Bridger, Edwina van Kuyk, Katie O'Riordan and Sláinte have been picked out as Live 95's local finalists in the A New Local Hero national talent search - a key part of Irish Music Month which is taking place on 22 stations across Ireland.

As one of the central features of Irish Music Month, A New Local Hero is a major call to arms for Irish musicians and bands – with all 22 participating radio stations having reached out for submissions in recent months. The excitement is rising, with a slew of announcements arriving over the next few days. Each of the acts selected by the stations will perform and be interviewed on their local station, with one act from each station going forward onto the long-list of contenders for the national A New Local Hero award.

Launched in 2021, Irish Music Month is an initiative of Hot Press and the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland, and is funded by Coimisiún na Meán. Irish Music Month is also supported by IMRO, RAAP and Live Nation, along with Ticketmaster, Rubyworks, Camden Recording Studios and Spéir Mix and Master.

The stations participating in Irish Music Month are: Clare FM, Classic Hits, Cork's 96FM, East Coast FM, FM104, Galway Bay FM, Highland Radio, KCLR, KFM, Limerick Live 95FM, LMFM, Midlands 103, Midwest Radio, Northern Sound, Ocean FM, Radio Kerry, Radio Nova, Shannonside FM, South East Radio, Sunshine FM, Tipp FM, and WLR FM.

What Irish Music Month means, across participating independent stations, is:

– More Irish music song plays

– More Irish music artist mentions

– More Irish music features

– More Irish artist gig pushes

– More Irish artist interviews

And – what's more – we'll be putting over €100,000 into the hands of music makers and their crews across the country too.

Without further ado, let's meet Live 95's shortlisted artists...

Bridger

Bridger is the musical project of 24-year-old Jake Flynn from Carew Park. A regular fixture of Limerick’s songwriting community over the last few years, Flynn takes obvious inspiration from songwriters like Bob Dylan, Jeff Tweedy, and Adrianne Lenker. He deftly reshapes his influence’s Americana aesthetics to capture authentic snapshots of life in the Treaty City, creating something that’s uniquely his. Bridger charms listeners with lyrics that reflect Flynn’s affectionate, old soul whilst never falling into cliches that are too saccharine or archaic.

Bridger

Edwina van Kuyk

Edwina van Kuyk (pronounced kowk) is a pop-soul singer-songwriter from Co Limerick, Ireland. Since making her entrance on the Irish independent scene, she has built steady momentum through her authentic lyricism and rich vocal delivery. A seasoned live performer, Van Kuyk has graced stages at major festivals including Electric Picnic, Longitude, and All Together Now, as well as iconic venues like The Ruby Sessions, Whelan’s, and Dolans.

Edwina van Kuyk

Katie O'Riordan

Katie O'Riordan is a singer-songwriter from Ballybricken, Co Limerick who has always had a passion for music. She began by playing trad and piano and taught herself guitar in her teenage years. O'Riordan grew up singing in her local church and started writing songs properly during Covid - now gigging around Limerick. She enjoys making medleys, learning new covers and performing for locals but wishes to do more with her own original music - hoping to inspire others.

Katie O'Riordan

Sláinte

Sláinte are a band from Limerick, brought together by a friendship that began in secondary school and a shared love of music. From writing songs together to performing and developing their own sound, Sláinte have found themselves chasing an ambition they’ve had from the very beginning - to create something that people remember. Still at the beginning of their journey, the band are hungry to learn, improve and get their music heard.

Sláinte

• Keep an eye on hotpress.com and listen to your local participating station for more news on Irish Music Month, A New Local Hero and the Irish song competition, Amhrán na Laoch.