James Vincent McMorrow has spoken, ahead of his special appearance at the Jameson Connects – The Spirit of Christmas online gig, about the powerful new wave of artists and creativity coming through in Ireland.

In an interview broadcast on the Hot Press YouTube channel, McMorrow – whose recently released ‘Gone’ was voted No.10 Track of the Year by Hot Press in the Hot Press annual (buy here) – speaks about a number of musical adventures he enjoyed during 2020 – including two collaborations with his friend Sorcha Richardson.

"Creativity in Ireland, “ he reflects. "I know it sounds wildly naive of me to say it, but I just didn’t realise how potent it was. I’d seen people from afar. I’d known Sorcha Richardson for a year or two – or probably longer than that, but we’d been friends for that amount of time, and I said let’s get in the studio. And we made a song 'The Starlight Lounge’ and this is incredible, this person is a genius. And thengetting to be around that knowing that that creativity wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for this year – this mental year…”

So therefore, you might say, there have been surprising – if often elusive – upsides to the emergence of the coronavirus. James Vincent McMorrow also recorded a powerful, stonking dance track with Denise Chaila, Sorcha Richardson, Good Knows and MurLi, entitled 'Out The Gaff'.

“Putting musicians in rooms that I’d never have put them in before,” McMorrow adds. "That Denise and Sorcha song came from a room that included God Knows and MurLi – but also Mark (Prendergast) from Kodaline who is one of my best friends, Conor (Adams) from All Tvvins is another great friend of mine, a producer called Cormac Butler. These were all people who didn’t know each other, they just knew me. And I thought ‘Let me be a connector'. That was brilliant. I absolutely adored that.”

For the full Hot Press YouTube interview with James Vincent McMorrow, watch here:

Join us for an unforgettable online music experience with James Vincent McMorrow; Saint Sister and Lisa Hannigan and The Scratch at 9pm on Wednesday, 23rd December at youtube.com/jamesonwhiskey

And, in the meantime, go to Jameson Connects, the place for epic rewards, incredible experiences, unique content and much more: Jameson Whiskey Connects

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