FEATURE:
New Future Sounds
IN THIS PHOTO: Clara Amfo will replace Annie Mac on her iconic and much-loved Future Sounds show (Mac’s final broadcast is on 30th July)/PHOTO CREDIT: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images
BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac and Clara Amfo
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EARLIER today…
IN THIS PHOTO: Annie Mac/PHOTO CREDIT: JM Enternational/Rex/Shutterstock
new spread on social media that Annie Mac was leaving BBC Radio 1. Her show, Future Sounds (Mac also presents Radio 1’s Dance Party), is an institution and a reason why so many people tune into the station. The show will be taken over by Clara Amfo (make sure you check out her Live Lounge show on BBC Radio 1). Music Week provide more details:
“Annie Mac has announced that she is to leave BBC Radio 1, as the station reveals details of a shake-up that will see Clara Amfo take over the Future Sounds show.
Daytime star Amfo is now in the hotseat for Radio 1’s flagship new music show, home to Hottest Record In The World. Rickie, Melvin and Charlie will host Amfo’s Live Lounge, while Danny Howard is taking over from Annie Mac on Radio 1’s Dance Party.
The station has also revealed that Diplo, host of Diplo And Friends on Saturday nights from 11pm-1am, will be departing.
Annie Mac, a previous winner at the Music Week Women In Music Awards and renowned tastemaker and champion of new music, said: “After 17 wonderful years I have decided it’s time to leave Radio 1. This second home has been the thread that has run through nearly my whole adult life; I have grown up, fallen in and out of love, moved homes, climbed up the career ladder, got married and become a mother twice over.”
The DJ has not revealed any plans to move to another station, and Music Week can reveal that her next move is not yet confirmed. The DJ paid tribute to her listeners.
Working at Radio 1 has been like being at the best party ever
Annie Mac
“I have done this alongside you, my listeners, who have done your own versions of the same,” she said. “I will be forever grateful to you all for welcoming me into your days. I have never not walked out of the studio feeling lighter and happier than when I walked in and that is all down to you. Working at Radio 1 has been like being at the best party ever and it is a wonderful feeling to be leaving with a huge smile on my face. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!”
Head of Radio 1 Aled Haydn Jones described Mac as “quite simply, a legend”.
“She has been a hugely important part of the station for the past 17 years,” Haydn Jones added. “Diplo has brought some of the biggest names in dance to our listeners on Diplo and Friends, showcasing some now iconic mixes during the show’s run. I’d like to thank both Annie and Diplo for all they’ve done for the station, and I wish them all the very best for the future.”
Haydn Jones said that Music Week Award winner Clara Amfo “has long been one of the most influential voices in the music industry”.
“Clara has an incredible affinity for discovering new music, which makes her perfect to be the face of it for the industry and for Radio 1,” he added. “We know our listeners will love what she brings to the show. I’m delighted that we’ll have Rickie, Melvin and Charlie taking on the late morning slot: their energy, knowledge and passion is going to make for an exciting new sound for the Live Lounge.”
Receiving the baton from Annie who I love and respect makes it extra special
Clara Amfo
Clara Amfo said: “Presenting mid mornings and The Live Lounge on Radio 1 has been one of the most edifying and special times of my career and personal life. As a nation of music lovers, the experience of it live is nothing short of magical and to have had the honour of welcoming some of the world’s most beloved and emerging artists in to The Live Lounge has created unifying moments that I and the listeners will never forget! I am beyond honoured and ready to start this exciting new chapter on Radio 1. I’m such a fan of this show, the artists that is has championed and to be receiving the baton from Annie who I love and respect makes it extra special for me. Massive big up to every single one of my daytime producers and The Live Lounge/smug life listener crew, I have loved hearing your stories and enjoying keeping you company with tunes in daytime and look forward to continuing that in September, so see you a few hours later!”.
I really love Annie Mac and Clara Amfo. Mac, like her fellow BBC Radio 1 Annie, Nightingale, is a pioneering female broadcaster who has compelled so many other women to go into broadcasting. I have listened to her BBC Radio 1 show a lot. Not only have I been guided to new acts to check out and some seriously hot sounds! The affection and knowledge that she has is infectious!
Mac will be deeply missed. Not only be her fans and colleagues, but the music industry as a whole. It is impossible to say how many artists have Annie Mac to thank for getting their music heard and brining in new fans. She has created heaps of opportunities for an array of musicians through the years. I think that Clara Amfo is going to do a remarkable job! I am not sure whether Mac will go to Apple, Virgin or another station - or, after such unwavering loyalty and hard work, she will take some time off to reflect and rest. Amfo is a phenomenal broadcaster who knows she is stepping into big shoes, but she will do an awesome job. It is good that another inspirational female broadcaster is taking the role. Not only has there been an outpouring of respect for Annie Mac and sadness that she is leaving. Many people are excited that one of our finest broadcaster is being replaced by a hugely admired broadcaster in Clara Amfo. If you have never tuned into Future Sounds, do so now and hear Annie Mac’s upcoming shows. I wonder whether there will be an archive of her shows because, I believe, most are on BBC Sounds and disappear pretty soon. Also keep tuned to hear Clara Amfo take over the baton. Though the exit of a broadcasting legend is very sad, the Future Sounds show is…
IN very good and safe hands!