| If there was an award for being multi-talented, then Brian Kennedy would surely walk away with it. Already a critically acclaimed songwriter and master interpreter of lyrics with an exceptional vocal talent, he has now emerged as an author of worth, producing a series of short stories and two novels within a couple of years – not surprising for a lyricist of his calibre.
Brian Edward Patrick Kennedy was born on 12 October 1966 and raised on the Falls Road, Belfast, one of six children. From his own candid account of those difficult and ‘troubled’ times, there seemed to be little contact with music of any kind. Nonetheless, as if to compensate for what he calls the “ugliness” in his environment, he developed an uncanny ability to harmonise with the blaring sound of ambulance and fire engine sirens, discovering he had a pitch perfect voice.
Brian felt compelled to head for London at the age of 18. Life was tough, but the move proved to be a breakthrough. At 23 he signed his first record deal with the 1990 release of his debut album ‘The Great War of Words’.
When he was spotted in the early 90s during a live performance by Belfast-born, international legend, Van Morrison, he was immediately invited to join Van’s own ‘Blues and Soul‘ Tour.
During the six years of his association with Van, Brian performed with some of the greatest musicians in the industry, artists whom he had previously only dreamed of meeting – Joni Mitchell, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan and many more. This was a whirlwind time and when not performing live, Brian was backing Van on several of his albums, ‘Days like This,’ ‘The Healing Game’, ‘Back on Top’, also joining Van and John Lee Hooker on the live album ‘One Night in San Francisco’. The six-year association with Van gave Brian Kennedy the experience, training and work ethic that have helped him become one of Ireland’s best ambassadors of music and a master of live performance.
In 1996, Brian released ‘A Better Man’. The immense success of three of its singles – the title track ‘A Better Man’, ‘Life Love and Happiness’ and ‘Put a Message in the Box’ – helped to propel the album to No.1 in the charts for many weeks.
In 2000, Brain took an unpredicted turn in his musical journey – when he was offered, and accepted, the role of lead singer in the renowned ‘Riverdance on Broadway’ show.
In 2002, Brian signed to Curb Records for an outstanding six-album record deal. The eagerly-awaited first album release is ‘Get on With Your Short Life’.
Brian also performed a memorable and powerful version of ‘You Raise Me Up’ at the funeral of football legend George Best in December 2005.
In November 2005, Brian was selected to represent Ireland in the 2006 Eurovision. On 18 May, he will perform ‘Every Song is a Cry for Love’, a song written by himself and selected by the Irish public. |
