Áine Tyrrell is breaking down the stereotypes surrounding her music and heritage as she embarks on her Irish F*ck Not Irish Folk national tour, traversing three states, with 12 shows across major cities and rural centres. Áine Tyrrell, a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, activist, and mother, is Irish and incredibly proud of her heritage, despite to continuous and ongoing connotations surrounding Irish music as Irish Folk and assumed "Irish" behaviour associated with the heritage. Hailing from a rich Irish lineage of music, artistry cannot be confined to a single genre, as she rejects the limitations imposed by the music industry's narrow definition of Irish Folk. Instead, she is redefining her rise through her unique genre, 'Irish as Fuck,' blending spoken word, hip hop, acoustic guitars, and powerful vocals. A reflection of the brave new world we are entering, one that is post-genre, post-pandemic, post-colonial, and post-traumatic. As Tyrrell explains she got the inspiration for this tour from a close friend.
The name of this tour came after a discussion where I could see how the industry were placing limitations on the folk genre and because of such assumptions, placing unfair boundaries on my creativity as an artist.
In discussion with my genre-busting dear friend Jen Cloher was damaging me and quite frankly could never contain me, but that I was Irish As Fuck. It felt like the perfect way to describe me and I could feel it in my bones. I run deep like my culture, I write complex like my upbringing, and I sing with the strength of my ancestors. Tyrrell wants the tour to also make the audience reflect on their own heritage and how we treat others.
What I am really looking forward to on this tour is starting a bigger conversation and connection on how we see and define each other, how much better off we all will be if we can open our hearts to the humans in front of us and not be constricted by expectations of race, gender, cultural background, socioeconomic background.
