DJ Steve Lamacq says New Year Honours MBE is ‘incredible shock’
The 60-year-old presenter has been recognised for services to broadcasting and music venues.
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Your support makes all the difference.Radio presenter and DJ Steve Lamacq has said being made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the New Year Honours came as an “incredible shock”.
The 60-year-old, who hosts a Monday afternoon show on BBC Radio 6 Music, has been honoured for services to broadcasting and music venues.
He said: “This came as an incredible shock. Obviously it’s always nice to have your work recognised, especially having just clocked up 31 years in radio.
“But I’m especially pleased at the mention of music venues as well, because live gigs and the people who put them on have been such a huge part of my life alongside my broadcasting career.
“If I could, I’d dedicate this honour to all the venues and artists and promoters across the country, especially the ones at grassroots level, who have given me such joy over the years, and I’m proud to be one of their champions.”
Born in 1964, the DJ, known for championing new artists and indie music, started as a local journalist before joining NME in the late 1980s where he watched gigs, discovered new music artists, and reported on the burgeoning Britpop scene.
After DJing on the pirate radio station that later morphed into XFM, he joined BBC Radio 1 where he made his name, alongside Jo Whiley, presenting The Evening Session from 1993 to 2002.
While at the station, Lamacq joined the Scottish and English teams on the World Cup trail in 1998 and broadcast from Glastonbury Festival.
During his career, the veteran broadcaster has interviewed a number of high-profile music stars, including members of Britpop bands Blur and Oasis, and championed new music artists like Elastica, whose debut single was released on his own Deceptive label in 1993.
His autobiography, Going Deaf For A Living, published in 2000, detailed his notorious Radio 1 interview with the Oasis brothers in 1997 that led to Liam Gallagher being banned, for a time, from further live BBC programmes after swearing and making threats.
The DJ, who is also often referred to by his nickname Lammo, has hosted a number of awards ceremonies across the years and has also won a number of accolades including the special recognition gongs at the AIM Independent Music Awards and the Sony Radio Academy Awards, both in 2013.
In 2018 the first outstanding achievement award from the Music Venue Trust (MVT) was presented to patron Lamacq for his “tireless championing of grassroots music”.
Also known for promoting independent music venues, Lamacq has co-hosted a series of special shows on Radio 6 Music for Independent Venue Week across the years, focusing on and celebrating different UK gig venues.
Speaking in 2018 as he celebrated 25 years in music, he told BBC Radio 6 Music: “People stop me and say that half of their record collection is based off stuff we played.
“We were just playing records like you would for mates at your house… We didn’t think about having a certain element of influence.
“In a way, I’m glad we didn’t. We might have got carried away with ourselves.”
In 2023 Lamacq became chairman of Live (Live music Industry Venues and Entertainment), the umbrella trade body representing the UK’s live music industry.
The DJ, who has also presented on Radio 2, currently hosts Steve Lamacq’s Teatime Session on Monday afternoons on Radio 6 Music, after announcing in 2023 that he would no longer be presenting six shows a week.
“To be honest, after nearly 40 years at the coalface of new music, I think I need a bit of breather,” he said at the time.
Samantha Moy, head of BBC Radio 6 Music, said: “The 6 Music team are delighted to hear that Steve has received this well-deserved honour in recognition of his incredible broadcasting career and his work to support music venues.
“Congratulations, Lammo!”