Blaise of glory

With her talent, intelligence and radiance, it’s no wonder Tara Blaise – a.k.a. Tara Egan Langley – is hitting the big-time.
Fresh off a UK tour supporting Michael Ball (which introduced vast numbers of new fans to Blaise’s melodic repertoire), this savvy Wicklow popster has just released a brilliant new single, ‘Fall At The Start’, which has the same sparkling catchiness and lyrical depth that drew accolades for her 2005 debut album, Dancing On Tables Barefoot.
A major break came last year when Blaise, who is also a trained actor, was invited to play Beth, stage wife to the actor Russell Watson, the only female part in Jeff Wanes’ first staging of the epic War Of The Worlds. The show toured massive venues in the UK for five weeks, taking in Wembley Stadium.
It was a far-cry from Dublin-based bands The Wilde Oscars, Igloo and Kaydee, where Blaise cut her teeth before embarking on a solo career.
“You know,” she says, “I went to a gig last night in Whelan’s – Cathy Davey, she was brilliant, lovely – and I was watching the support band sound-checking, and I just thought, it only seems like yesterday that it was me playing support. Sometimes it’s seemed such a long journey, and other times it feels like it’s all happened really quickly.”
Blaise has the air of someone who’s well-supported by a strong network of soul-mates. While friendship is clearly hugely important to her, relationships of the traditionally romantic variety are not something that she expresses a burning need for, to put it mildly. She seems acutely aware of the stage that she’s at in her life as a woman: that late 20s, early 30s phase, when our culture really starts turning up the heat in terms of pressurising women to settle down with one man, have his babies and create a family unit (usually dropping many of both parties' needs and desires in the process).
Much of the black humour we share on this fascinating topic is basically too heretical to print. Suffice to say that Blaise is a radically independent, self-contained woman.
“I was in Morocco recently,” she says. “People would ask have you got kids or are you married, and I’d say no, and they’d just take one look at me, shake their heads and say, ‘Sad, so sad…’ They thought I was a complete disaster and that my life must have no meaning.”
We agree that this condescending attitude towards single women exists in our culture as well, no matter how progressive we like to think we are.
“I’m kind of looking forward to enjoying my friends’ children and my sisters’ children,” says Blaise, glancing round quickly and adding in a conspiratorial whisper, “and maybe not having my own… I am thinking like that. It’s a possibility. Of course, I’d love to have children – I think everybody would – but not at this minute, definitely. And yes, some of my friends do have kids, and they’re wonderful. But my friends are permanently exhausted. And they have no time for anything. Even when you’re talking to them there’s a sort of dazed look in their eyes, and you know they’re not really there.
“One friend came over to London [where Blaise shares a flat with her recently-engaged sister] to visit. It was the first weekend she’d spent away from her son, who is my god-child. An angel, I love him. And I opened the door and I said 'Hi, how are you?' And she sort of fell forwards saying, ‘I haven’t slept in two years. Let me in…’”
When Blaise was just 21, her beloved father died, leaving her to assume quite a parental role towards her five younger brothers and sisters. You get the feeling talking to her that this (partially self-imposed) responsibility at a young age has significantly coloured her point of view, and is something she’s only now really emerging from.
“I guess I’m at the stage where I’m just starting to really enjoy being selfish,” she says, “and not having to worry about anybody else. I have had long relationships before – when I was younger I always seemed to be in the long relationships, while my friends were single and having fun, but looking for somebody. And now they’re all engaged, or living with someone, and I’m the only single one. But no, I’m not panicking!”
So are you actively looking for somebody?
“No, no I’m not,” she says emphatically. “Well, I mean, I’m open. I’m not saying never to anybody, but, em… I’m kind of too busy enjoying myself. And I’m enjoying my career, I really am.”
Does Blaise worry about losing her independence in a relationship? (Male readers, to avoid getting your underpants in a twist, please read the irony in the lines below.)
“There’s an aspect of that I guess, yeah,” replies Blaise. “I was having a conversation with my friend the other day and I was saying you know what, I just feel really good about myself at the moment. My career’s going well, I’m happy in every aspect. And I’ve got no man, and that’s absolutely fine! And she was saying, ‘You know what’ll happen now? Because you’re feeling so happy, a man will come along'. And I was saying ‘Oh, maybe’. And she was saying, ‘A man will walk into your life and say “Hello, I want to make you happy. I want to keep you in every night. Keep you away from your friends and family. Tell you what to do, stall your career, make you happy pleasing me, make you happy cooking for me…”' It’s scary!
“But at the same time, who doesn’t want the dream of the kids and the family? I guess a huge part of it is just being happy in what you’re doing. If I wasn’t so happy in my career, maybe relationships would be far more of a focus for me. But my career is really fulfilling. And I have so many other interests as well…”
Fair play to any man who can catch the rising star that is Tara Blaise!

‘Fall At The Start’ is out now.