Hozier wins big in the Hot Press Readers' Poll 2024 – see the full results

Music
12 Apr 24

Hozier wins big in the Hot Press Readers' Poll 2024 – see the full results

Hozier wins big in the <i>Hot Press</i> Readers' Poll 2024 – see the full results

Hozier at 3Arena. Tuesday 19th of December 2023. Copyright Miguel Ruiz.

Other winners in the Hotties 2024 include Grian Chatten, Fontaines D.C., Lankum, CMAT, Muireann Bradley, Sharon Shannon, The Mary Wallopers, Denise Chaila, Bicep, and more...

He’s currently riding high on the charts at home and abroad with 'Too Sweet' – but Hozier has another big cause for celebration this month. Following a phenomenally competitive vote, and some sweat-inducing tallying, the Hot Press Readers’ Poll results are in: with the Co. Wicklow star emerging as this year’s big winner.

Not content with scoring both Irish Album of the Year for the chart-topping Unreal Unearth, and Irish Track of the Year for ‘Francesca’, Hozier also came out on top in the Individual Artist of the Year and Best Songwriter categories – beating out some tough competition in all four groupings. The results are a reflection of another history-making year for the singer-songwriter, which included a sold-out debut at Madison Square Garden in New York. Unreal Unearth, released in August via Dublin label Rubyworks, was also Hozier’s first album to claim the No.1 spot on the UK charts.

But Hozier was by no means the only artist deemed worthy of recognition by Hot Press readers. Every year, we ask you to cast your vote in the major poll, and tell us what albums, artists, books, films and other cultural moments made the past 12 months special for you. Once again, you've responded in your tens of thousands – resulting in a dazzlingly eclectic selection of winners for the Hotties 2024, featuring artists from right across the country.

After Hozier, Grian Chatten made the next biggest mark on the Readers’ Poll – with his band, Fontaines D.C., honoured with Live Act of the Year, and his solo release, Chaos For The Fly, named the Irish Debut Album of the Year.

Grian Chatten. Credit: Polocho

Ireland’s folk-informed acts also scored strong results, with Lankum scooping Group of the Year, up-and-coming country blues star Muireann Bradley winning Most Promising Act, and Sharon Shannon crowned Best Musician.

Readers were also asked to vote for Irish music’s Groundbreaking Woman of 2023 – a category that salutes the bold trailblazers who continue to shape the sounds emanating from these shores. CMAT emerged the worthy winner, following another globe-conquering year that saw her top the charts with her second album, Crazymad, For Me, and score a BRIT Award nomination in the International Artist category.

Irish acts have been taking their own individual genres in captivating new directions this year, so it was only right that we recognised the forces at the forefront of those movements. Best Dance/Electronic Act went to Belfast duo Bicep, while Best Rap/Hip-Hop once again went to Denise Chaila, after another year of crucial artistic evolution for the Limerick star. With the raw sounds of Ireland’s past continuing to inform its present, we also called on our readers to select the country’s Best Folk/Trad Act – and, following another exceptionally successful year, Dundalk’s The Mary Wallopers emerged triumphant.

We didn’t forget about the major musical talent outside of Ireland, either – with Lana Del Rey claiming Best International Album with her ninth LP, Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.

But it’s not only musicians who are celebrated on the Hot Press Readers’ Poll. Kildare’s Aisling Bea (last year's runner-up) was named Irish Comedian of the Year – while Fergal D’Arcy again came out on top in the National Radio DJ category, and Ava Somers of Beat 102-103 won Local and Regional Radio DJ.

There were other cultural phenomena to recognise this year, too – including the all-conquering Oppenheimer (Best Film) and The Bear (Best TV Show). The Best Book category, meanwhile, highlighted the stunning strength of Irish writing these past 12 months, with Joseph O’Connor’s My Father’s House claiming the top spot.

See the full results of the Hot Press Readers' Poll 2024 below: