Live Report: rising star Cian Ducrot shares piano ballads for the Y&E Series finale

For the Hot Press Y&E's final performance - Cian Ducrot sends us off with a passionate set of heartbreak ballads, highlighting one of Ireland's most watched new talents.

The Cork producer and singer-songwriter has exploded onto the music scene in the past few years with a string of heart-wrenching singles and catchy pop ballads. He's also built a following of over 800,000 on Tik-Tok where he shares his voice and snippets of daily life.

With the release of his debut EP Make Believe in December 2021, a first UK headline show and more than 35 million streams globally, it's been a remarkable year for the rising Irish artist – and things are only getting bigger.

As the excitement continues to build around Cian’s upcoming projects, he has been spending time recently writing for other artists, including American Idol contestant Lauren Spencer-Smith’s next single ‘Flowers’. Cian will be performing at Barn On The Farm and Forbidden Fruit festivals over the summer.

The 23-year-old was raised in Cork and later based himself between London and Los Angeles. Taking a nomadic approach to pop music, home for the multi-instrumentalist is wherever he happens to find his laptop and guitar. Growing up in a broken home, Cian sought relief in music, listening to his mum playing everything from Bach to Chopin — often finding that music was a way to escape the trials of abuse, a turbulent family dynamic and more.

Ducrot later won a full scholarship to study classical flute at the Royal Academy of Music — one of the most prestigious performing arts schools in the world. Cian also knew that to create original music, he would have to teach himself how to produce - so he did. A short trip to California inspired him to pursue his dream of becoming a pop artist instead of a classical flautist. He decided to take a risk leaving his schooling and moved back to Ireland to plan for his new dream.

His debut 2020 mixtape started in college chronicled his unconventional road into the music industry, and he was then discovered by Darkroom/Interscope Records in the summer and promptly signed to the label. The Irish songwriter, producer and artist is at work on a new project and aims to showcase his diverse talents exploring revealing issues of love, loss, masculinity and frustration.

He starts off with a subdued version of 'Not Usually Like This' which he sings alongside passionately played piano.

His next song 'Not Usually Like This' is another vulnerable ballad. "It was the first time that I really dug into my past and was able to go to a place and write a song about something that I previously wouldn't have been able to put into words," Ducrot says of the song's genesis, "It was both difficult and easy, but I learned a lot from writing this song."

'Hello Gorgeous' from 2021 EP Make Believe, 'Make Believe', and 'Hurt so Bad' all continue to showcase Cian's pop songwriting abilities. He has clearly tapped into what makes audiences tick (and tock) with powerful coruses and heartfelt lyrics.

Of course he plays 'All For You', his smash hit that was also briefly featured on Jimmy Fallon. It's a radio-ready single that wouldn't sound out of place in any top-40 artist's discography.

He also occasionally bursts into spontaneous covers, including an attempt at 'When I Was Your Man' by Bruno Mars, an artist from whom he has clearly taken influence. What's more, his love for the craft is obvious and that's really the best part.

We were also blessed with the knowledge that if he were a cake, he would be a Jaffa cake because "They're not actually cakes."

You can now rewatch the whole Hot Press Y&E Series – supported by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media – on the Hot Press Instagram (@hotpressmagazine)

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