Kilcommon’s Molly hits perfect note
Tipperary country singer, Molly O’Connell, is looking to make it back to back Glór Tíre victories for The Premier County.
Molly, from Kilcommon, has made it to the all-important, second semi-final of TG4’s country music competition, Glór Tíre. Now she hopes to reach the Grand Final, and emulate Aishling Rafferty, the Tipperary singer who won Glór Tíre 2022.
On Tuesday night (February 7), Molly won the public vote, edging out three Northern Irish country singers - Billy Mac, Jamie Donnelly, and Florence Given. She will now join the Glór Tíre contestants who have already made it through to that second semi-final: Noel Boland (Wicklow), Bríd Shaughnessy (Longford), Tex Deegan (Limerick), and Seán Fahy (Mayo). It will be broadcast on TG4 on Tuesday February 14 at 9.30pm and be presented by Aoife Ní Thuairsig and Séamus Ó Scanláin.
A hairdresser by profession, Molly is also an emerging name in Country & Irish music. “I have a scissors and a microphone,” is how she describes herself.
She has released five singles to date - all written by Stephen Hamilton - the most recent being ‘Mother’s Wings Will Fly’. She also performed at the Cut Loose Country Festival in July 2022, with Nathan Carter, Michael English, and Jimmy Buckley.
While she is a relatively new arrival on the Country scene in comparison to the other semi-finalists, music and performance run deep in her blood.
“I’ve been singing since I was six in Scór (the GAA’s cultural competition) and Fleadhs,” she says, “and I was blessed to win an All-Ireland in the Scór at a young age. I would have learned sean nós and Country songs, so my voice is a mix of sean nós and Country. It came from both sides. My dad was in a Country band, The Mellowtones, similar to Big Tom. They’re all trad on my Mum’s side. Mum taught me my first song, ‘The Old Rustic Bridge By The Mill’. There were five of us in the family and we were put up onto the fireplace as a stage and taught to sing.”
For Glór Tíre, Molly has been mentored by fellow Tipperary woman, Louise Morrissey - a legend of Irish Country music - in what can be seen as a further endorsement of Molly’s burgeoning potential.
“She is a huge influence,” declares Molly. “I rang my mum and said, ‘Can you believe it? Pinch me! I’m going to be on stage with my inspiration, Louise Morrissey!’ Back in the day, when we had cassettes, I used to press record when she’d come on the radio and sit down with my notepad and write down the lyrics to her songs live ‘Sliabhnaman’ or ‘Tipperary On My Mind’. Being from Tipperary, she has been the county’s Country Sweetheart. I can’t believe it.”
Being on Glór Tíre is a massive opportunity for all the contestants to gain wider exposure, and Molly knows making it to the semi-finals can only further heighten her profile.
“I would just love to establish myself on the Country scene and prove I deserve a space on that scene,” she says, “and if I look down and see somebody smiling that is ticking the box. I’m just following through my dreams.”