Following the release of his debut single 'Search For Freedom' earlier this year, TYG is back with his highly-anticipated follow-up, 'Don't Fall'.

Offering a fresh, authentic alternative to the mass-manufactured singer-songwriter sound, TYG has emerged with a timeless, folk-influenced approach. Armed with a deep, soulful voice, that proudly holds onto its Dublin grit, TYG's sound belies his relatively young years – and marks him as one of the most compelling artists in the country.

Ahead of the release, TYG discussed his folk influences; rising to the challenges of lockdown; his plans for the future; and his moving new single, 'Don't Fall'.

Read the Q&A below:

You’ve taken a new, stripped-down approach on your new single, ‘Don’t Fall’ – what inspired that?

It’s a bit different to my first single, which was recorded with a whole band. During the lockdown, it was quite difficult to organise to get musicians into a recording studio altogether. So I decided to take a leap of faith. I write all my songs on my own, and I mostly perform on my own – so i said, ‘Why not do this track alone?’

The new single also showcases a strong folk/country influence.

Growing up, I always wrote with the guitar. I’ve been playing guitar and writing songs for as long as I can remember – it’s always just been a great passion of mine. Naturally, writing that kind of music, I was drawn to the likes of Bob Dylan, Townes Van Zandt and Damien Dempsey. That music always struck a chord with me, even though it wasn’t particularly something we grew up with – believe it or not, I have a little brother who listens to nothing but rap music!

Folk music is really taking off again, and there’s a lot of great artists. Even the artists that would be considered pop, like Dermot Kennedy, still have a certain amount of soulful folk in their music.

In the same vein as those country and folk musicians, storytelling also plays a big role in your music – particularly in ‘Search For Freedom’.

It’s about searching for freedom within the trappings of life. I grew up in Dublin City, and in your day-to-day life, there can be a lot of hindrances – whether it’s in your personal life, or externally, with money or jobs. That was the real inspiration behind that track: trying to find the freedom to do what you love to do, without being hindered by that other side of life.

Obviously these are uncertain times, especially for an emerging artist – but what’s your plan for the months ahead?

I have a third single ready to go – but even the recording process for that was very different. We’re really lucky with the technology we have today, that it’s possible for us to record all our parts separately, and then send the stems to a producer, without being in the same room.

After that, a collection of 8 or 10 songs would be nice! I’ll definitely have one or two more purely acoustic tracks on the album. I want to show that folk influence, because that’s the music I connect with personally.

‘Don’t Fall’ is out now.