Shonagh Daly

Zero effect: It's not all Whelans, Vicar St, The Point and the Belgard in Tallaght, you know. Sometimes an artist gets to do an unusual gig, somewhere off the boring old rock circuit, and in unusual circumstances. Sting may have rocked the rainforest, and Roger Waters may have knocked down the Berlin Wall, but Limerick lass Shonagh Daly got to perform at a memorial concert at Ground Zero in New York, just weeks after the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. Invited by Mayor Rudolf Giuliani to sing at the ceremony, in front of a television audience of millions, the girl from Castletroy recalls: "I was sick to my stomach, and I forgot some of the words." She made it through the tune, however, a rendition of Let Us Love In Peace, from Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical The Beautiful Game. "I cried on the Mayor's shoulder afterwards. There's a photo of me sobbing on his suit!"

Father figure: So, how did an ordinary girl from Limerick end up in New York singing her heart out for America? Thank music teacher Father Paul Nash, who spotted the young singer in a school performance of Calamity Jane, and reckoned she had what it takes to become a star. Soon, she was thrown in with all the boys in a production of The Count Of Monte Cristo, and hooked on classic musicals. Her dad, local car dealer Noel Daly, asked her where she saw herself in five years' time, and Shonagh replied, "on the West End stage".

Medieval babe: Before she could fulfil her dreams, however, Shonagh spent some time working as a "wench" in Bunratty Castle, serving mead to the tourists at the medieval banquets. Forsooth. Hearing that Andrew Lloyd Webber was holding auditions for his new musical, The Beautiful Game, Shonagh grabbed her jerkin and flew to London, auditioning nervously before the man himself. "I didn't think I was West End standard, but I sang in front of him, and he was laughing at me all the way through!" She got a part in the chorus line, performing six nights a week; eventually, her voice became stronger and more confident, and Webber didn't laugh anymore. Instead, he became her mentor, and when he brought her to New York in October 2001 to sing for various media types, the invitation came through to perform at Ground Zero.

Big girl now: With such a prestigious performance on her CV, Shonagh had no problem getting a record deal; her début album, Beautiful View, is out now on Polydor, preceded by a single, All I Want. She describes it as "country, rock and guitar-based", and cites Barbra Streisand, Shania Twain and Beyoncé as her influences. "Big voices, that's what I love."

Kevin Courtney