Supporting Irish Musicians and Artists

Liam Foody, Joanne Gallagher, Finéinn Quinn and Siúcra have been picked out as local finalists in the A New Local Hero national talent search - a key part of Irish Music Month which is set to kick off on 21 stations across Ireland on September 1st.

As one of the central features of Irish Music Month, A New Local Hero is a major call to arms for Irish musicians and bands – with all 21 participating radio stations having reached out for submissions in recent months. The excitement is rising, with a slew of announcements arriving over the next few days. Each of the acts selected by the stations will perform and be interviewed on their local station, with one act from each station going forward onto the long-list of contenders for the national A New Local Hero award.

Launched in 2021, Irish Music Month is an initiative of Hot Press and the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland, and is funded by Coimisiún na Meán.

What Irish Music Month means, across participating independent stations, is:

– More Irish music song plays

– More Irish music features

– More Irish artist gig pushes

– More Irish artist interviews

And – what's more – we'll be putting over €100,000 into the hands of music makers and their crews across the country too.

Let's get to it then, here are MidWest Radio's shortlisted artists...

Siúcra:

This Ophelia Mortimer-fronted sextet ply their trade via a rich infusion of blues, rock, folk and trad - a combination they've been fine tuning through relentless gigging up and down Ireland's Wild Atlantic Way over the past three years. Hailing from Galway, the group also consists of Ben McGowan, Diarmuid Byrne, Rory Murphy , Eoin O’ Shaughnessy and Tiernan Bines, who've gone from strength to strength since their debut single 'Travellin' Song' landed in 2023. As sweet-sounding as their name suggests.

Siúcra

Joanne Gallagher:

18-year-old Killala resident Joanne Gallagher has been penning her own tunes for a number of years at this stage, as well as honing her skills as a live act through a number of local gigs. Her songwriting abilities flourished after she became a member of The Core Mayo, where she attended collaborative workshops facilitated by musician Philip Cassidy. Her current crop of rock-solid acoustic-pop tunes suggest that the only way is up for this young artist.

Joanne Gallagher

Liam Foody:

A songwriting graduate from BIMM Dublin, this indie upstart blends upbeat, melodic guitar pop with youthful lyricism, boasting a sound not too dissimilar from Bangor heroes Two Door Cinema Club. It's been a busy summer for Foody, having spent the warm months travelling and gigging around America, he dropped his electric debut single 'Take Your Hand' in July. Pulsating and bright-sounding alt-rock.

Finéinn Quinn:

A Gold medal winner at the 2013 Fleadh in Derry, multi-instrumentalist Finéinn Quinn takes an interesting approach to his live sets. Currently gigging across Ireland and the UK, he uniquely uses a loop pedal to create a seamless, sonorous marriage between his guitar and fiddle, forging a sound that is wholly his own. Blending folk and pop with panache, it's no surprise that Grammy-winning producer John Merchant previously hailed this polymath as "Ireland's best kept secret". Not for much longer!

Irish Music Month is also supported by IMRO, RAAP, Live Nation, Rubyworks and Camden Recording Studios.

See the full list of participating radio stations below:

Clare FM
Classic Hits
Cork's 96FM
East Coast FM
FM104
Galway Bay Fm
Highland Radio
KCLR
KFM
Limerick Live 95FM
LMFM
Midlands 103
MidWest Radio
Northern Sound
Ocean FM
Radio Kerry
Radio Nova
Shannonside
South-East Radio
Tipp FM
WLR FM

• Irish Music Month - Irish Radio Supporting Artists - in association with IBI, Hot Press & Coimisiún na Meán's Sound & Vision Scheme, funded by the Television License Fee.

IMM Footer