Richard Kingsmill departs the ABC and triple j

After three decades guiding triple j, Double J and ABC Country, Group Music Director Richard Kingsmill is leaving the national broadcaster.

Starting on air at triple j hosting the J-Files, Kingsmill would go on to produce and present The Australian Music Show for a decade, being instrumental to the creation of triple j Unearthed.

He said:

“Coming up with the Unearthed brand and initial concept was one thing. Being able to uncover the likes of Missy Higgins, Grinspoon, G Flip and Genesis Owusu is one of the great thrills and privileges for me.”

He became triple j Music Director in 2003 and their Group Music Director in 2017, overseeing music content at triple j, triple j Unearthed, Double J, ABC Country, ABC Local Radio and this year triple j’s Hottest.

Of his time with the ABC, Kingsmill said:

 “I started with a lot of passion, but pretty modest skills to be honest. I’m incredibly grateful in how the ABC kept encouraging me to grow and gave me time to develop. I’ve worked with so many amazing and talented people, you can’t help but learn and be inspired every single day. I started with two main loves – music and radio. Those have been constants for me across all these years.

When the triple j team works together, at Splendour In The Grass or on a Hottest 100, it’s the greatest feeling ever. We drive each other, we all pull our weight, and we think about the audience, and what they expect and want from us. The dedication to what we do is something I’ll never forget. It’s such an important thing for all of us because we know the difference we make.

I’ve given my heart and soul to everything I’ve done here. The best feeling now, at the end of all that, is knowing how much I’ve still got left in the tank in continuing to contribute to the Australian music industry.”

Kingsmill started as a producer for triple j 35 years ago. He’s was voted International Music Director of the Year at the Worldwide Radio Summit in Los Angeles in 2012, was the #1 most-powerful person in the Australian music industry in 2015. He’s has won three ARIAs for the One Night Stand concerts he initiated and curated, Before Too Long: triple j’s Tribute to Paul Kelly and Straight To You: triple j’s Tribute To Nick Cave, and for the soundtrack to the live concert recording (for which he also curated the line up) Beat The Drum: Celebrating 40 Years of triple j which played to 25,000 people in 2015.