Triple j, the ABC's youth music radio station that refuses to grow up, has turned 40. We take a look at 40 influences of the Js on Australian music and culture.

1. Began with a bang playing banned song

The first song played on Sydney's 2 Double J (the pre-cursor to triple j) on January 19, 1975, was The Skyhooks's You Just Like Me 'Cause I'm Good in Bed. The song was banned and had not been played on radio in Australia before.

Midnight Oil frontman and former Labor MP Peter Garrett told Fairfax that from that first song, triple j set itself apart as something different.

"It's a day I'll never forget. The prospect of a radio station that was going to play the kind of music we were excited by and couldn't hear anywhere else had us on tenterhooks."

2. Hottest 100: the world's biggest music democracy

Since it debuted as The Hot 100 in 1989, triple j's epic music poll has contained a mix of local and international acts, new music and the work of huge stars.

Last year 1.49 million votes were counted in triple j's annual music poll The Hottest 100. ( ABC )

The Hot 100 was won by Joy Division's Love Will Tear Us Apart in 1989 and 1990. In 1991, listeners opted for Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit, and after a break in 1992, the poll came back with new rules that excluded songs not released that year and a new name, The Hottest 100.

The first winner under the new format was the comedy track Asshole, by Denis Leary. Number two was the less-surprising Creep by Radiohead.

In 2014, 43 per cent of the songs that made the cut were by Australian artists, and 1.49 million votes were lodged for the annual Australia Day countdown.

3. Unearthing new Australian music

The first band to win triple j's national new music competition, Unearthed, in 1995 was grunge-rock outfit Grinspoon with the song Sickfest.

The band, from Lismore in Northern New South Wales, went on to be one of the most popular Australian bands of the past 20 years.

In 2002, they had four songs in the Hottest 100 from the album New Detention.

Their 1997 debut album Guide To Better Living also saw four songs into the iconic chart, but over a two-year period.

4. Putting women on the wireless

The first female DJ on Australian rock radio, Gayle Austin was one of the founders of Double Jay in 1975. ( Double J )

It might seem unbelievable now but there were no female DJs spinning music on our airwaves before triple j hired Gayle Austin as a presenter when the station launched in 1975.

Austin said she was the only woman to apply for an on-air position.

"Radio in those days was like secret men's business and I was the only woman who applied for an on-air position at Double J," she said.

"I was given one midnight-to-dawn shift a week, a move so radical that I was the cause of much negative comment after our first survey of listeners. 'Why do you have a woman on air? What do women know about music?'"

5. Transmitting waves across nation

In the beginning, triple j was broadcast to a Sydney audience only. But in 1989 it began a national roll-out, reaching the airwaves across Australian capitals, and in bigger regional towns like Newcastle.

6. Reaching beyond the cities

Former triple j newsreader and 2014 ARIA nominee Emma Swift grew up in a town that didn't get a triple j signal until 1996.

Politician and Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett remembers triple j as the first radio station to play the band's music. ( AAP: Sergio Dionisio )

"Triple j going regional was a huge deal for me. I grew up in south-west New South Wales on a steady diet of old records and whatever Rage was programming," she said.

"I was 15 when we were finally able to get the signal in Wagga Wagga. I was terribly excited about the launch day and wore my favourite outfit - tie dye overalls and silver Doc Marten boots - down to the local ABC to meet Mikey Robbins and Helen Razer. My favourite bands at the time were You am I and The Sundays."

By the end of 1996 triple j was broadcasting to locations around Australia including Alice Springs, Kalgoorlie and Rockhampton.

7. Having One Night Stands in regional towns

Fans flock to triple j's One Night Stand concert in 2012. ( triple j )

Launched in 2004, the One Night Stand concert took acts to regional Australia where seeing live music was rare. The concert series extended the reach of live music far beyond inner-city pubs and bandrooms.

The first One Night Stand was held in Natimuk, Victoria - a town with a regular population of 500 people. For one night in July, they hosted 9,000 music lovers and four Australian bands, including Eskimo Joe and Grinspoon.

8. News for young people, produced by young people

Since the beginning, triple j aired news with a youth angle, including news bulletins and current affairs programs.

With a dedicated news team, triple j has a long history of producing and presenting news for young people by young people.

Prominent programs have included The Drum, Hack, Talkback Classroom and The Morning Show.

9. Sports commentary with a twist

Roy and HG presented This Sporting Life. ( Getty Images: Mark Dadswell )

Want a bit of irreverence with your sport?

Plenty of people do, it turns out.

Comedians Roy Slaven and HG Nelson (John Doyle and Greig Pickhaver) spent 22 years on triple j presenting This Sporting Life.

The pair also delivered their unique commentary on various major sporting events, including the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the NRL Grand Final and the State of Origin.

10. Like a Version covers

Covers of all sorts of songs, performed and recorded live in the triple j studios, Like a Version has become one of triple j's most popular bits.

Some covers have even made it into the Hottest 100.

There are also plenty of covers of songs you might not otherwise hear on the Js, like Taylor Swift's 2014 smash hit Shake It Off performed by Milky Chance.

That said, you might just find Taylor Swift in this year's Hottest 100 after all.

11. Comedians cut their teeth and show their chops

Roy and HG, Mikey Robbins, Helen Razer, Paul McDermott, Adam Spencer, Wil Anderson, Matt Okine, Tom Ballard, Josh Thomas, The Chaser, the list goes on and on.

As well as all the on-air talent, triple j sponsors comedy around the country, enabling fresh voices a forum to enter the field.

12. Reporting elections and early retirement

One triple j journalist was fired after suggesting live to air that opposition leader John Hewson was a liar.

13. Taking the leap from AM to FM

For the first five years, 2 Double J was on AM. That changed in 1980 when the station switched to the FM frequency.

14. Creating breakthrough acts

Singer-songwriter Gotye is one of many musicians supported early in their career by airplay on triple j. ( ABC News: Candice Marshall )

Triple j had a focus on Australian music from the beginning and continues to present Australian-music only programming each week.

Bands like Midnight Oil, Powderfinger, Spiderbait and Silverchair, as well as Aussie hip hop acts like the Hilltop Hoods and the Herd have all found support and airplay on triple j.

Solo artists have also received plenty of attention including celebrated acts like Missy Higgins and Gotye.

15. Bringing international artists down under

Triple j has long supported music festivals and tours that bring big overseas acts to Australia, including supporting some of the biggest festivals like Splendour in the Grass, Homebake and the Big Day Out.

16. Fear of change: passions turn to protest

In a shake-up for the station as it prepared to go national in 1989, triple j underwent some changes and people, afraid that the beloved institution was changing too much, staged mass protests at Sydney Town Hall to pressure ABC management to maintain the station they loved.

17. Indigenous music celebrated

Singer Missy Higgins performs at the launch of triple j's Unearthed website in 2006. ( AAP: Matt Booy )

Triple j's commitment to Australian music has seen many talented Indigenous artists hitting the airwaves. In 2012 the station announced a new Indigenous music award as part of the Unearthed program, won in the first year by Thelma Plum.

18. Great escape

In 1980, a prisoner escaped from Long Bay Gaol and turned up at the studio to discuss a ban on day release for long-term prisoners.

The presenter had to call the cops, after the interview of course.

19. Live music

Triple j was recording live music from as early as 1977 giving listeners around Australia greater access to live music than ever before.

20. Banned songs

As well as You Just Like Me 'Cause I'm Good in Bed, triple j continued to play music that commercial stations wouldn't play.

In 1989, triple j was the only station in the world that would play F**k Tha Police by NWA.

After playing the song for six months, it became a political issue and ABC management banned the station from playing it.

In response, triple j played NWA's Express Yourself on repeat for 24 hours.

triple j at Splendour in the Grass, 2011. ( ABC News: Candice Marshall )

21. Pranksters

Adam Spencer and Wil Anderson were long-running hosts of triple j's breakfast program.

In 2000, they reported that Sydney had been stripped of the right to host the 2000 Olympic Games. The date? April 1.

They even got NSW premier Bob Carr in on the joke, which was so convincing that the news was picked up by Channel Nine's Richard Wilkins.

It wouldn't be the last time Wilkins got caught out reporting a hoax though.

22. Julia Gillard end of the world

There was the time triple j convinced prime minister Julia Gillard to record an end of world broadcast. She was a pretty good sport about it.

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23. Documentary Controversy

Not long after Double J launched, the station aired a documentary that explored issues of sex, love and consent among Australian teenagers.

It caused a ruckus. Who knew teenagers were having sex?

24. Internet giants

Triple j's first foray into online was in 1995, with just four web pages. Now there are more than 10,000.



25. Unearthed radio

Jewish comedian John Safran, joined by Catholic priest Father Bob Maguire, host an edgy program on triple j, frankly discussing ethics and religious issues. ( ABC News: Nic MacBean )

First there was the competition, now there's a digital station dedicated to playing new Australian music, all the time. Unearthed Radio first went to air in 2011.

26. Religion and ethics

A Jewish comedian and journalist and a Catholic priest walk into a radio booth. No it's not a joke - it's Sunday Night Safran with John Safran and Father Bob Maguire.

The show which covers all sorts of religious issues, has been a popular one for the network.

27. Great (and strange) interviews

The Js have seen a lot of interviews over the years, from David Bowie to Lorde, to that time Muse asked to hear Lady Gaga's Bad Romance and the breakfast presenters thought the band was joking.

And let's not forget that time Nirvana came in and did a really awkward interview.

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28. Rock Lobster

Turns out we might have triple j to thank for the 1980s classic Love Shack.

The station was one of the first in the world to play the B52's 1979 track Rock Lobster.

29. Crop circles

In 2004, two Queenslanders took out triple j's Beat the Drum competition by creating a massive triple j logo in a field. The drum was 1km x 1.5kms, and visible from 9,000 feet up.

30. Australia Day

For many Australians, Australia Day has come to symbolise the day that we gather around the barbeque and listen to the Hottest 100. Sausages and democracy are a long-standing Australian tradition.

31. Tastemakers

A nationwide government-funded youth music station was always going to attract controversy and triple j is no exception.

In 2014 some artists accused the station of having such control over the development of Australian music tastes that it determined whether an act was successful, which was leading to a less diverse music scene.

The station launched originally as 'Double J' in 1975, and in 2014 was re-launched as a digital station. ( Double J )

32. Farewell Sandman

Airing in the late 1990s, 204 Bell Street was a much-loved program from The Sandman (comedian Stephen Abbott).

When it ended in 2000, a federal senator issued a press release mourning the show.

33. Double J returns

In 2014, the ABC re-launched Double J as a digital station aimed at over-30s, allowing original listeners to tune in again.

34. Helen Razer writes Kurt Cobain a poem

Before Kurt Cobain died, Helen Razer sent the Nirvana frontman a poem, which he apparently found amusing.

35. The people love Powderfinger

The Brisbane band has topped the Hottest 100 more than any other act.

The Hilltop Hoods came number 17 in triple j's Hottest 100 of all time poll for their song Nose Bleed Section. ( ABC News: Candice Marshall )

36. The Hottest 100 and the ARIA charts

It turns out that the peak year for commercial and Hottest 100 success was 1997, when 17 tracks made it to both the ARIA chart and the Hottest 100 which suggests the station is giving a lot of exposure to acts the Australian public might not otherwise come across.

37. Community-funded

People in regional Australia love triple j so much that some communities raised the funds to pay for their own transmitters.

38. Pauline Pantsdown and Pauline Hanson

Back Door Man, a satirical song about Queensland politician Pauline Hanson was so popular among triple j listeners that it made the 1997 Hottest 100.

But the politician didn't think Back Door Man was very funny. She got an injunction to stop it being played.

39. The J Awards

Triple j's J Awards have been running since 2005, and celebrate the best in Australian music.

Winners over the years include Sia, Flume, Wolfmother and Sarah Blasko.

40. Subversive, always

Banned from playing NWA's F**k Tha Police, the musicians behind the triple j news theme used a sample from the track, which is still part of the triple j news theme.