It’s a wonderful recognition for the singer who hails from ‘The Munster Bar’ in Tralee, where she grew up listening to and performing a wide variety of music in her parents’ bar.
Speaking to The Kerryman, Caitríona said that the award is especially meaningful as it is one that awards her singing and song writing abilities, two areas she has spent years honing.
“I was delighted,” she said when asked how it felt to hear her name called out as the winner, adding, “I was asked to host the awards, but little did I know that I was also going to be getting an award too,” she laughed.
“The two things closest to my heart are singing and songwriting, so any award that directly mentions either of them definitely means a lot. There are so many fantastic female vocalists around Ireland, and to be named as the winner of this award in particular is special.
“I’ve spent so many years training in singing and trying to perfect the craft. It means more than just being called an entertainer. It’s lovely to get that recognition after all those years of hard work,” Caitríona continued.
“There were a lot of fantastic acts on the night. You had people like Liam O’Connor winning Multi-Instrumentalist of the Year, and he’s someone that I have huge respect and admiration for. Then you have people like Patrick Bergin, a Hollywood actor, winning Actor of the Year, and groups such as All Folked Up, who are doing very well on the circuit. There was just so much talent there.”
“Between hosting the event, which is something that I had never done before, I was on my tippy toes all night. There were so many moving parts going on in the background, and so between everything with that and then the emotion that came with actually winning the award, we were up quite late celebrating it,” she laughed.
As for what we can expect from Caitríona in the near future project wise, she revealed that she’s very excited to be involved in an album project involving 13 other female singers that is hopefully set to be released sometime early in the new year.
“There are loads of amazing singers and instrumentalists involved, and the track sounds really kick-ass. It’s very tribal, very kind of primitive and rhythmic. I don’t think many people will have heard girls singing like this before.”
She also revealed she is working on more original songs at the moment, and she is hoping to put out her next original single in the new year too.
To keep up to date with Caitríona, you can find her on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/caitrionaosullivanmusic