Focus on Belfast's young musical talent: Roise McHugh
Claire Dickson
The career of 18-year-old, Belfast-born singer-songwriter Roise McHugh has only gone from strength to strength since its beginnings in 2018.
Drawing inspiration from the likes of Lianne La Havas ad Declan Mckenna, Roise’s career was put on the map by the Irish Youth Music Awards in Belfast where a performance of her original song ‘Underlie’ led to her selection to represent Belfast in the Irish Youth Music Awards. Roise was also able to perform in Croke Park and enhance the previous success of ‘Underlie’ by having it studio-recorded and released as part of the Irish Youth Music Award’s collaborative album. In the same year, the Forestside Young Singer/Songwriter competition acted as both a networking opportunity to meet other like-minded young artists and to professionally record another original entitled ‘One of Those Days.’ After breakthrough at such a young age, Roise’s early involvement in the Belfast music scene is characterised by her passion for performing and embracing each opportunity with open arms.
And the release of her first single ‘One of Those Days’ proved to be an unforgettable progression in her career as Forestside aided her in its recording in Zomerhof Studios. The song was thereafter released independently, and a well-attended launch gig took place in the Duke of York to mark the occasion. Roise described to The Scoop the amazing, overwhelming feeling which overtook her on comprehending a filled-out venue for her first ‘headline’ gig. Roise also sees the release of the single as a valuable learning experience of how the cogs turn in the studio and production environment but also how to release your own music onto streaming platforms to service the wider public. In fact, Roise notes that releasing music at such a young age should not act as a pressure on artists. Instead, the recent growth in the power of social media continues to enable artists to build a following and develop themselves as artists by means of posting cover videos and original material without having to release work deemed to be ‘official’ – something Roise herself takes full advantage of in boasting a 1700-follower strong Instagram dedicated to her music.
Despite the restrictive nature of lockdowns in recent years, which affected the work of many artists, it proved to be a time of creativity and hope for Roise. Being given the freedom to write whenever she wanted meant that it came quite naturally - inevitably giving rise to immersive experiences such as working with the Ulster Orchestra. Working with arranger Paul Campbell to develop her song ‘Someone You Don’t Need’ from consisting solely of vocals and guitar to an arrangement for full orchestra was not only something to tick off the bucket list but also provided something to work on and look forward to in the midst of what was a bleak period for many.
The period of lockdown provided yet another opportunity for Roise in that a livestream gig was facilitated by the Duncairn Arts, giving her the chance to showcase original work through an alternative platform. This proved to be the springboard for one of Roise’s biggest career highlights as in 2021, the organisation based a new documentary project aimed to support and appreciate local artists around her. Consisting of a forty-five-minute episode focused on her singing and songwriting, the documentary also features a bonus performance showcasing Roise’s original work. In Roise’s own words, the final result is a beautiful piece of footage which is testament to where she is in her career so far.
Far from the last we will be hearing of this up-and-coming young talent, Roise now attends the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester - a further enhancement of the Belfast music scene is surely on the horizon.
Claire Dickson is Deputy Head of The Scoop and a Politics student at Queen’s University Belfast