When Belfast-Derry rappers Kneecap stepped on stage at the Glastonbury music festival last summer, it was the crowning moment of a remarkable year for the band. Glastonbury 2025 welcomed some of the biggest stars in music, present and past — from Gen Z star Olivia Rodrigo to Britpop royalty Pulp and 1990s icon Alanis Morissette. Yet all the attention was on Kneecap, who perform largely in Irish and whose pro-Palestine politics have created controversy . On that sunny afternoon in the southwest of England, they were the most talked-about group on the planet.
But Kneecap were far from the only Irish artists to make a splash internationally in the last 12 months. Dunboyne, Co. Meath singer Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson – known to the world as CMAT – also enjoyed huge success with her slick mix of modern pop and old-fashioned country and Irish music. She has great tunes, but the secret ingredient that has propelled CMAT to the next level is her charming, eccentric live show. Among its highlights is a segment where she invites the audience to join in her “Dunboyne two-step”— an old-timey dance she learned during formative visits to her local, Brady’s.
In decades past, Irish musicians often did well by emulating the look and sound of popular groups from the United States and Britain. What is remarkable about this new generation is that Irishness is at the core of their appeal. Pioneers in this regard include Fontaines DC, whose singer Grian Chatten, from the commuter town of Skerries, sings in a recognisable Dublin accent.
August’s All Together Now festival in Waterford was wall-to-wall with fans wearing Fontaines-themed Bohemian FC soccer jerseys.
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For Irish music the golden era looks set to continue. At a time when the music industry faces an existential threat from AI and increasing audience dissatisfaction with ever more ludicrous concert prices, the value of authenticity cannot be overstated. That is something that Irish artists have always possessed in abundance. Now the rest of the world is catching on to that fact.
