Irish female country singers have built more than a heritage in the Irish country music scene. Irish people have loved country music generation after generation.
Country music has a large market in Ireland, and like a time capsule, it has preserved the pastoral stories and Irish country life. For some, it might not be mainstream music, but in truth, what people have loved, preserved and respected is mainstream itself.
Some of the famous Irish female Country singers are 1. Susan McCann 2. Philomena Begley 3. Mary Duff and more. Here we look into 7 Irish female country singers.
1. Susan McCann
Susan McCann is one of the foremost Irish female country singers who is also called the First Lady of Country Music in Ireland and beyond.
Her Big Tom is Still the King released in 1977 held the number 1 position in the Irish pop charts. Since then her career has become more of a legacy and model for new country singers.
Susan started her career when she was just 16, and since then she has been hailed for the sincerity she has shown over the years in adapting to her old and new fans. In 2017, she was inducted into the UK’s Country Music Hall of Fame.
Susan has performed with her band in many countries, the most notable one being her country music staging in the fabled Grand Ole Opry, Tennessee.
She has released more than a dozen albums, the latest one being The Older I Get (2020).
2. Philomena Begley
Philomena Begley is an Irish country singer who’s also known as The Queen of Country with a career spanning more than 50 years. At 80, she’s still active.
Begley has performed at Grand Ole Opry and Carnegie Hall, in the US, and is a frequent visitor to Nashville, which is known as the country music capital of the world. She was inducted into the UK’s Country Music Hall of Fame in 2003 and became the first female to be inducted into the ICMA Hall of Fame for her achievements and consistency.
Begley’s version of Blanket on the Ground had reached number 5 on the Irish Chart; her Here Today, Gone Tomorrow had also reached number 7 on the Irish Chart making her a notable country singer in Ireland and the UK after its release. Blanket on the Ground still remains Begley’s most popular song among so many albums and tracks to her name.
3. Margo
Margaret Catherine O’Donnell is an Irish singer affectionately known as Margo. She began her career during the 1960s and since then has sold more than a million records.
In 2014 she released a compilation 50 Songs 50 Years celebrating 50 years in the music business, and she also performed sold-out concerts in 2019 to mark 55 years of enriching Irish country music. She had never wanted to be a full-time singer, but songs done with The Keynotes opened a door of opportunities she couldn’t ignore. People still love her stage presence and ability to connect with the audience.
She had recorded her first single Bonny Irish Boy/Dear God in 1968 and Road by the River/Eyes of a Child the following year, and they brought her to the limelight. She has more than a dozen albums to her credit, the latest being 70 Songs (2020). Don’t Cry Joni, Shanagolden and An Old Friend Like You are some of her most popular songs that have earned thousands of streams on Spotify.
4. Cliona Hagan
Cliona Hagan is one of the most talented and young female Irish Country singers. To point out, Philomena Begley said in an interview that Hagan would mark the scene very soon.
Cliona was awarded the Female Vocalist of the Year in 2017 at Irish Post Country Music Awards. To add to that, she won Sunday World Female Vocalist of the Year for four years in a row. She has also won many Newcomer category awards for Country singers. She is a country singer to watch out for!
Performing country music was rooted in her heart and she always wanted to be a country musician from her early days. Now, she regularly plays at C&W fan concerts and has even toured with the great Philomena Begley and Nathan Carter.
Cliona has released 4 albums to date: The Dolly Songbook (2021), Little Darlin’ (2019) and two others. Her song 123 has more than 1M streams on Spotify. Similarly, Travelin’ Soldier, Cowboy Yodel Song, and Born To Run are some of her favorite tracks among fans.
5. Mary Duff
Mary Duff is another leading Irish female country singer who has been on the scene for more than 30 years. She had started singing at the early age of 12.
Her talent for singing was accidentally discovered by her father, who then invited her to join his band, where she started to perform at the weekends. Progression like this later resulted to become an opportunity for her to join as a special performer on Daniel O’Donnell’s first UK concert tour.
In 2011 Mary had her lifelong dream fulfilled: she got to perform at The Grand Ole Opry. Before that, she along with Daniel had staged a live performance for PBS Special in America which was viewed by more than 66M viewers. She has been awarded Female Vocalist of the Year in 2013 at the reputed Sunday World Irish Music Awards and has also been honored as Grand Marshall in Ireland.
Live in Concert (2019), Turn Back the Years (2019) and Mary Duff: The Complete Collection (2017) are some of her popular albums among many.
6. Lisa McHugh
She is Ireland’s leading country artist topping the Itunes Country Chart and Irish Itunes Chart. She has found a way to synthesize both country and pop music.
She has also appeared on the Grand Ole Opry and has won Female Vocalist of the Year 5 times. For Lisa music has always been a form of therapy and therefore she has been able to create perfect country anthems, keeping the authentic country alive while giving her music a fresh touch of modern pop elements; it has worked quite well.
He career is mostly influenced by American singer Garth Brooks whose music helped her to become what she is today. She listened to his songs when she was just four or five years old and it made an indelible impression on her.
She has been touring for more than 10 years now and has over 77K monthly listeners on Spotify and 77.7K followers on Instagram as of now. Who I Am (2017), #Country (2016) and A Life That’s Good (2014) are some of her major albums that collect her popular tracks.
7. Ailish McBride
Ailish McBride, one of the youngest country singers now, had started Country Music when she was just 15. She has already released 3 albums and many singles.
Hailing from Creeslough, Donegal County, she is a veterinary nurse too.
She has released a cover version of He Oughta Know That by Now by Lee Ann Womack, whom she deeply admires. She has already shared stages with Margo and Philomena Begley – the leading Irish Country Singers. Her cover and original singles in the first album Home to My Donegal (2020) were able to draw a wide audience.
She also appeared at Glór Tíre where she was mentored by Ciaran Rosney.
She is planning to record new singles and duet Country songs in 2023, and social media followers have been very supportive of her music. She has said in an interview with thatsfarming that life as a female country musician is both challenging and rewarding.
Scania 164, Home to Donegal, Trucking Queen and Country Girl are some of her popular tracks on Spotify and YouTube.