Music

Viral Irish song ‘The Spark’ longlisted for 2025 Grammys

The drum’n’bass-beat track has amassed over two billion views on social media

Kabin Crew is a group of songwriters, rappers, creatives and volunteers from Cork, aged nine and up along with a group of children who live in refugee accommodation known as Lisdoonvarna Crew from Co Clare
Kabin Crew is a group of songwriters, rappers, creatives and volunteers from Cork, aged nine and up along with a group of children who live in refugee accommodation known as Lisdoonvarna Crew from Co Clare
Olivia Kelleher
Wed Oct 09 2024 - 12:36

The viral hit ‘The Spark’, created by a group of young rappers from Cork and Clare which has amassed over two billion views on social media, has been long listed for the 2025 Grammy Awards.

Kabin Crew and Lisdoonvarna Crew released their drum’n’bass-beat track in May and it instantly became ‘the song of the summer’. They have received support from the likes of Stormzy, Becky Hill and Tove Lo.

The group have performed at Electric Picnic in Laois, All Together Now in Waterford and to a crowd of 12,000 people at the Pukkelpop festival in Kiewit — Hasselt inBelgium.

[ ‘They put Cork on the map!’: what the kids behind rap sensation The Spark did next ]

The Spark was created by Rhyme Island, a youth rap project based at Kabin Studio, a non-profit at Knocknaheeny in the northside of Cork city, in collaboration with Creative Ireland, a government initiative which funds Cruinniú na nÓg, an annual celebration of youthful creativity.

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Their track has now been long listed on the 67th Grammy Ballot for Best Dance/Electronic Recording and Song of the Year.

The Grammy awards will take place in Los Angeles next February. The young rappers will find out in early November if they have made the final short list for nominations.

Announcing the news of The Spark’s Grammy long list success, Kabin Studio founder and producer Garry McCarthy said on Instagram: “What a mad few months this has been.”

“A song that we created for the @rhymeisland initiative with the crew of legendary kids and tutors @thekabinstudio and in Lisdoonvarna is long listed for the Grammys.”

The video for the track was filmed on a Cork bus in one day and featured about 30 children, aged between nine and 12.. Some of the children live in accommodation for refugees in Lisdoonvarna in Co Clare.

The Spark has been featured on BCC News, ABC’s Today Show, The New York Times, The Guardian and Time magazine.

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