Loughinisland songwriter prepares for headline gig

Loughinisland songwriter prepares for headline gig

14 July 2021

SINGER and songwriter Conor Marcus has announced his first ever headline gig in Belfast this autumn.

The Loughinisland musician is also celebrating releasing his fifth single at the age of 16.

Fresh from finishing his GSCEs at Shimna Integrated College in Newcastle, Conor will be taking up a two-year music performance and production course at South Eastern Regional College in Bangor this September.

His latest single, Love You Again, follows on from his recent tracks, such as Hold Me Close which received considerable airplay on RTE, Cool FM, Q Radio and BBC, as part of BBC Introducing.

“I’m so delighted to be back on the radio with this new song and I’m really looking forward to my first ever headline gig. Lockdown was tough with no gig at all, so I can’t wait to get up on stage with a full band and put on a great show,” said Conor, who will be playing the Oh Yeah Music Centre in Belfast on Thursday, November 25.

Those familiar with the hit ITV show, The Voice Kids UK, will remember Conor from the 2019 series when he wowed the judges in the blind audition performing his own song, That Girl I Met.

He later go through to the semi-finals with the help of coach Danny Jones from McFly.

He has continued to make a name for himself as an up and coming musician, gaining praise and recognition from Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol, Tom Fletcher, also from McFly and Will.I.Am.

Conor won the Forrestside-Cool FM Young Singer/Songwriter of the year 2017 and the PanArts Young Singer/Songwriter of the year 2020.

He was the youngest ever participant on the prestigious Oh Yeah Music Centre’s development programme, Scratch My Progress, in 2019 and was awarded Exceptional Young Musician of the year 2020, working with MOBO 

and Urban Music award-nominated composer and producer, David Lyttle. 

With a broad range of influences from Charlie Puth to Bruno Mars,  Conor’s style today ranges from melodic pop and rhythmic beats,  blending catchy lyrics with slick production, to slower piano-based ballads.

He wrote his first song aged nine and later developed his vocals and performance from busking.

“Since I started busking when I was eleven, my music has been always fairly guitar-based,” explained Conor. “It had always been just me and my guitar. I really enjoy writing with my guitar — it gives all my songs the character they need.

“Having saved the busking money to build up a small home studio, I have started writing with a keyboard, and have even got into the production aspect. But still, I always come back to my guitar.”

Tickets for Conor’s gig are on sale at Ticketmaster. Listen to Conor’s new track at www.conormarcusmusic.com and all major streaming platforms.