ACL Fest Artist Spotlight: Dermot Kennedy

Photo by Paul Gore

A visceral songwriter, Dermot Kennedy uncovers the hurt and the dirt, then promises the power to overcome. The 29-year-old Irishman, raised in the village of Rathcoole – population 4,351 – first drew attention in the acoustic guitar-picking, melancholy singer-­songwriter set, but over the past six years has evolved an overt pop essence, where dramatically delivered verses imbue hip-hop phrasing and choruses detonate with big electronic drum pads. Poetic lyricism abounds, largely beholding the power of love: "You cause lanterns to light/ And force demons disperse/ And if Lucifer may fear the swift drying of tears/ Then, for evil, you could not be worse," he sings on "After Rain." An emotive bruiser à la Jacob Banks, Kennedy – who first caught on in the U.S and now plays soccer stadiums in the UK – thrives on an undeniable voice. Raspy and resonant with a fetching accent, he can be vulnerable, but when he roars, you feel it.