcer and producer with Sea FM’s Bronte & Lakey Breakfast show – teamed up to launch their Sunday show.

Guests have included Tommy Little, Mike Goldman, Samantha Jade, Sheppard, Ned Brockman, Charli Robinson and Jimmy Rees, to name a few.

“It’s honestly become a highlight of my week,” says Aimee. “Getting to tap into that creative, content-making side of my brain has been so much fun!”

Career highlights to date include ringing in New Year’s Eve on the Hit Network across the country with Ellie Angel-Mobbs and co-hosting Travel Oz on 7+ with Sarah Maree Cameron.

Her side hustle – Aimee’s Adventures – has also taken off.

“Local businesses reach out so I can experience what they offer and I post on socials about it,” Aimee explains. “You can see these on the Sea FM socials as well as across mine (@itsaimeecraig).”

Supporting the radio journey is her partner Leigh, who has moved across three different states with Aimee.

She has an enduring cheer squad – both in radio and in life.

92.7 Mix FM Breakfast host Annabelle ‘A.B’ Brett is full of praise for Aimee’s talent and resilience, telling Radio Today “Aimee has faced a lot of knock backs and pivots in her career but she’s not once let this hold her back. She just keeps pushing and putting out quality, so it’s incredible to see these opportunities finally coming to her!”

Aimee says “I’m in such a fortunate position to have such AMAZING mentors and to be surrounded by incredible, kick-ass women.”

“Mel Tracina, Ellie Angel-Mobbs, Annabelle Brett, Maddy Rowe and Sarah Maree Cameron were all instrumental in helping me get my start and continue to support me today.”

“I was always a HUGE fan of Ash London, Smallzy, Carrie & Tommy and Maz Compton – I’d listen to their shows and their timeslots back when I was dreaming of working in commercial radio myself.”

As to where she sees herself further down the track, Aimee says “I’d love a Mel Tracina–style career trajectory –  killing it on the radio airwaves while also hosting a TV show.”

For now, Aimee’s goal is to keep building both the show with Harry and her idyllic life on the Goldy, where she and Leigh recently bought a house.

“I’m deep in my interior-designing era,” says Aimee. “I’m obsessed with Bunnings and Kmart trips!”

Aimee’s also grabbing whatever spare hours she can to immerse herself in her favourite pastimes: line dancing, frequenting theme parks, brunching with Leigh, cuddling her cat and leaf insects and watching reality TV.

“I’m convinced I was meant to be a Kardashian sister.”

Images supplied.