Celebrating the best of the nation's rising talent, A New Local Hero is back for a massively anticipated second year – with Spin South West having just announced their four finalists.

As one of the most memorable features of Irish Music Month, A New Local Hero acts as an uplifting call to arms for Irish musicians and bands – with all 25 participating radio stations having called out for submissions as part of the talent search.

Let's meet Spin South West's shortlist...

Tino Rondz:

The rapper’s hip hop career got off to a flying start after the release of his first mixtape, Winning, which reached him No.1 on the Reverbnation hip-hop chart in Ireland for several weeks, and hit the top 10 on the R&B chart.

Louise Echo:

The 19-year old Clare artist started writing songs at 14, later recording and producing herself by age 17. Check out her ace debut single from 2021, the pop banger ‘Home With Me’.

Smythy:

The Dublin based indie-pop artist released his latest single, ‘Stay The Night’, last August. The Tipperary native is working with Rory Ryan on a debut EP.

All Of Eden:

The indie-rock duo is composed of brothers Jake and Troy Gawley. They blend harmonies,'50s rock ‘n’ roll, country, jazz and pop to winning effect.

Each of the selected artists at this stage in the campaign will get a chance to play live on their station, and all of those artists – thanks to the support of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, under its Sound & Vision scheme – will be paid for their performance.

From there, the four finalists representing the station will be whittled down to one ‘Local Hero’ from each  – a major honour in itself, which will serve as a huge milestone in the careers of the selected 25 artists.

All of this leads to the national stage of the journey. From the 25 artists selected locally, an industry judging panel will choose just five acts to go forward to play at a special showcase event in Dublin.

The A New Local Hero campaign will ultimately see over  €100,000 paid directly to Irish artists – and one worthy winning act selected, who will get to record a single at the prestigious Camden Recording Studios in Dublin, and release the single on the famed Irish independent record label Rubyworks.

As announced by Hot Press and the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland (IBI), Irish Music Month will run from Monday, March 12, to Friday, April 13 – and will see significantly increased radio play for Irish music across 25 independent radio stations.

Irish Music Month is supported by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, under its Sound & Vision scheme.

The event is also supported by IMRO, RAAP, MCD Productions, Live Nation, Ticketmaster, Camden Recording Studios and the Rubyworks label.

Read more about Irish Music Month here.