2FM Rising 2024- Irish musical acts to watch

Here is your guide to the hottest new acts, as RTÉ 2FM names the following acts and artists to see, listen to and enjoy in 2024.

Chubby Cat

Stamped with an individuality and style of her own, Chubby Cat has just been selected to perform at the prestigious Eurosonic Festival in the Netherlands. Hailing from Cork, but now firmly planted in the blossoming Belfast Music Scene, Chubby Cat has already been making waves in Ireland with her earlier singles, Not a Vibe, Big Dog Barking, 21st Century Panic Attack, and Baby Blue & Ache picking up support at Irish Radio, blogs and assorted DSP's including Spotify's New Music Friday, GLOW, UK & IE and New Pop UK.

Chubby Cat was also included on' Best of Fresh Finds 2022 - the influential Spotify International playlist, and named as one of the Hot for 2023 Irish acts by HotPress. Chubby Cat is building a significant live audience having recently being one of the standout performers at Ireland Music Week and is due to represent Ireland at the prestigious Eursonic Festival in the Netherlands in January.

She supported hot UK act Crawlers and Tourist for their sold-out shows in Dublin, and also recently performed at the Independence Festival Cork, Output Festival in Belfast, The Mother Summer Block Party in Dublin and Sofar Sounds Belfast.

Jordan Adetunji

Jordan Adetunji hailing from Belfast is breaking all the rules with his genre merging rap and R&B post punk. The Alternative Hip-Hop Artist has gained a huge momentum with his tracks being featured in Spotify playlists such as Alternative Hip Hop, Chillmatic, and New Punk Tracks, as well as rap uk and Fresh Finds Rock.

Jordan Adetunji has also been played by Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody on radio, remarking "he is the next star" after hearing and seeing him live. He has also featured in Dazed, ID, NME magazine for his creative work.

Sick Love

Sick Love, led by frontwoman Rebecca Geary alongside Conor McLoughlin, Sean O'Connor and Cormac O'Neill, draw inspiration from Paramore, Blondie, No Doubt, Hole and Garbage, as well as pop influences like MARINA and Haim, and hip-hop artists like Cardi B.

The group spent the last two years writing and producing their first full-length record, having developed significant early progress with the release of their initial series of singles which received strong DSP and critical support. Scheduled for a May 2024 release on Paragon Records, with singles coming in February and April 2024, they recorded and produced the album in a farm cottage in Ireland, pushing the boundaries creatively and sonically. The result is an album that feels authentic and true to the heart of who Sick Love is.

Big Sleep

Big Sleep have been making waves both across Ireland and internationally in 2023. The Dublin-based outfit partly met at school and other members later joined having met through the city's live music scene.

With indie-pop qualities that blend alternative rock and soul sounds, the band cite artists including Big Thief, JJ Cale, Jamiroquai and The Cure as influences. It's been a busy time for the four-piece. So far this year they've toured with Somebody's Child, received international radio play (BBC R1, Radio X, RTÉ 2FM), with features on major Spotify editorials (Hot New Bands, New Music Friday) and toured across Europe with sold out shows in London, Dublin and Berlin to wrap up what's been a hectic 2023 for the band.

Big Sleep's Sophomore EP Isn't That Sweet is out now.

Qbanaa

In the year since she released her debut single Truth and Desire, Qbanaa has established herself as one of the rising stars of an Irish music scene that is continuing to incorporate new influences, cultures and sounds.

The artist's recent single Mundo En Mis Manos / World In My Hands received love from BBC Introducing, RTE 2FM, Nialler9, Hot Press and GoldenPlec. Written in what she calls 'Spanglish' (a mixture of Spanish and English). It's a swansong for her early twenties, detailing her blossoming on her new adventure into womanhood.

Based in Dublin, Qbanaa spent her early years travelling back and forth to Cuba, where music and salsa dancing were integral parts of her childhood. Singing in school choirs and with her grandmother in Spanish Mass in Dublin City Centre, until she moved to the outskirts of Dublin with her mother near the sea. Selected by District Magazine in the summer for their Future of Irish Music in 2023, July's curveball Shrink saw her explore a new pop and drum n' bass influenced sound and made an immediate impact - receiving support from the likes of Spotify, BBC Radio 1 and RTE 2FM.

SHEE

David Sheerin is an Irish producer living in county Limerick. He was raised on classic house and disco music and has released tracks through Edible Records, Part 4 recs, &Friends and Second Phase.

Shee has been supported by Barry Can't Swim, salute, TSHA, LP Giobbi, Sarah Story, Danny Howard and Young Marco.

Strabe

Strabe originally met six years ago at Cork Music Festival, bonding over their similar music tastes before quickly realising that they each represented the missing piece of the other's creative dreams.

Angelica, who is originally from Edinburgh, had pages upon pages of lyrics without a real home, while Dubliner Emmet had an electronic solo project without a voice tethering it all together.

Their songs traverse deeper and deeper into the hue as the pair began piecing together How Our Love Grows and its bright, bittersweet explorations of grief, growth, and personal evolution.

The Cope

The Cope are audio-visual artists David Anthony Curley and Joe Furlong who met at an impromptu karaoke birthday party in late 2019 ad they bonded over 90s dance classics, French house music and the Beastie Boys. The pair swiftly started writing together in David's studio, The Clinic Recording Studios.

As they began to develop their sound over the course of the following 18 months, their debut album Dancer took form. Between Joe's experience as a session bassist with some of Ireland's most renowned artists and David's success with his former band Otherkin, the duo knew they wanted the project to be about more than just the music.

They have released several music videos and short films, the most recent two directed by David, which enabled them to build a visual world for their music to live in. Now based in Berlin and Antwerp respectively, the pair will be celebrating the release of their debut album Dancer on the 7th of December with a show in The Complex, Dublin.

Saibh Skelly

In 2019, Dublin-based teenager Saibh Skelly began sharing her busking performances on YouTube, starting with a cover of Billie Eilish's When The Party's Over. It wasn't until she invested in a video camera later that year that she noticed her videos were gaining popularity.

Kicking off 2023 with the catchy track So What?, Saibh continued to garner airplay and solidify her status as one of Ireland's emerging stars. With an impressive track record of 16.5 million radio plays, 3.5 million YouTube views, 3.67 million TikTok views, and 2 million streams & Fresh from the success of 'SAIBH X FIVE', Saibh Skelly raises the stakes again with the brilliant SLY. Co-written and produced by Ash Howes (Gabrielle Aplin, Kylie) and Olivia Sebastianelli (Cosmic Gate, Purple Disco Machine), SLY is modern pop with a twist.

Brad Heidi

Galway based singer-songwriter Brad Heidi - who recently won the BAI Radio / Hotpress Irish Music Month's "A New Local Hero award" - is fast becoming the next Irish singer songwriter to break through.

Brad has been travelling around Ireland busking with just his acoustic guitar and a suitcase full of heartfelt songs. He was spotted by Collective Mgmt just before the lockdown and now Brad has gone from busking on the streets to selling out his first shows, playing the Main Stage at Electric Picnic 2023, and has also recently opened for Billy Joel in Hyde Park London.

His self-released EP, which qualified for the official Irish album Charts, reached No.2 on the independent album Charts and his singles Dancing In My Head and Nobody But You have already broken the Top 40 on the Irish radio charts. Brad has also mastered TIKTOK where he has reached 1 million Likes and was crowned by TIKTOK as the No.1 Most Followed Irish artist in 2022.

Playlist of 2FM Rising artists

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