BBC Radio 6 Music announces autumn programming highlights

04 September 2024 - Press release

BBC Radio 6 Music, the UK’s biggest digital-only radio station with 2.7 million listeners, and BBC Sounds welcome a new season with a selection of one-off specials, a new Sunday night show, the return of much loved series and more.

 

Samantha Moy, Head of BBC Radio 6 Music says: “Whatever music you love, there’s so much to look forward to on 6 Music this autumn.

"Guy Pearce, the award-winning actor and musician, marks 30 years of Jeff Buckley’s inspirational Grace with a two hour documentary, featuring artists including Patti Smith, Robert Plant and Phoebe Bridgers; there will be new 6 Music Artist in Residence shows from The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas, Pet Shop Boys and Laurie Anderson; The Peel Collection returns with Fatboy Slim, Helena Hauff and Ezra Collective’s Femi Koleoso who, alongside other artists, will explore Peel Acres’ iconic record collection; and Zakia Sewell joins 6 Music to present Dream Time – the perfect soundtrack to end the week and send you off to sleep on a Sunday night.”

On Sunday 15^th September (4-6pm), award-winning actor and musician Guy Pearce presents Jeff Buckley Forever, in which he celebrates the iconic artist’s masterpiece,Grace, 30 years since its release in 1994. Grace, which includes Buckley’s cover of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, as well as the songs Last Goodbye and Lover, You Should’ve Come Over, was the only studio album released by the American singer-songwriter before his tragic death in 1997. Grace has since been lauded by critics as one of the greatest albums of all time. 

Guy says: “I was one of those people who was immediately transfixed when I first heard Grace and it’s no exaggeration to say the album changed my life. At the core of my admiration for Jeff lies an extremely personal and profound feeling that he’s not singing or speaking to me, but that he is speaking for me. I’m lifted and floored every time I listen to Grace in a way that no other music has ever done to me. In this programme we’re going to hear from artists inspired by Jeff, his collaborators, colleagues, family and friends who share my deep love for Jeff and his music to explain why he remains a vivid presence in the lives of those who knew him, those who worked with him, and those who were affected by his music.”

In August 1994, when grunge and hip-hop were dominating the charts, Grace was an album that defied categorisation, showcasing Jeff’s unique vocals, guitar virtuosity and ability to write songs which convey both inner torture and unbridled joy. Featuring previously unheard interviews and recordings of Jeff, along with recollections from Chrissie Hynde, Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien, Elvis Costello, Jimmy Page, Joan as Policewoman, The The’s Matt Johnson, Jeff’s mother Mary Guibert, Nitin Sawhney, Patti Smith, Peter Gabriel, Phoebe Bridgers, Robert Plant and Rufus Wainwright, this programme explores how so many were affected by its energy and intensity. 

Joining the regular 6 Music presenter line-up will be Zakia Sewell, who presents a new weekly show, Dream Time, from 10pm-12am, starting on Sunday 22^nd September.

Dream Time will roam the space between waking and sleeping, providing a musically varied journey in sound via the subconscious. 

Zakia says: “I'm incredibly excited about joining the 6 Music family and having the opportunity to share my love of music with a whole new audience amongst some of my radio heroes! Dream Time on Sunday nights is all about music that transports listeners to other places and spaces – expect eclectic selections, from ambient to jazz and global sounds: music to ease the mind, soothe the soul, and open portals to new dimensions.”

Zakia is a broadcaster, writer and DJ from London who has previously presented on NTS Radio, BBC Radio 3, Radio 4, Tate and Boiler Room, hosting programmes on subjects ranging from British folk culture, to the history of UK garage, to mental health in the Caribbean community. She was awarded Radio Presenter of the Year at the 2024 UK Audio Network Audio Awards and Best New Voice at the 2021 Audio Production Awards. She DJs regularly at clubs and festivals across London and abroad. For 6 Music, she has presented series of Lose Yourself and will sit in for Gilles Peterson on Saturday afternoons (3-6pm) this month.

This autumn will also see new Artist in Residence series presented by Julian Casablancas, Pet Shop Boys, Laurie Anderson and more. Artist in Residence is a journey into an artist’s musical soul over four episodes, with each based around a different theme or mood. Previous 6 Music Artists in Residence include Bloc Party, Johnny Marr, Loyle Carner, Manic Street Preachers, Mitski, Phoebe Bridgers, Romy, The Streets and more.

Julian Casablancas, Grammy and BRIT award winning American musician and frontman of The Strokes and The Voidz, will present his series from Monday 30 September – Thursday 3 October, 11pm-12am. He will take listeners on a rare deep dive into his musical world, presenting four personally curated shows. With The Strokes, Julian released six studio albums, all of which all reached the Top 10 in the UK. He will release his next album with The Voidz, Like All Before You, later this month.

Grammy nominated and BRIT and Ivor Novello Award winning pop duo Pet Shop Boys (Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe), will present their series from Monday 11 –Thursday 14November (11pm-12am). Pet Shop Boys have sold in excess of 50 million records and have over 70 hit singles spanning five decades, making them the most successful UK duo of all time.

Laurie Anderson, multi-award-winning visual artist, composer, poet, photographer, author, filmmaker, vocalist and instrumentalist, will present her series from Monday 16 – Thursday 19 December (11pm-12am). The themes of Laurie’s four individually handcrafted playlists are: the real world; love and energy; loneliness and change; and the dream world. Listeners will travel from gospel to jazz and artists played will include Anohni and the Johnsons, Ken Nordine and Laurie’s late husband, Lou Reed. Laurie reached Number Two in the UK charts in 1980 with O Superman, going on to release multiple albums. She has toured the world with numerous shows, ranging from spoken word to elaborate multi-media events, and her visual work has been exhibited in museums across the globe. She released her latest album, Amelia, recently and will perform her major new live stage work, ARK: United States Park 5, at Factory International in Manchester in November.

Laurie says: “It’s been a blast being your DJ and I hope you like the things I put together for 6 Music. I always wanted to have a late night radio show for people who are somewhere between awake and asleep. But even if you’re out and about - I hope you have a good time listening to some of my favorite music."

A new eight part series of The Peel Collection will air from Monday 16 – Thursday 19and Monday 23 – Thursday 26 September. The programme sees Tom Ravenscroft invite guests to Peel Acres, the home of his dad, former BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel (who passed away in 2004), to rifle through his legendary music collection.

Tom’s guests this series will include, amongst others, Fatboy Slim, Femi Koleoso and actor Johnny Flynn. They’ll lend a hand (and two ears) in making sense of John’s vast record archive, which comprises tens of thousands of albums and singles, built over a lifetime and meticulously catalogued.

Previous The Peel Collection guests have included Damon Albarn, Four Tet, Joe Goddard, LCY, Nish Kumar, Nubya Garcia, Tamsin Greig and many more.

Returning this autumn is T-Shirt Day, which takes place on Thursday 19^th September. Listeners can request a song by sharing a picture of themselves wearing their favourite band or artist t-shirt on social media with the hashtag #TShirtDay.

Way With Words returns for its third year to celebrate poetry, spoken word, rappers, poets and wordsmiths from Monday 30 September – Friday 4 October, with a focus of programming within Craig Charles’ show (1-4pm). On Monday, he’ll be joined by rapper OneDa, who will perform a spoken word piece written exclusively for 6 Music. On National Poetry Day (Thursday 3^rd October), Craig will reveal a new self-penned poem, soundtracked by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and will also be joined by indie hip-hop artist Antony Szmierek, as well as poets Raymond Antrobus and Theresa Lola. Across the week, Craig will be joined by Richard Hawley and Lily Fontaine, and will shine a spotlight some of the best emerging spoken word artists and poets in The Class of 2024.

This week (Thursday 5^th September, 7-11pm), 6 Music will broadcast a Mercury Prize ‘Albums of the Year’ special, presented by Tom Ravenscroft and Deb Grant, with contributions from Matt Everitt, who will be live from Abbey Road Studios.

All the artists who have produced the 12 ‘Albums of the Year’ have been invited to Abbey Road Studios, where each of the albums will be presented in the intimate setting of its iconic Studio 2, through an exciting array of performances captured during the previous 12 months.

The overall winner of the 2024 Mercury Prize ‘Album of the Year’ will be announced live on 6 Music by Tom and Deb at 9pm, who will then play out the winning album in full. 

There will also be coverage on BBC Four that night (8pm-9.15pm), presented by 6 Music’s Huw Stephens and Annie Macmanus.

Also available now on BBC Sounds are Matt Everitt’s Mercury Prize 2024 Pocket Guides, which see each of the 12 shortlisted albums profiled – four per episode. The programmes feature archive interviews, deep cuts and more. They are part of a Mercury Prize 2024 collection on BBC Sounds, which also includes two playlists – one celebrating this year’s nominees and another celebrating previous Mercury Prize winners.