{"id":23922,"date":"2021-11-12T09:07:32","date_gmt":"2021-11-12T14:07:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=23922"},"modified":"2021-11-12T09:07:34","modified_gmt":"2021-11-12T14:07:34","slug":"better-days-are-here-with-dermot-kelly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=23922","title":{"rendered":"Better Days Are Here With Dermot Kelly"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here is a singer that I just came across and I must tell you that he has a lot of talent and you will be hearing from him a lot more I am very positive. His name is Dermot Kennedy\u00a0an Irish singer-songwriter. He is best known for his 2019 single \u201cOutnumbered\u201d” and his 2020 single \u201cGiants\u201d. He is signed to Interscope Records in the US, and\u00a0Island Records for the rest of the world. His debut major-label studio album,\u00a0\u201cWithout Fear\u201d, was released on October 4, 2019. Dermot grew up in\u00a0Rathcoole, County Dublin, Ireland. An avid football fan and player, Kennedy started playing guitar at age 10, and songwriting at age 14; however, he states that he did not begin to take music \u201cseriously\u201d until the age of 17. His parents were supportive of his musical study, and he credits his father for frequently driving him into Dublin to perform at open mic nights when he was underage.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His mother submitted an application for him to study classical music at\u00a0Maynooth University\u00a0in\u00a0County Kildare. He remained at university for three years. His paternal aunt is Irish TV personality and former newscaster\u00a0Mary Kennedy. He officially began his career\u00a0busking\u00a0at 17 years old; however, his career did not become viable until his mid-twenties, having spent over a decade in the industry. Through busking, he was able to develop his sound, travelling to multiple major cities such as\u00a0Dublin, in his home country Ireland, and\u00a0Boston\u00a0in the United States to perform. Kennedy was also invited to open for\u00a0Glen Hansard, whom he had previously met while busking in Dublin and stayed in touch with via text message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Outside of his solo career, Kennedy began a band named Shadows and Dust with three other members during his studies, including Michael Quinn who is the current drummer for Dermot. Although he enjoyed the experience, the band later split up in 2015. In 2018 and 2019, he toured the United States, Australia and Europe to sold-out audiences. His first festivals were\u00a0Bonnaroo Music Festival\u00a0in 2017; Lollapalooza, the South by Southwest Festival and\u00a0Austin City Limits Music Festival in 2018. He played\u00a0Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival\u00a0both weekends in 2019.
In 2018, he was voted by listeners as\u00a0NPR\u00a0Slingshot\u2019s Best New Artist of The Year, appeared on\u00a0NPR\u2019s Music Tiny Desk Concert in a 14-minute live acoustic session, on\u00a0WGBH\u2019s Fraser performance studio in a 20-minute live session He made the\u00a0BBC\u2019s Sound of 2019 Longlist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After releasing many singles and EPs, Kennedy released his first complete album in late 2019, titled\u00a0\u201cWithout Fear\u201d. The album consists of many of his past works, with some even dated eight years prior to the album\u2019s release. In January 2020, Kennedy was nominated for international male solo artist of the year at the\u00a0BRIT Awards. In 2021, Kennedy contributed a cover of the Metallica song \u201cNothing Else Matters\u201d to the charity tribute album\u00a0\u201cThe Metallica Blacklist\u201d. In early 2020, in collaboration with other artists, Kennedy contributed his vocals to\u00a0\u201cSongs For Australia\u201d, covering\u00a0Matt Corby\u2019s \u201cResolution\u201d. The album, organized by\u00a0Julia Stone, was created to raise proceeds in aid of organizations helping Australia recover from their bushfire crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amidst the\u00a0COVID-19 pandemic, Kennedy participated in\u00a0Billboard\u2019s Live At-Home concert. He helped them raise money for the non-profit\u00a0Housing Works, by organizing a short virtual concert. Following that event, Kennedy organized his own virtual concert, Sound Waves, in May 2020 in support of\u00a0WHO\u2019s\u00a0Solidarity Response Fund. On September 6, 2020, Kennedy played for the\u00a0Soccer Aid\u00a0charity match for the first time, joining other celebrities in raising money for\u00a0UNICEF UK. Playing for the World XI team against England, he helped them win their second match in a row, scoring one of their three goals. The team ended up winning in a penalty shootout, turning their 3-3 score, to a 4-3 score victory. He was later named Man of the Match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his music, Kennedy has tried to bridge his two genres,\u00a0folk\u00a0and\u00a0hip-hop, together. This is a change from his past works, which were more acoustic. Unlike some songwriters, he does not write with specific moments or events in mind. He writes them naturally when listening to the track, as specific memories and emotions are triggered through the music. GQ\u00a0magazine described Kennedy as a \u201csinger with a rich, revertant voice, [with] epically emotive songwriting skills (think\u00a0Ed Sheeran, but darker, more melancholy).\u201d The New York Times, of his 2018\u00a0South by Southwest\u00a0Festival performance, said he has \u201ca grainy, melancholy voice that can crest with a howling rasp.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He cites\u00a0Ray LaMontagne,\u00a0David Gray,\u00a0Damien Rice\u00a0and\u00a0Glen Hansard\u00a0as inspirations for his folk style. His recent work has included hip-hop influences, reflected notably in his collaborative work with\u00a0Mike Dean\u00a0on the EP\u00a0\u201cMike Dean Presents: Dermot Kennedy\u201d, which Kennedy has also described as a \u201cmix tape\u201d. I just listened and viewed Dermot\u2019s latest single \u201cBetter Days\u201d and I was blown away as it is just brilliant. You can view it on our website right now at www.irishexaminerusa.com. Ireland is producing the greatest talent in the world right now and you will be hearing lots more about them in this column believe me.<\/p>\n

Share this:<\/h3>