5 Irish Artists You Should Be Listening To

Paddy’s Day is just around the corner. Whether you love it, hate it, or just use it as an excuse to go a bit mad for a day, there’s no denying that the Irish Pride is at least a little bit infectious. If you’re looking for a different way to celebrate Irish heritage and culture, give these 5 rising Irish artists a listen this Paddy’s Day!

1. Dermot Kennedy

We just can’t get enough of Dermot Kennedy. The Dubliner is currently making waves across North America and will be playing at the famous Coachella Music and Arts Festival this April. Fans are obsessed with his soulful balladry, which takes influence from both hip hop and the conventional singer-songwriter genres. He’ll spend four nights at the Olympia in May, so make sure to snag some tickets before they’re gone.

2. LYRA

Hailing from Cork, multi-instrumentalist LYRA has been steadily rising through the ranks of the Irish music scene. In 2018, she was named as one of the Nine Best New Irish Artists by the Irish Times and was one of the 12 artists included in RTÉ 2FM’s Rising 2018 list. Already, her dark and moody electropop sounds have been featured in Guinness adverts and have hit the top 10 on Shazam and iTunes Ireland, and we’re so excited to see the young artist continue to grow.

3. whenyoung

From Limerick to Los Angeles to London, whenyoung are racking up plenty of critical acclaim and a loyla fan following. The indie trio discovered their sound in their native Limerick, but they’ve developed greatly over the past few years. Their successful EP “Given Up” was released in November of last year and there are rumours of a full album in the works. Until then, catch them in Whelan’s on the 7th of May!

4. Picture This

Number one album in Ireland. A gig on top of the Empire State Building. Five sold-out nights in 3Arena. Picture This are here to stay and we couldn’t be more excited about that! MDRN LV, their second album, is available on CD, Vinyl, and interestingly, Cassette, so if you’ve been looking for an excuse to dig out your old tape player, it’s your lucky day.

5. Sibéal

Bringing traditional Irish sounds to a modern generation isn’t easy, but this young singer from the Ráth Chairn Gaeltacht, County Meath makes it look natural. Sibéal made herself known in 2016 when she collaborated with Patrick Cassidy and sang his arrangement of Patrick Pearse’s Mise Éire during the 1916 commemorations. Since then, she’s released an EP and has performed all over Ireland and the UK and is set to release a full album this summer. The raw talent and haunting sound is just addictive, and we can’t wait to hear more from her!