Celebrating the best of the nation's rising talent, A New Local Hero is back for a massively anticipated second year – with 98FM having just announced their four finalists.

As one of the most exciting features of Irish Music Month, A New Local Hero acts as a brilliant call to arms for Irish musicians and bands – with all 25 participating radio stations having called out for submissions as part of the talent search.

Let's meet 98FM's shortlist...

YAWA:

Following a string of acclaimed Dublin headliners and well-received singles, this indie duo – aka Tim D’Arcy and Harry Keyes – has positioned themselves on the verge of a mainstream breakthrough.

YAWA.

Row-B:

The new solo Robbie Coleman (aka Row-B) has just dropped a debut single, titled 'Golden', on streaming platforms.

Celaviedmai:

Widely considered to be one of the brightest young rappers and performers on the Irish scene, she showcased her impressive growth as an artist with last year’s Both Sides of the Story EP.

Bradley Marshall:

Already working closely with some of the biggest names in Irish pop, it won’t be long until the singer-songwriter is topping charts in his own right. Last year’s ‘Hurts The Most’ has already clocked up over 1.1 million Spotify streams.

Bradley Marshall.

Each of the selected artists at this stage in the campaign will get a chance to play live on their station, and all of those artists – thanks to the support of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, under its Sound & Vision scheme – will be paid for their performance.

From there, the four finalists representing the station will be whittled down to one ‘Local Hero’ from each  – a major honour in itself, which will serve as a huge milestone in the careers of the selected 25 artists.

All of this leads to the national stage of the journey. From the 25 artists selected locally, an industry judging panel will choose just five acts to go forward to play at a special showcase event in Dublin.

The A New Local Hero campaign will ultimately see over  €100,000 paid directly to Irish artists – and one worthy winning act selected, who will get to record a single at the prestigious Camden Recording Studios in Dublin, and release the single on the famed Irish independent record label Rubyworks.

As announced by Hot Press and the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland (IBI), Irish Music Month will run from Monday, March 12, to Friday, April 13 – and will see significantly increased radio play for Irish music across 25 independent radio stations.

Irish Music Month is supported by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, under its Sound & Vision scheme.

The event is also supported by IMRO, RAAP, MCD Productions, Live Nation, Ticketmaster, Camden Recording Studios and the Rubyworks label.

Read more about Irish Music Month here.