Over the past two months, in partnership with Hot Press, 25 of Ireland’s independent radio stations have been highlighting the extraordinary music talent at local level in Ireland – and picking their own ‘local hero’. Five outstanding talents have since been selected from those 25 to showcase before the music industry this Thursday (November 18th) at the Academy in Dublin – with David Keenan announced as the special guest.

Tickets are now on sale from Ticketmaster.ie for the occasion. The gig, which brings together five of Ireland’s hottest acts, in what is the finale to the A New Local Hero award – a centre-piece of the Irish Music Month initiative – kicks off at 8pm on Thursday, with doors at 7pm. David Keenan has recently released his acclaimed second album What Then? on the Rubyworks label.

Irish Music Month is an initiative of Hot Press and Independent Broadcasters of Ireland and is funded by the BAI, under its Sound & Vision scheme and supported by XL Retail, MCD Productions, IMRO, RAAP and XMusic.

The artists listed below will play a special showcase this Thursday:

Carrie Baxter (WLR)
Chameleon (98FM)
Fintan McKahey (96FM)
Leah Moran (Spin 1038)
Mia Yermeche (FM104)

The five artists, who are among the country’s brightest young music hopes, were selected from a long list of 25 – each of whom was selected as a Local Hero by twenty-five independent stations all over Ireland, covering every blade of grass in the country.

The A New Local Hero award caries an extraordinary prize for the final recipient, which includes:

€5,000 in cash
€5,000 worth of gear from XMusic
The release of a single via the Rubyworks label (home of Hozier)
A guaranteed 30 plays on all 25 stations, adding up to a minimum of 750 in total
National exposure via an interview in Hot Press
A full PR campaign around the release of the single

“This is shaping up to be one of the biggest nights of the year for Irish music,” Hot Press editor Niall Stokes said. “It is wonderful to have David Keenan as Special Guest on what promises to be a brilliant showcase of Ireland's emerging talent. David is one of the most brilliant artists Ireland has produced over the past decade, constantly breaking new ground and challenging expectations. He is a remarkable songwriter and a wonderful communicator, so I am really looking forward to his powerfully distilled set on Thursday night.

“The five artists lined up for the finale to the A New Local Hero award really do represent some of the most exciting talent this country has produced,” Niall Stokes added. "There is a marvellous wave of brilliant new artists, effectively demanding their place in the spotlight at the moment – and these five stars-in-the-making are right at the heart of that action. I think it is going to be an unforgettable occasion.”

"We’re really delighted with the calibre of the artists and musicians who have come through for the showcase, final night of A New Local Hero,” John Purcell, Chair of Independent Broadcasters of Ireland said. ”We are really looking forward to a cracking night in The Academy on the 18th of November – all the more so now that the identity of our Special Guest has been revealed as David Keenan. The 25 radio stations who took part have done an amazing job throughout Irish Music Month, in supporting Irish music. It is going to be really exciting now to see which station has uncovered the recipient of the A New Local Hero award 2021.”

Judges for the A New Local Hero award include representatives from IMRO, RAAP, Rubyworks, the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland and Hot Press, as well as musicians and songwriters, RuthAnne Cunningham and Róisín O.

Irish Music Month is supported by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland from its Sound & Vision fund and by XL Retail, offering a great deal more at your local store. Irish Music Month is also supported by MCD Productions, IMRO, RAAP and XMusic.

For more information, listen to your favourite independent radio station, read Hot Press – and check out hotpress.com