Zan Rowe

For the New Zealand DJ and radio presenter, see Zane Lowe.

Susanna "Zan" Rowe is an Australian radio and television presenter. Rowe is regular presenter on ABC digital radio station Double J and host of the podcast and television series Take 5. Rowe is an Industry Adjunct Associate Professor at RMIT University.^[1]

Zan Rowe
Rowe in 2022
Born	Susanna Rowe Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Other names	Zan
Occupation(s)	Radio and television presenter
Employer	Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Early life and education

Susanna Rowe (later nicknamed "Zan")^[2] grew up in Melbourne.^[3]

She attended RMIT University, majoring in radio and cinema.^[3]

Career

Radio and podcasts

Rowe started out at SRA FM in 1996 (now SYN Radio) on a show called Run with the Hunted, before moving to the Monday drive shift on 3RRR 102.7FM presenting Transit Lounge from 2002–2004.^{[citation needed]}

In 2005, she joined Triple J as weekend lunch host.^[3] In 2006, she became host of Mornings on Triple J, broadcasting weekdays between 9am and 12pm.^{[citation needed]}

On 4 December 2017, Rowe announced she would be leaving Triple J and joining digital radio network Double J.^[4][5] In 2018 she started at Double J as host of the Mornings show.^[6]

The show is the home of her flagship feature and podcast, Take 5. The segment has featured many guests over the years, including Paul McCartney, Damon Albarn, Kylie Minogue, Tori Amos and Peter Garrett.^[7][8][9]

Rowe began the podcast Bang On with Myf Warhurst in March 2017.^[10] The podcast went on hiatus in November 2024.^[11] Rowe and Warhurst won Best Host for Bang On Australian Podcast Awards in 2024.^[12]

Television

In 2009, Rowe joined music presenter Richard Kingsmill in presenting a special edition of Rage, Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time, broadcast over two nights on the weekend of Friday 7 August 2009.^[13]

In 2015–2016, Rowe presented The Critics for ABC iview, a program on screen culture.^[3]

In 2017, Rowe was announced as one of the panellists for ABC TV's new screen review show Screen Time, hosted by Chris Taylor.

In 2017, Rowe and Charlie Pickering began hosting the New Year's Eve countdown show on the ABC.^[14][15]

Rowe presents a weekly music news segment on News Breakfast. After a decade presenting the segment, Rowe resigned from the role in 2024,^[16] replaced by Triple J announcers Lucy Smith and Sosefina Fuamoli.^[17]

She has also hosted various other programs on the ABC, including Double J,^[18][19] as well as written for the ABC about the Australian musical industry.^[20] In 2020, Rowe co-hosted weekly music program The Sound on the ABC. Rowe was one of the hosts of the ABC's 90th birthday celebration in 2022,^{[21] [22]} alongside Tony Armstrong, and Craig Reucassel.^[23]

Rowe hosts Take 5 with Zan Rowe, a television version of her Double J radio segment and podcast, which premiered in September 2022.^[8] A second series premiered from 8 October 2023,^[24][25] and the third on 1 October 2024. Series 3 guests were Dannii Minogue, Bill Bailey, Claudia Karvan, Neil Finn, Bernard Fanning, and Casey Donovan.^[26] Rowe's comfortable style has been celebrated by industry^[27] and artists alike, with Bernard Fanning calling her "our beloved 21st Century Molly Meldrum".^[28]