Music is the power to connect. There are no barriers between us when we are sharing our raw emotions through songs. When we listen to or play music for others, our guard is let down and honesty and love come forth. Music is the healthiest drug out there! It brings us all to the same level and makes us relate with one another despite our differences.
As humans, we all have the same capacity to create and enjoy music. When we hear “We Will Rock You” by Queen, we all want to stomp our feet and clap our hands to the beat. Music undeniably lives inside all of us, we just have to give it a voice or a rhythm to bring it to life.
The first time I picked up a guitar was when I was about 10 years old. It was a small old dusty beaten up instrument that had been in my family for god knows how long. There had always been musical instruments lying around my house so naturally I got curious. I picked it up and started messing with it. It sounded pretty bad but I was more focused on the energy I was letting out rather than the sound I was creating. When I expressed this energy I created a safe space for my emotions. Music has always been there for me. Whenever I was sad and needed comforting or when I’ve been filled with joy…
I’ve had my tough times, and music has always been there like an outstretched hand ready to take me to a safe happy place whenever I needed it. Anytime I was feeling down my natural instinct was to seek refuge in the comfort of songwriting and expressing myself freely without judgement. Since picking up music, Songwriting has been my best form of therapy, as I’m sure it has been for countless other songwriters.
My passion for music has hugely expanded over the years and I am constantly getting better and improving my sound. Throughout my teens I have been sharing my music with people by busking on the streets of Galway and it has been one of the most rewarding things in my life. It is really something to know that you might be making someone’s day better by singing their favourite songs out on the street.
I started writing songs when I was around 13 and haven’t stopped since. Last year during the lockdowns I started learning music production so that I could begin to get my music out there in front of an audience. I released my first single “Shaken Up” at the end of May 2020, which I produced myself. The process of writing, recording and producing to make a song a finished product fascinated me and encouraged me to keep learning everything I could. I got better at producing and promoting my own music and ended up releasing another four songs this year.
I can’t express just how grateful I am for the Irish Youth Music Awards (IYMAS) and everything that they do for young creatives like me. They’ve given us a platform to express the voice of youth talent across Ireland and have enriched the lives of so many young emerging artists. I heard about the IYMAS through a music teacher who got me in contact with the people that were organising the live selection in Galway last year before covid hit and I got the opportunity to perform to a crowd and to meet many extremely talented people from in and around my town. The IYMAS showed me that music was something to keep pursuing in my life and I owe them a big thank you for all of their help and continued support. Throughout 2020 and 2021 me and the other young people at our IYMAs Galway hub have been given several opportunities to perform online and share our music with others through the IYMAs programme. The people at the IYMAS really believe in us as young people and creatives and all the help and encouragement has meant a great deal to me. :)
This year acts from IYMAs hubs across the island of Ireland have collaborated together to produce performance videos for their songs as part of the programme and Uisces performance video for his track “Flooding my Mind “ will be shown as part of the online IYMAs National Day this Saturday September 18th alongside lots of other videos. This event is open to all with tickets now available here.
This event will offer young creatives and musicians from across the country access to some of Ireland’s best industry professionals for exclusive workshops and performances. These include award winning dance pop trio Chasing Abbey who will perform some exclusive tracks and speak with RTÉ 2FM DJ Tracy Clifford giving advice on how to use social media effectively as an artist; Nialler9 will speak with Soda Blonde about their critically acclaimed debut album as well as hearing some songs from this release; RTE Choice Prize Song Of The Year nominee Gemma Dunleavy will chat to RTÉ 2FM DJ Tara Stewart, providing advice for up and coming musicians as well as offering attendees to hear some tracks from her acclaimed debut EP; hit podcasters Laura Fox and Emma Power from RTÉ 2FM’s chart topping show My First Ride will teach participants how to start a podcast and Dave Magee from BIMM Institute Dublin will host a song writing workshop plus more to be announced.
Virtual doors open at 10.30am on Saturday September 18th with the first workshop starting live at 11am – Full timetable at the links below.
Tickets available here and more info on the IYMAs here – Instagram // Website // Facebook // Twitter
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