Radio is full of arranged marriages.<\/p>\n
Most hosts are thrown together into a studio by executives desperately hoping for \u201cradio gold,\u201d but the chemistry rarely translates. <\/p>\n
For Loren Barry and Nic Kelly, however, the gamble paid off.<\/p>\n
In January last year the two were hand-picked to host The Hot Hits, a national show on the Hit Network from 7-10pm weeknights.<\/p>\n
Together, they\u2019ve defied the odds, and just over a year later their program is the most listened to national nights show in the country.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In a time when radio is battling streaming for the attention of younger listeners, and is at risk of losing older listeners thanks to the end of heritage shows like Kyle and Jackie O, the success of their relatively new show isn\u2019t just impressive \u2026 It might be exactly what the industry needs to survive.<\/p>\n
Friends from afar<\/p>\n
Nic and Loren\u2019s recent ratings result is remarkable given how little time they\u2019d spent together before they started on air.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the entire time we\u2019d known each other, which would be about six years, we had spent max four hours together,\u201d Loren told news.com.au.<\/p>\n
Despite both being in the industry for more than 10 years, their paths only crossed at the annual radio awards known as the ACRAs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was such a big Loz fan for so long,\u201d Nic said about his co-host who used to be a part of Triple M\u2019s The Marty Sheargold Show. <\/p>\n
When network bosses came knocking in early 2025 and asked him to co-host TheHot Hits, Nic said there were only three people he\u2019d actually consider working with.<\/p>\n
\u201cLoren was at the top of that list,\u201d he said. \u201cI got so lucky. It makes me a little bit emotional because she is one of my best friends now.\u201d<\/p>\n
The \u201call equal\u201d rule<\/p>\n
It may be a national show, but The Hot Hits doesn\u2019t have a big team.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s just the two hosts, an executive producer, an audio producer and a digital producer.<\/p>\n
But from the show\u2019s outset, the hosts have made one thing clear to their team members \u2026 \u201cwe are all equal\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cNic and I have both come up in the industry \u2026 we\u2019ve been the producers, we\u2019ve been the coffee makers, all that sort of stuff,\u201d Loren said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are so collaborative in everything that we do and when we sit down in that meeting room, it\u2019s all of us together. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey make up just as much of the show as we do,\u201d she said about the producers.<\/p>\n
As a team they\u2019ve prioritised openness and honesty.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a rule,\u201d Loren explained. \u201cIf you come in and you\u2019re feeling a bit s**t, you\u2019re not feeling it, just go, \u2018guys, I\u2019m having one of those days.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t have to tell us what\u2019s going on,\u201d she continued. \u201cBut it\u2019s better than keeping it inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bizarrely, Nic says it\u2019s often those shows when someone\u2019s feeling flat that turn out to be the best ones.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an escapism kind of thing,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen the lights are on and we\u2019re just kind of vibing, it\u2019s so much fun that everything else sort of dissipates into the background.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chalk and cheese<\/p>\n
Loren and Nic are two very different people.<\/p>\n
As one of their bosses, Tim Lee, told news.com.au, \u201cthey\u2019re chalk and cheese; different musical tastes, different personal interests, different life stages\u201d.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s those differences that make them work.<\/p>\n
For example, Nic is obsessed with music, like, really obsessed.<\/p>\n
Loren jokes that her co-host is like \u201crain man\u201d, whereas her music knowledge is slightly more limited.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that helps in balancing out the show,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like I sort of represent the listeners in a way, and I am not afraid to ask those dumb questions, like \u2018what is tempo?\u2019\u201d she laughed.<\/p>\n
Nic added that Loren cares about music just as much as he does, but in a completely different way.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou care about it from the way it makes you feel, which is what most people are like,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI get super nerdy about it. I look at the credits and I go, \u2018oh, Julia Michaels wrote this. I wonder if they connected in LA or Nashville?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Ditching the \u201cstunty bulls**t\u201d<\/p>\n
As the show bio says, \u201cThe Hot Hits with Nic and Loren is your go-to show for the latest music news, hottest new tracks and interviews with the industry\u2019s best up-and-coming names.\u201d<\/p>\n
I know what you\u2019re thinking \u2026 that sounds like every other nights show you\u2019ve ever heard on FM radio.<\/p>\n
But from the beginning, Nic and Loren set themselves a challenge of doing things differently.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople have this perception of commercial radio of being like stunty bulls**t and zany whizbangs,\u201d Nic said. \u201cBut come to us if you want a commercial radio show that doesn\u2019t sound like a commercial radio show.\u201d<\/p>\n
The duo says their top priority is being authentic and making a show full of heart.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe whole point is that we are just doing what we want, we\u2019re only talking about stuff that\u2019s actually interesting to us,\u201d Nic told news.com.au. \u201cWhether it\u2019s from the music world, the pop culture world, or personal life, or a story that\u2019s touched our hearts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doing interviews differently<\/p>\n
That quest for authenticity hasn\u2019t just won over listeners, it\u2019s winning over the stars, too.<\/p>\n
After a recent chat, global hit maker Charlie Puth turned to his team and said, \u201cCan we start with interviews like this next time?\u201d<\/p>\n
Nic and Loren\u2019s interview approach is all about having \u201cgenuine conversations\u201d rather than forcing artists to play games or participate in stunts.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the first chats that Nic and I had about this show, we said we want them (artists) to walk in here and it\u2019s like they\u2019re just sitting down with two friends,\u201d Loren said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s something listeners have noticed and are grateful for.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best feedback we get from fans in the YouTube comment section is when they go, \u2018thank you for asking thoughtful questions,\u2019 or, \u2018it looked like these artists really enjoyed themselves,\u2019\u201d Nic said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Loren rejects big offer<\/p>\n
It\u2019s clear from chatting to Nic and Loren that they feel like they\u2019re building something pretty special together, so it\u2019s no surprise that Loren rejected an offer to jump ship after just four months.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had an opportunity last year to shift to another show,\u201d she said, adding it was in \u201ca really good timeslot\u201d and would have come with a big pay increase.<\/p>\n
But Loren said no immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would I spend this time telling my team that we\u2019re going to build this show and it\u2019s going to be incredible, for me to then go bye? It was never even a question,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The future is bright<\/p>\n
Talk to anyone in the radio industry, and they\u2019ll undoubtedly tell you that one of the shows they\u2019re most excited about is The Hot Hits.<\/p>\n