Last Thursday night, the Hot Press Y&E series hosted a radiant performance by rising pop artist Lea Heart. The 21-year-old Kildare native was recently featured in Hot Press, and is one of Ireland's most promising new artists.

After clocking up millions of streams over lockdown, Lea Heart will make her headline debut with two nights at The Academy on April 19 and 20. As well as getting her song ‘A Million Goodbyes’ featured in an episode of Love Island, she's also proved a hit on social media over lockdown – garnering 1.8 million likes on TikTok. Fellow Kildare act Picture This have also been early champions of Lea, with the band selecting her as one of the support acts for their Malahide Castle show on June 18.

Lea shares that this is her first ever live acoustic set, stripped down quite a bit from her studio recordings. After calling for requests, a listener asks for 'IDKY' to start off the set. This 2021 single deals with heartbreak and coming to terms with your own self destructive tendencies.

She brims with excitement for her upcoming Academy dates where she will be joined by a full live band. This band includes guitarist Bradley Marshall, a fellow singer-songwriter who takes over the Y&E series April 17 with his own set.

Few tickets remain for these performances. She reveals that if the shows do sell out, she'll be adding a new, not yet released song to the set list. She plans on including even more set list surprises for next week's audiences.

Another request comes in for 'Taking Back My Heart,' an energetic and empowered anti-heartbreak song.

One commenter asks "What's your favourite song you've ever wrote?" She laughs, "It's not out yet! There's a couple coming out soon, I think they're my faves."

She teases that she'll definitely be playing one of them at the Academy show. She also expresses interest in a larger scale Irish tour, hopefully soon.

She segues into 'Hey', one of her favourite songs to sing live followed by 'Waiting for the Night.' Lea closes the set with 'Older,' her top track to date with 2.5m streams on Spotify.

She also plugs the upcoming Vearsai festival in Donegal where she's set to play on April 15th.

Revisit our recent interview with Lea Heart here.

 

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Thursday, April 14: Alex Tierney

Blending elements of R&B and hip-hop production with folk and pop-oriented songwriting sensibilities, Alex Tierney has emerged as a compelling new force in Irish music. Before he had officially released any music, the Dublin singer-songwriter opened for Lewis Capaldi at the Olympia Theatre in 2019. Since then, he’s put out a selection of acclaimed singles, including his latest, ‘I’m Fine’, earlier this month.

Friday, April 15: Abby Butler

Tipped as one of the our ‘Hot For 2022’ Irish Acts, Abby Butler has established herself as a serious one-to-watch. Hailing from West Limerick, the 23-year-old singer-songwriter was selected as Live 95’s winner for the ‘A New Local Her’ talent search last year. Inspired by the likes of Hozier and Wallis Bird, Abby released her latest single ‘Deja Vu’ in March.

Saturday, April 16: Ellen Arthur Blyth

Embracing classic influences like Billie Holiday and Peggy Lee, as well as the contemporary edge of Amy Winehouse and Lana Del Rey, Ellen Arthur Blyth has been tipped as a powerful emerging force on the homegrown scene. Following a stint in a nine-piece band, and a brief but lauded career in acting, the Dublin-born artist recently shared the title track from her highly anticipated debut studio album, Nine.

Sunday, April 17: Bradley Marshall

The Dublin-based singer-songwriter lands on the Y&E Series fresh from the release of his latest single, ‘Make Believe’. Having already garnered a major following on social media – including over 5.5 million likes on TikTok – he’s spent the last few months carefully honing his craft with some of the country’s top songwriters, and his latest single, ‘Make Believe’, marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in his career. Bradley is also set to join recent Y&E performer Lea Heart as the special guest at her headline shows at The Academy on April 19 & 20.

Monday, April 18: Xona

Xona has fast become one of the most hotly tipped forces in Irish music, following the release of his debut EP, In My Head, last year, via Welcome To the New World – a Berlin-based label that also represents Tolü Makay. After moving from Lagos to Ireland at the age of 10, he spent his teen years immersed in music, before emerging as a star in the Irish underground music scene, with a sound influenced by jazz, electronic, house, rock, classical and more.

Tuesday, April 19: Slaney

As well as being a hugely talented actress – who appeared in the hit series Normal People – Slaney has established herself as one of the most exciting emerging forces in Irish pop. After joining forces with producer Michael Hopkins, the Carlow artist has released a string of lauded dance-pop singles, which have earned coveted spots on Spotify editorial playlists like New Music Friday UK, New Pop UK, Irish Dance, Fresh Finds, Chilled Pop Hits, Fresh Finds Pop and A Breath of Fresh Eire. She’s also been snapped up by Paradigm Talent Agency for worldwide live representation.

Wednesday, April 20: Jesse June

Nigerian-Irish rising star Jesse June built up a reputation as a thrilling new force in Irish music, with 2021 singles 'Hide My Feelings' and 'Gotta Be Frank', following a string of Soundcloud releases. While we eagerly await his next release, he's also sharing his writings on his newly launched website, jessejune.com