10 Irish Acts You Need to Know in 2025

From Paul Mescal and Barry Keoghan taking over the silver screen, to Fontaines D.C.’s Grammy nominations, to Sally Rooney’s blockbuster novels, we’re in the midst of an Irish renaissance. 

However, these high-profile triumphs don’t necessarily translate into an easier path for new Irish acts. If anything, the Irish music scene is busier than ever, but with fewer outlets or opportunities for up-and-comers. Thankfully, the Irish government has launched a Basic Income for the Arts scheme to help artists of all kinds, but it’s still a small program. There’s an ongoing cost-of-living crisis in Ireland that’s driven many young people to seek higher wages and lower rents abroad, and made it more and more difficult for artists to eke out a living.

And yet, they try, and I love them for trying. In my nearly 12 years of living in Ireland, the music scene has been one of the most rewarding parts of my time here. It’s a true community, brimming with talented people who deserve so much more than what they have at the moment.

With that in mind, this is our list of the 10 Irish acts you should know in 2025. If you’re not seeing your favorite here, it’s possible we covered them in one of our previous lists of up-and-coming Irish artists. I’d recommend looking at this array of artists as a jumping off point—check out the people these musicians collaborate with, the bands they open for or who open for them. There’s so much brilliant Irish music out there just waiting for you. 

Ahmed, With Love.

No one in the Irish rap game is doing it like Ahmed, With Love. The Dubliner’s debut mixtape Comma, Fullstop., which was released in October of 2024, showcases his casually clever bars and mellifluous voice over bossa nova- and samba-inspired melodies. He’s incredibly funny and keeps listeners on their toes, like on “WHATCHIMACALLIT.” when he suddenly switches from a relaxed, dreamy delivery into speed drive. Ahmed, With Love. possesses a flair for the dramatic, too, even organizing a wrestling-meets-music event for the 2023 Dublin Fringe Festival called “Clash on the Quays”. He’s not afraid to address serious issues, either, honing in on racism in Ireland and abroad on his excellent 2020 single “Pebbles.” “2020 now we lynching, huh? Síochána got us flinching, huh?” Ahmed raps over a caffeinated beat, referencing the Irish police (An Garda Síochána). Whatever the moment, Ahmed, With Love. doesn’t just meet it—he elevates it.

Cardinals

There’s few benedictions an up-and-coming Irish outfit would want more than that of Fontaines D.C. frontman Grian Chatten—and lucky for Kinsale rockers Cardinals, he named them “one of my favourite new bands” in a BBC Radio 1 interview. Cardinals’ self-titled debut EP was released last year, and it’s a tinderbox bursting with ebullient rock, Pogues-esque ballads and post-punk swagger. Euan Manning (guitar and vocals), Oskar Gudinovic (guitar), Aaron Hurley (bass), Finn Manning (accordion) and Darragh Manning (drums) don’t limit themselves to one particular sound, and we’re all the better for it. Cardinals’ talent has already taken them to the States for their first ever New York show last year. Needless to say, I’m anxious to hear their first full-length whenever it lands.

Chalk

When I think of Belfast electronic post-punks Chalk, I immediately picture the moshing crowd and walls dripping with sweat at Ulster Sports Club, where I first saw them play. There’s a reason why they won Best Live Act at the Northern Ireland Music Prize Awards 2023, and their frenetic dynamism translates when you listen at home, too. The trio describe their upcoming EP Conditions III—out on February 21 via Nice Swan Records (also home to Sprints and English Teacher)—as the end of their trilogy of inaugural releases. Vocalist Ross Cullen explains that the previous two EPs touched on the “lack of belonging, confusion, and disassociation one experiences on their journey, growing older in an increasingly discouraging and bleak urban landscape,” but Conditions III dives headlong into these themes. We get a taste of what we can expect on their latest single “Tell Me,” which pulsates with anxiety and evokes all the intensity of a Berlin basement rave. Chalk are due to play in the UK, Ireland and all over Europe in 2025—let’s hope it’s not long before they’re brought Stateside.

EFÉ

Anita Ikharo, better known as EFÉ, understands the importance of cultivating a whole world for her listeners to inhabit. EFÉ’s aesthetic—music included—is adorned with cotton candy pink, baby blue and lemony yellow. It’s a soft, pastel place where you can unleash your most vulnerable feelings and anxieties, like the suspicion that you’re being lied to by your loved ones (“Truth☆Truth”) or fears that you’re being too clingy (“you say that i’m crazy”). EFÉ’s 2024 single “2000SEVEN” is a particular standout; its wistful build is buoyed by the Dublin singer’s winsome voice before breaking out into full, fuzzy indie-rock glory on the chorus. Her rock-inflected bedroom pop means that she’s a perfect fit alongside Clairo on Fader, which she just signed to last year.

hotgirl

Anyone who’s felt trapped in a codependent relationship will find cathartic release in hotgirl’s latest single, the sharp, riotous “In Your Head.” Frontwoman Ashley Abbedeen’s sardonic voice packs a punch as she accuses her paramour of making her a “puppet for your pleasure” over Sophie Boxwell’s menacing, in-your-face guitar. Backed by drummer Nick Stanley (also known for his work as hip-hop producer and rapper Muttonhead) and bassist Jake Hurley (a.k.a. Local Boy), they make a formidable foursome. With their new single “On the Brink” out on January 16 and an EP due for release in spring of this year, now is the perfect time to do your hotgirl homework.

I Dreamed I Dream

I Dreamed I Dream is possibly the best live act in Ireland right now. I was first introduced to the self-described “no-punk bitch-wave” group in 2023, when they were opening for another amazing Irish band, girlfriend. I hardly need to say it, but support acts can get the short end of the stick; people aren’t paying attention, or they turn up late, and the band can be stuck with a small, lackluster crowd. But I Dreamed I Dream knew exactly how to grab our attention. They played the Angelus, the Catholic call to prayer, and streamed through the crowd, commanding us to repent and pouring Buckfast (fortified wine) into willing congregation members’ mouths. After their subversions of religious rituals came a show that threatened to ignite the venue we were in. My favorite numbers included “214,” which juxtaposed traditional sean-nós singing with thunderous drums, and the droll yet dynamic “The Bass” (“Bass for my breakfast / Bass for my lunch / Bass for my dinner / Bass is some munch”). They released their debut EP Why Say a Lot? in 2023, and safe to say I cannot wait to hear their debut album. 

Martina and the Moons

Martina Moon (vocals, songwriting), Sarah Morgan (guitar), Aisling Stephens McGowan (bass) and Zahira Ellis (drums) are making some of the smartest, most compelling rock in the Irish music scene right now. Their 2024 release “Omnibus Boners” pokes fun at misogynistic lads in bands (there are plenty of them, unfortunately) who belittle the all-female outfit with complisults, like saying that they “‘actually’ enjoyed our set, and that it was ‘actually’ rock,” Moon explains. Taut guitar and chugging percussion underpin Moon’s sardonic voice, and her precise pronunciation of the word “pop” on the song is utterly satisfying. They’ve only got a couple singles under their belt so far—the sunny yet melancholy “Emigrate” and the lush, swaying “Dixon Avenue”—but we’re ready to see what’s next for Martina and the Moons. 

Muireann Bradley

Finger-picking prodigy Muireann Bradley was only 13 when she signed to Tompkins Square Records, and just 17 when she released her debut album, I Kept These Old Blues, via the label in 2023. Bradley was obsessed with blues and folk music growing up in Donegal—a gorgeous and somewhat isolated Irish county in the northwest of the island—and those roots show on her LP. Many of the songs she covers on the record originate from around the 1920s and 1930s. Her guitar playing is virtuosic, complemented perfectly by her simple, honeyed vocals. There’s a freshness to the album, due largely to Bradley only using single takes, free from “overdubs or modern recording tricks of any kind,” as she writes on her website. Be sure to check out Paste’s 2023 interview with Bradley about I Kept These Old Blues.

RÓIS

When I saw RÓIS play The Black Box in Belfast, I found myself enraptured. Her head was entirely wrapped in black lace as she performed in front of heavy red velvet curtains. Her ethereal, elastic voice was haunting, like that of a witch from a distant realm trying to lure unsuspecting travelers into the darkness. Her 2024 album MO LÉAN incorporates keening (“caoineadh” in Irish), a vocal lament and a form of mourning practice in Gaelic communities until it died out in the early 20th century. In RÓIS’ music, the past and the present intermingle, creating a sound that feels untethered to a single time or place. 

Skinner

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of no-wave party starter Skinner; in fact, his 2024 EP Calling in Sick made our list of the best EPs of 2024. Just last week, the Dublin-based singer and multi-instrumentalist unleashed his bombastic, irreverent and irrefutably fun debut album New Wave Vaudeville via Faction Records (also home to the comparably sedate James Vincent McMorrow and Niamh Regan, among others). “Jesus Wore Drag” pairs sugary angst with saxophone solos, while a pitter-pattering drizzle sets the scene on album closer “Here Comes the Rain.” Synthesizing the best elements of indie sleaze, disco, New Wave, pop punk and more, this is an album that insists you turn up the volume and dance all your feelings out. 

Clare Martin is a cemetery enthusiast and Paste’s associate music editor.