Olivia Dean’s Man I Need wins Triple J’s Hottest 100 | Triple J Hottest 100

British pop star Olivia Dean has reached number one on Australia’s biggest music poll, Triple J’s Hottest 100, with her single Man I Need.

The upbeat neo-soul hit, which topped the Aria singles chart for 10 consecutive weeks, was seen as the favorite to win the 2025 vote, with 2.1 million votes cast. Dean finished ahead of Australian artist Keli Holiday, whose TikTok-backed earworm Dancing2 placed 2nd.

The top five are British singer Raye’s worldwide hit Where Is My Husband! completed. At number 5 is Playlunch’s “bogan funk” anthem Keith (which came with its own strong language warning) at number 4, and Tame Impala’s Dracula is at number 3.

While Dean’s victory came as little surprise, with a total of four songs on the countdown, the standout story of this year’s countdown was the strong performance from Australian artists. Only 29 songs from Australian artists appeared in the 2024 Hottest 100; this was the lowest result since 1996; Halfway through this year’s countdown, that number was exceeded.

Overall, 53 songs featuring Australian artists charted; This doesn’t include Amyl & The Sniffers’ guest appearance on UK electronic powerhouse Fred Again…’s You’re A Star.

Fremantle band Spacey Jane had the most entries for an Australian artist with five songs in total, followed by Ocean Alley, Tame Impala, Ninajirachi and Royel Otis with four songs each.

In December, Triple J reported that 55% of the music played on the station in 2025 was played by Australian artists, comfortably above the mandatory 40% quota, with 19 of the 30 most played artists for the year being Australian. This year’s voting page also included the option to search solely by Australian artists for the first time; this may have increased local representation.

Dean’s win marks the third consecutive win for a solo female artist, following Chappell Roan in 2024 and Doja Cat in 2023.

One of the standout themes in a pop era dominated by solo artists was the relatively strong showings of Australian indie-rock and indie-pop bands, led by the likes of Spacey Jane, Royel Otis, Ocean Alley and The Rions. Electronic and dance music were also well represented throughout the countdown; From internationally renowned acts such as Kettama and Fred Again to Australia’s leading club names Fisher and Dom Dolla. DJ and producer Ninajirachi led the ranks of Australian electronic talent with four entries.

Heavy music and metal, by contrast, were almost completely absent; UK masked hard rockers Sleep Token were at #95 with Caramel.

Although the countdown has a significant transition overall Triple J’s most played artists of 2025TikTok virality also clearly played a role in shaping the countdown. International artists Addison Rae, Doechii, Raye and Dean are hugely popular on the platform, while Australian artist Peach PRC boasts 2.2 million TikTok followers and is ranked 82nd alongside Miss Erotika.

The broadcast featured many beautiful moments, from listeners from all over the country to interviews with musicians. Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker reported from the barbecue while wearing a Ninajirachi t-shirt gifted by Australian DJ Nina Las Vegas (and later joined Spacey Jane on a Zoom call after the band hit No.6 with Whatrrr), while Lily Allen called in from a holiday in Mexico and marveled at her latest career resurgence; Pussy Palace and West End Girl reached #38 and #88 respectively.

Australian hip hop group Hilltop Hoods also broke Billie Eilish’s record for the most songs to appear on the Hottest 100, with 27 tracks appearing on the Hottest 100 since their debut on the Hottest 100 in 2003.

Meanwhile, Triple J has raised over $500,000 for charity We Are Mobilise, which supports Australians experiencing homelessness.

And Dean, who has clearly built an adoring fan base in Australia, will celebrate his victory on an arena-sized headline tour in October – with the shows selling out long before the countdown begins.