How Audio Moves Minds & Markets.
Heard Mentality explores how the world’s most creative brands and minds use sound to make people feel, think, and act.
Presented by Commercial Radio & Audio and hosted by Little Black Book’s Brittany Rigby, it’s a fast, inspiring look into the stories and strategies proving the power of audio to cut through — and move us as people.
Free the Funshine: Why Chupa Chups Backed a Jingle
The jingle didn't follow the media plan. It built it.
Chupa Chups is one of the most recognised confectionery brands on earth, and almost all of that recognition sits on a stick. So when the brand moved into the Australian lollies aisle, it needed to be unmistakably Chupa Chups in a category where every competitor already claims fun.
Brittney Rigby sits down with Amelia Goldsmith (Brand Manager, Chupa Chups ANZ) and John Fairley (Design Director, The Idea Shed) to unpack "Free the Funshine": where the portmanteau came from, why John stood up and sang the jingle live in the pitch, and how having a genuine audio asset in hand shaped where the campaign ran.
They get into nostalgia as an advantage rather than a strategy, making the case for jingles in rooms that have stopped asking for them, turning the famous Dalí daisy into a distinctive asset, running audio enabled out of home at Parramatta Westfield, and how the Nova and Coles Radio partnerships carried the same sound from awareness all the way to the checkout.
Plus the jingles they still can't shake: Cadbury's Fudge, Mojo, and Cottee's.
A must listen for anyone in marketing, advertising, FMCG or audio.
Aussie radio and audio reaches more than 15 million people every week. It's where brands are heard.
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15 Sept 2026
Inside Brand Australia's Sonic Identity
How do you make an entire country sound like itself?
Brittney Rigby sits down with Sarah Holder (Head of Communications, Marketing and Engagement, Austrade) and Nick West (Co-Founder and Creative Strategist, Smith & Western) on building the first sonic identity for Australia's Nation Brand.
They get into the four soundscapes behind it, why the long form work came before the three second logo, testing in seven overseas markets, working with Balarinji and vocalist Olivia Fox, and how a whipbird beat the didgeridoo to become the sound of Australia.
A must-listen for anyone in advertising, marketing, radio or audio production.
Aussie radio and audio reaches more than 15 million people every week. It's where brands are heard.
See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
26 Aug 2026
Making Waves: The Sonic Strategy Behind Carnival’s ‘Play Away’
In this episode of Heard Mentality, Carnival Cruise Line and Innocean reveal how they turned up the fun — and the volume — with the cruise line’s latest campaign, Play Away.
From brilliantly dry voiceover delivery to immersive sound design and Carnival’s unmistakable ship horn, the campaign was built to transport Australians from the daily grind to holiday mode in seconds. It’s a masterclass in making audio more than an afterthought — and creating sonic assets that sail straight into people’s memories.
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10 Aug 2026
The Sound of Being Brave
Pizza Hut's staff can't say the brand's name in the office anymore. They sing it.
That's what a sonic asset does when it's working. Toyota has known it for decades: every brief there now starts with the same two questions. What are we doing with the sting, and what's the music?
Brittney Rigby sits down with Nora-Kate O'Connell (CMO, Pizza Hut Australia), Evan Roberts (co-founder and CCO, Tightknit Studio) and Piero Ruzzene (ECD, Saatchi & Saatchi).
They get into the decoy scripts written deliberately too far so the merely bold ones felt safe. Waking at 3am wondering if you've gone too hard. Why the Netflix ta-dum does more brand work in one second than most platforms manage in a year. Why a sound-alike always feels hollow, even when it's legally clear. And the test that settles it: same ad, same pictures, change the track, and the effectiveness score moves a full star.
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6 Jul 2026
What good work sounds like
What does great creative actually sound like?
Brittany Rigby sits down with two of Australia's top creative leaders, David Fraser (CD, BMF) and Jeremy Hogg (National ECD, M+C Saatchi), to talk trust, taste, and the craft of audio in an industry obsessed with the shiny and the new.
They get into keeping humans at the heart of the work, the "theatre of the mind" that makes radio so powerful, why audio still gets treated as an afterthought (and why it shouldn’t be!), knowing when an idea sounds right, hunting down unusual voices, the rise of absurdist humour, and the sonic branding that still gives them goosebumps.
A must-listen for anyone in advertising, marketing, radio or audio production.
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30 Jun 2026
The Brands Winning Tomorrow Are Building Trust Today
And why audio is uniquely positioned to help brands build it.
In this special Cannes edition of Heard Mentality, System1's Andrew Tindall joins BT Group's Chief Brand & Marketing Officer, Cilesta van Doorn, to explore why trust has become one of marketing's strongest predictors of commercial success, and why audio is uniquely positioned to help brands build it.
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10 Jun 2026
Sonic Branding is a Lifetime Opportunity
In this episode of Heard Mentality, Britt Rigby sits down with Uncensored CMO host Jon Evans to unpack why sonic branding remains one of marketing’s most underutilised growth levers, and why the smartest brands are investing in audio assets that last decades, not just campaigns.
From the emotional power of music and memory, to the commercial impact of jingles, soundtracks and sonic cues, the conversation explores how audio shapes the way people feel, remember, and ultimately buy.
Because, as Jon puts it: what you hear changes what you feel, and what you feel changes what you buy.
See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
6 May 2026
The sound of growth and why playing it safe gets you nowhere
In a channel built for intimacy and attention, are we playing it too safe with audio?
In the latest episode of Heard Mentality, join Emily Meier-Murren (Carma), Lisa Burton (Crowd Goes Wild) and Simon Lee (Enigma) as they unpack why audio isn’t just a support channel, it’s where brands can build categories, earn trust and drive real-world action.
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22 Apr 2026
What Uber Can Teach Us About the Power of Audio
In this episode of Heard Mentality, we sit down with two of the most awarded creative minds in the country — Tom Martin and Julian Schreiber, Chief Creative Officers at Special Australia.
As the creative force behind brands like Uber, Bonds and Virgin, they unpack the role audio plays in shaping powerful ideas.
From distilling creativity down to its purest form, to understanding when sound is the idea versus the craft, it’s a look at creativity through an audio lens, and why stripping things back might be the key to making ideas land harder.
See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
8 Apr 2026
In a Convenience Economy, Audio Delivers
Live from HEARD Live, this special edition of Heard Mentality brings together Global Chief Marketing Officer of Guzman y Gomez, Lara Thom, and Lizzie Young for a candid conversation on the role of audio in driving real business growth.
From distinctive brand assets to measurable sales impact, Lara shares how audio has become a core engine behind GYG’s expansion, and why consistency, creativity and accountability are what make it work.
See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
25 Mar 2026
How to bank on sound: Westpac’s Michelle Klein on music, memory and modern marketing
In this episode of Heard Mentality, we sit down with Westpac’s Chief Growth and Marketing Officer, Michelle Klein, to unpack how one of Australia’s most established brands found a powerful new idea… hidden in plain sight.
From unlocking the iconic “W” to creating a custom song that audiences instantly connected with, this conversation explores how simplicity, creativity and sound can transform how a brand shows up — and how it’s remembered.
Michelle shares the thinking behind Westpac’s latest brand platform, why music became the centrepiece of the campaign, and how sonic branding can act as a powerful “mnemonic device” — building memory, emotion and long-term brand equity.
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11 Mar 2026
Why Great Advertising Starts With Sound
In this episode of Heard Mentality, we explore why audio might be the most underused and powerful medium in advertising.
Brittney Rigby sits down with three leaders in sound and creativity: Ralph Van Dijk (Founder of Eardrum), Sophie Haydon (Executive Creative Producer at Sonar Music), and Zac Pritchard (Executive Creative Director at Dentsu Creative).
Together they unpack why audio captures attention in ways other media can’t, why much podcast advertising still misses the mark, and why brands should stop treating sound as an afterthought.
From the emotional power of music to the craft of sonic branding, the conversation explores how great audio work is created and why authenticity, voice, and storytelling matter more than ever in an AI-driven world.
If great advertising makes people feel something, this episode asks a simple question: should sound be where it starts?
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25 Feb 2026
Why 11% Might Be the Smartest Media Decision You Make
“The starting point. No one cares about your brand.”
In this episode, brand consultant and marketing professor, Mark Ritson delivers the kind of straight-talk marketers know him for, exploring the fundamentals of growth, the power of audio in the media mix, and why long-term consistency still beats short-term tactics.
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28 Jan 2026
Travelling Through Sound — Audio Without Borders
In this episode of Heard Mentality, Brittany Rigby is joined by Webjet’s Oonagh Flannery, The Hallway’s Jules Hall, and Havas Host’s Gayle While to unpack how audio shapes travel brands — and why consistency in sound is one of the most powerful tools in building recognition and trust.
See omnystudio.com/listener (https://omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
2 Dec 2025
Sound That Sticks: How Audio Builds Brands You Can’t Forget
Every brand has a look — the great ones also have a sound.
Brittney Rigby speaks with Aaron Matthews (Original Audio) and Laura-Leigh Smith (Studiotonic) about the emotion, science, and consistency behind great sonic branding. Plus, we chat with Kimberley Flanagan (Strat Agency) about how Chemist Warehouse has used these principles to build one of Australia’s most recognisable retail brands.
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24 Nov 2025
The Brands You Can Hear: From Sushi Hub to Netflix – The Power of Sonic Branding
What does sushi have in common with Netflix?
A killer sonic brand.
In this episode of Heard Mentality, Brittany Rigby chats with Stuart White (Head of Marketing, Sushi Hub) and Charlton Hill (Head of Music & Innovation, Uncanny Valley) about the power of sound to build memory, emotion and culture.
From the seven-second earworm that made Sushi Hub unforgettable to why the right sonic logo can outperform a million-dollar TV spot, this is your masterclass in making people hear your brand — and feel it.
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