Shimmer Boy from Skibbereen was announced as the overall winner of A New Local Hero, a major nationwide talent search with the finale event held in the Academy last night.
As part of the prize, Shimmer Boy (Aaron O'Sullivan), who represented 96FM, will receive €5,000 in prize money; the opportunity to record a single at Camden Recording Studios in Dublin with renowned producer Cian Boylan; have it mixed and mastered by the Grammy Award-winning Ruadhri Cushnanf Spéir Mix & Master and release it through Rubyworks – the record label that discovered Hozier.
Over the course of the evening, fans, friends, family and representatives from across the Irish music world watched six of the Ireland's most promising stars-in-the-making showcasing their talents including Groey, Rebeccal Lane, RunTheRed, Shimmer Boy, Sitting Room and WinMom.
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Despite fantastic performances from all of the acts, Shimmer Boy ultimately won over the judging panel.
This West Cork indie-folk artist showcased his raw, introspective lyricism on his debut album, In the Aftermath, We Bloom, released this summer. He’s clocked up support slots for Dave Lofts and Robert Grace, as well as a sync placement in Made in Chelsea.
Speaking at the event, Shimmer Boy praised all the other musicians and thanked 96FM for being a huge support to him over the past year and said it was a huge honour to win the award.
A New Local Hero is one of the key elements of Irish Music Month – an initiative of Hot Press and the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland, supported by Coimisiún na Meán. 21 local and regional radio stations submitted their individual New Local Heroes as part of the talent search, which an industry judging panel whittled down to six national finalists.
"To make it even harder, there were some genuinely amazing performances here at the Academy," said Niall Stokes of Hot Press.
"But there’s no doubt that Shimmer Boy is fully deserving of the accolade of A New Local Hero – and all that goes with it. Hopefully this is going to open up a new chapter for an artist who we believe has the potential to go all the way – all the more so with the support of Hot Press and our 21 IBI stations."
