Dermot Kennedy

Dermot Joseph Kennedy[1] (born 13 December 1991)[2] is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician. He is best known for his 2019 single "Outnumbered". He is signed to Interscope Records in the US,[3][4] and Island Records[5][6] for the rest of the world. His debut major-label, studio album, Without Fear, was released on 4 October 2019.

Dermot Kennedy
Birth nameDermot Joseph Kennedy
Born (1991-12-13) 13 December 1991
OriginRathcoole, County Dublin, Ireland
Genres
Occupation(s)Musician, singer-songwriter
Years active2009–present
LabelsInterscope, Island
Websitewww.dermotkennedy.com

Early life and family

Dermot Kennedy grew up in Rathcoole,[7] County Dublin, Ireland. An avid football fan and player,[8][9] Kennedy started playing guitar at age 10, and songwriting at age 14; however he states that he did not begin to take music "seriously" until the age of 17.[10] His parents were supportive of his musical study, and he credits his father for frequently driving him into Dublin to perform at open mic nights when he was underage.[11] His mother applied for his position to study classical music at university. He remained at university for three years. His paternal aunt is the legendary Irish TV personality Mary Kennedy.[12]

Career

Kennedy developed his sound while busking in multiple cities, including Dublin in the Republic of Ireland and Boston in the United States.[8]

Several breakthroughs led to him developing an offline following. The most significant of his breakthroughs came in winning a local talent competition. He was the 1st-place winner of The South County Song contest, run by St. Finian's GAA club.[13] The competition, widely recognized as a breeding ground for new talent is frequently attended by many industry professionals looking to find the next new sound.[14] The year Kennedy won, he had to beat the reclusive, underground band The Roast Potatoes.[15] The audience wanted the Roast Potatoes to win but the critics gave the victory to Kennedy, catapulting him on a trajectory to stardom. One time Kennedy was invited to join Glen Hansard on stage. He had previously met Hansard busking in Dublin and stayed in touch via text message.[8]

His online viral streaming success was enabled by Spotify Discover Weekly after it was launched in early 2016. For several years, he self-published his material on the platform, and that of his then-band, Shadows and Dust. They have been streamed over 300 million times as of October 2018.

In 2018 and 2019, he toured the United States, Australia and Europe to sold-out audiences. His first festivals were Bonnaroo Music Festival in 2017; Lollapalooza,[16] South by Southwest Festival[17] and Austin City Limits Music Festival[18] in 2018. He played Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival both weekends in 2019.[19][20] In 2018, he was voted by listeners as NPR Slingshot's Best New Artist of The Year,[21] appeared on NPR's Music Tiny Desk Concert in a 14-minute live acoustic session,[22] on WGBH's Fraser performance studio in a 20-minute live session.[23] He made the BBC's Sound of 2019 Longlist.[24] In January 2020, Kennedy was nominated for international male solo artist of the year at the BRIT Awards.

Style and influences

Kennedy plays the guitar left-handed. GQ magazine described Kennedy as a "singer with a rich, reverbant voice, [with] epically emotive songwriting skills (think Ed Sheeran, but darker, more melancholy)."[7] The New York Times, of his 2018 South by Southwest Festival performance, said he has "a grainy, melancholy voice that can crest with a howling rasp..."[25]

He cites Ray LaMontagne, David Gray, Damien Rice and Glen Hansard as inspirations for his folk style. His recent work has included hip-hop influences, reflected notably in his collaborative work with Mike Dean on the EP Mike Dean Presents: Dermot Kennedy, which Kennedy has also described as a "mix tape".[16][26]

Discography
Main article: Dermot Kennedy discography
Studio albums

References
  1. "Shelter lyrics - Dermot Kennedy". Last.fm. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  2. "Dermot Kennedy on Instagram: "Yesterday was my birthday, and so today I've been thinking about this year and everything that's happened. I've toured the world multiple..."". Instagram. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  3. "Dermott Kennedy Artist Bio". interscope.com. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  4. Henry, Keryce Chelsi. "Acoustic Singer Dermot Kennedy On His Hip-Hop And 'Def Poetry Jam' Inspirations". Forbes. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  5. "Artists".
  6. "'The album is exceptional': Island talks global ambitions for Dermot Kennedy | Talent | Music Week". www.musicweek.com.
  7. Johnston, Kathleen. "Could Dermot Kennedy be Ireland's answer to Ed Sheeran?". British GQ. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  8. "Dermot Kennedy busks his way from Dublin streets to the mainstream". RIFF Magazine. 29 October 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  9. Kennedy, Dermot (7 June 2016). "Crumlin United. What a club..last game tonight to wrap up the league for the 4th year in a row. Love it pic.twitter.com/qXDu5UHRFG". @dermotkennedy. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  10. "YouTube Music's Dermot Kennedy on FaceTiming Travis Scott". Metro. 21 December 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  11. "Dermot Kennedy, NPR Slingshot's Best New Artist". NPR.org. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  12. "Mary Kennedy praises her nephew, Dermot Kennedy". 24 November 2019 – via www.rte.ie. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  13. "St Finians GAA Newcastle". St Finians GAA Newcastle. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  14. "South County Song Contest". facebook.com. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  15. Potatoes, The Roast. The Roast Potatoes. The Roast Potatoes http://theroastpotatoes.com/. Retrieved 30 March 2020. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  16. "Dermot Kennedy On Mike Dean Collaboration". GRAMMY.com. 11 September 2018. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  17. "Dermot Kennedy On World Cafe". NPR.org. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  18. Austin City Limits Radio, 93 Seconds with Dermot Kennedy [Interview] | Austin City Limits Radio, retrieved 18 January 2019
  19. Also in 2019 Dermot played the main stage at @ElecticPicnic Irelands largest music festival emicom666 (27 April 2019), Dermot Kennedy (live) @ Gobi stage Coachella Palm Springs Los Angeles USA 21 April 2019, retrieved 22 May 2019
  20. "Dermot Kennedy to play 'dream come true' Coachella gig". RTÉ.ie. 3 January 2019.
  21. "Dermot Kennedy, NPR Slingshot's Best New Artist". NPR.org. 17 December 2018. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  22. "Dermot Kennedy: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert". NPR.org. 31 August 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  23. "Dermot Kennedy – live in studio". WGBH Music. 4 September 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  24. "BBC - Sound of 2019 Live". BBC. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  25. Pareles, Jon (18 March 2018). "South by Southwest Music Festival: 17 Acts That Stood Out". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  26. "You Should Know... Dermot Kennedy". JOE.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
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