What's New January 23, 2022

Wiggles go straight to number one first time in triple j’s Hottest 100

The Wiggles have officially made Hottest 100 history as the first artist to ever top the countdown with a cover!

Covering Tame Impala’s psychedelic hit ‘Elephant’ for Like A Version, The Wiggles are the first artist in 28 years to make their debut at the #1 spot. It’s also a rare instance where a cover has outranked the original.

When triple j Breakfast hosts Bryce & Ebony first learned that The Wiggles had said yes to Like A Version, they knew it would be special…

Bryce & Ebony said, “When a listener first suggested we try and get The Wiggles to do Like A Version, we honestly didn’t think it’d happen, but when it did, we spent the whole day with a huge smile on our faces. Watching people who defined your childhood stand in front of you and play a song from an artist that’s helped define your early adulthood is a weird, but joyous feeling. A lot of people around the world felt the same way. Not many covers can win over three generations at once!”

However, we couldn’t have predicted how big a moment it would have!

As triple j Music Director Nick Findlay puts it, “In a year where many of us were wishing we could go back in time, The Wiggles’ heart-warming nostalgia filled cover of ‘Elephant’ was a gift that was sorely needed, even if we didn’t know it at the time.”

Conscious or not, ‘Elephant’ reminded us of simpler times. Memories of vibing out to Tame with a vast sea of humans or even further back, to our childhoods and our first ever musical heroes, The Wiggles.

Across the rest of the countdown, we saw plenty of other Hottest 100 milestones!

Coming in at #2 was Kamilaroi artist The Kid LAROI with his massive Justin Bieber collaboration ‘STAY’, plus we saw 25 Hottest 100 debutantes make the list, and 54 Australian artists.

triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2021

# ARTIST

1 The Wiggles

SONG

Elephant [triple j Like A Version 2021]

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2	The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber	Stay
3	Spacey Jane	Lots Of Nothing
4	Olivia Rodrigo	good 4 u
5	Billie Eilish	Happier Than Ever
6	Gang of Youths	the angel of 8th ave.
7	Doja Cat	Kiss Me More [Ft. SZA]
8	Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow	INDUSTRY BABY
9	RÜFÜS DU SOL	On My Knees
10	Lil Nas X	MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)
11	Tom Cardy	H.Y.C.Y.BH
12	Spacey Jane	Lunchtime
13	Olivia Rodrigo	drivers license
14	Lime Cordiale & Idris Elba	Apple Crumble
15	Vance Joy	Missing Piece
16	Sam Fender	Seventeen Going Under
17	Tom Cardy	Mixed Messages
18	The Jungle Giants	Love Signs
19	RÜFÜS DU SOL	Alive
20	Ocean Alley	Touch Back Down
21	Ball Park Music	Sunscreen
22	SZA	Good Days
23	Glass Animals	I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance)
24	bbno$	edamame [Ft. Rich Brian]
25	RÜFÜS DU SOL	Next To Me
26	Lorde	Solar Power
27	DOPE LEMON	Rose Pink Cadillac
28	Amyl and The Sniffers	Hertz
29	Lil Nas X	THATS WHAT I WANT
30	Spacey Jane	Here Comes The Sun [triple j Like A Version 2021]
31	Doja Cat	Need To Know
32	The Wombats	If You Ever Leave, I’m Coming With You
33	Olivia Rodrigo	déjà vu
34	Doja Cat	Get Into It (Yuh)
35	Peach PRC	Josh
36	WILLOW	t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l [Ft. Travis Barker]
37	Doja Cat	Woman
38	The Rubens	Masterpiece
39	Middle Kids	Stacking Chairs
40	girl in red	serotonin
41	Lime Cordiale & Idris Elba	What’s Not To Like
42	Peking Duk	Chemicals
43	Bring Me The Horizon	DiE4u
44	Kanye West	Hurricane
45	Wet Leg	Chaise Longue
46	King Stingray	Get Me Out
47	Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak & Silk Sonic	Leave The Door Open
48	ACRAZE	Do It To It [Ft. Cherish]
49	Dune Rats	UP
50	Kanye West	Jail
51	The Rions	Night Light
52	Cardi B	Up
53	The Weeknd	Take My Breath
54	Ocean Alley	Breathe/Comfortably Numb/Money [triple j Like A Version 2021]
55	Skegss	Valhalla

56 King Stingray Milkumana

57	Gang of Youths	the man himself
58	Ruby Fields	Kitchen
59	Machine Gun Kelly	love race [Ft. Kellin Quinn]
60	Olivia Rodrigo	brutal
61	Dom Dolla	Pump The Brakes
62	Lorde	Mood Ring
63	Lana Del Rey	Chemtrails Over The Country Club
64	G Flip	Queen [Ft. mxmtoon]
65	Luude	Down Under [Ft. Colin Hay]
66	Tame Impala	A Girl Like You [triple j Like A Version 2020]
67	Olivia Rodrigo	traitor
68	The Jungle Giants	Treat You Right
69	Sly Withers	Clarkson
70	The Amity Affliction	Like Love
71	Halsey	I Am Not A Woman, I’m A God
72	Vera Blue	Temper
73	Lizzo	Rumors [Ft. Cardi B]
74	Tones And I	Cloudy Day
75	Genesis Owusu	Gold Chains
76	The Terrys	Our Paradise
77	Tyler, The Creator	WUSYANAME [Ft. YoungBoy Never Broke Again/Ty Dolla $ign]
78	SZA	I Hate U
79	Dave	Clash [Ft. Stormzy]
80	Billie Eilish	Your Power
81	Lorde	Stoned At The Nail Salon
82	Kanye West	Praise God
83	Doja Cat & The Weeknd	You Right
84	Teenage Joans	Wine
85	The Buoys	Lie To Me Again
86	FISHER	Just Feels Tight
87	Holy Holy	The Aftergone [Ft. CLEWS]
88	Baker Boy	My Mind [Ft. G Flip]
89	Jungle	Keep Moving
90	Hayden James	Waiting For Nothing [Ft. Yaeger]
91	Telenova	Bones
92	Slowly Slowly	Blueprint
93	Baby Keem	family ties [with Kendrick Lamar]
94	Tyne-James Organ	Sunday Suit
95	alt-J	U&ME
96	Client Liaison	House Of Holy
97	Kanye West	Moon
98	Adam Newling	Sweetness
99	Ziggy Ramo	Little Things [Ft. Paul Kelly]
100	Holy Holy	How You Been

Eight of the top 100 entries were originally uploaded to triple j Unearthed, and on the flip side, some heavy hitters added to their Hottest 100 tallies: Kanye West (19 songs), Tame Impala (17 songs), The Wombats (15 songs) and Billie Eilish (14 songs).

A look at the pointy end of this year’s Hottest 100 shows an interesting 2021 trend. We weren’t looking to songs that made serious commentary about our COVID-stricken times. We were looking for hook-laden expressions of timeless themes and emotions; frustrating relationships (‘Stay’, ‘Lots Of Nothing’) fiery break-ups (‘good 4 u’, ‘Happier Than Ever’), and feel-good revelry (‘the angel of 8th ave’, ‘kiss me more’).

But nothing this year came closer to not being about our pandemic lives than the nostalgic double shot of a Wiggles x Tame Impala crossover.

Head here for more info and stats about the countdown, and deep dive into the story behind this year’s winner!

Keep the good times going tomorrow with Double J’s Hottest 100 of 2001. Tune in from 10am local time on the triple j app, digital radio, on Channel 200 on your digital TV and online at doublej.net.au

Key dates and info:

Sun 23 Jan (10am local time): Hottest 100 of 2001 on Double J
Fri 28 – Sat 29 Jan (approx. midnight local time): rage presents triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2021
On demand: Hottest 100 playlists on  Apple Music, YouTube and Spotify
Lifeline: last chance to donate or buy a Hottest 100 tee