Triple j‘s longtime Mornings host Zan Rowe has delivered an emotional farewell to listeners during her final shift at the station, before she moves over to Double J in 2018.
Speaking at the close of her Mornings shift today, Rowe thanked listeners for their support over the years and teared up, confessing that she’s been “overwhelmed” by farewell messages over the past few weeks.
“You’ve been telling me that I’ve been the constant on delivery and nursing rounds, on the tractor,” she said. “I’ve received some particularly heartfelt notes about the calm I’ve brought to you in periods of anxiety and poor mental health and I can’t tell you what that means to me.”
Getting more choked up, she continued: “And some of you have grown up with me, which means it’s definitely time for me to go to Double J! [laughs] But that just blows my mind that I’ve soundtracked your life, your formative years.
“When I sit inside a studio every day, alone, it’s really hard to fathom that connection that’s being made on the other side, but you’ve let me know and then some over the last couple of weeks, so thank you so much.”
Rowe went on to thank all of her coworkers at triple j and the ABC, calling them “truly the greatest people that I’ve ever been involved with”, and then wrapped up by turning her sights to her future at Double J (where she’ll be taking her beloved ‘Take 5’ segment along for the ride).
“It’s not really a goodbye, but a thank you,” she said. “Thank you for being with me all these years, for shouting back, for sharing the passion, for making me part of your family. I hope you’ll have me over for morning tea on the job site, at work, everywhere else in between on Double J in 2018.
“Thank you, thank you thank you, thank you,” she added through tears. “You have no idea what this means to me. Thank you.”
Cue an explosion of cheers from the whole triple j studio, as Zan threw to her final song, Talking Heads’ ‘This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)’.
Rowe announced her departure from triple j earlier this month, and said farewell (with a few tears) to Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki yesterday, after hosting a weekly science segment with him for over a decade.
Linda Marigliano will be taking over triple j Mornings next year, while Alex ‘Ratdog’ Dyson will return to take up the Lunch spot. You can see all of triple j‘s 2018 host changes right here.
