St. Patrick's Day performances are back! After two years of a global pandemic that spurred national lockdowns, the music and merriment of March 17th has returned. As last night's headliner LYRA so aptly stated: “It took a bloody long time to come but now it's here!”.

At the opening night of the St. Patrick's Day Festival at The National Museum of Ireland, singers Bobbi Arlo, Soulé, and Lyra gave a trio of incredible performances.

Past the marching bands, DJs, and countless food vendors stood the Festival Main Stage. As the crowd slowly made their way through the festival grounds, Bobbi Arlo took the stage to kick off the night's triad of performances.

Bobbi Arlo at St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

The 23 year old Dublin singer began with her 2021 single ‘Fever Thoughts”, a driving electro-pop stomper about the artists longing for nights out with friends during COVID lockdowns. She then sang ‘Feel It’, another single from 2021. 'Feel It' was recently nominated for an RTÉ Choice Award for Irish song of the year.

Bobbi Arlo at St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

Her ferocious pop jams 'Parasite’, ‘Signs’, and ‘Berries’ make it no wonder that Arlo was among the artists named as a rising star of 2021 by 2FM. Bobbi spoke to Hot Press back in August of last year about returning to gigs, saying that she "couldn't wait for live music to come back!"

By the time Bobbi Arlo concluded her set the crowd dominated most of the plaza in front of the Mainstage, and would only continue to grow during the next performance. Dublin-based electro-R&B artist Soulé brought her unique mix of bass heavy sound with soft soulful vocals to the Festival Quarter last night.

Soulé at St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

She channeled her inner Beyoncé in glamorous grooves like ‘Love Tonight’, ‘What Do You Know’, and ‘Love No More’. Soulé (born Samantha Kay) also made forays into rap with her sassy 2021 single ‘Queenish’ and showed her softer side with the gooey love note ‘Butterflies’.

Bobbi Arlo at St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

Both Soulé and Bobbi Arlo had to double check the order on their setlists between songs, showing just how new live performances are to some artists after the last two years.

The throng at the Mainstage had grown to its maximum force for the night's final act, LYRA. With a series of ethereal chords and her name emblazoned across the back of the stage, LYRA exploded into the night with the glorious anthemic resonance of ‘Rabbit in the Headlights’.

Lyra at St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

The County Cork native, whose real name is Laura McNamara, takes inspiration from the elemental power ballads of Enya and Sinéad O'Connor. Her unfettered powerful vocals filled the entire venue.

“It's so great to be back on stage,” she said. “I've been yelling into my computer for the last two years and everyone was like she’s way too loud for this shit, But they're gonna hear me all the way in Cork tonight.”

Lyra at St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

LYRA treated the crowd to several new tunes including her 2022 single ‘Lose My Mind’. Her powerful new track ‘Mother’ was recently chosen by Virgin Media for use in their new advertising campaign in Ireland.

LYRA released the full might of her lungs in her soaring finale, ‘Falling’, a song that was nominated for RTE Choice Music Awards Single of The Year 2019.

These three artists certainly set a high bar for the next several days of celebration and music.

Tonight the Festival Quarter will feature The Shandrum Ceilí Band, The Bonny Men, and Jiggy. Friday night will see Dublin singer/songwriter Damien Dempsey take the stage with the massive punk-rock sounds of Thumper.

Tickets for Damien Dempsey and Thumper are available here:

St. Patricks Festival in Dublin. 16th of March 2022. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.