Singing bilingually since primary school, snatching some prestigious awards at Slógadh as part of her school choir, Amanda’s love of song is well established. With her impressive run winning Labhairt na Gaeilge as part of Féile na hInse throughout primary and secondary school she has joined both these passions together. This year she was one of the successful applicants in the mentorship with glór her mentor Domhnall Ó Braonáin snatching his own prestigious award at the Oireactas in October 2022.
Amanda’s explorative style as a song writer is influenced all by her exposure to music in her childhood home. Her father, a self trained drummer of the Showband era broadened her mind and even taught her to train her voice by gifting her a tape recorder aged 10. Amanda’s taste in music is very eclectic, influenced equally by Clannad, Led Zeppelin, Sinead O’ Connor and Electric Light Orchestra to name a few. This synergy of the ethereal and the energetic is inescapable in her live shows as she is now writing as part of her project Phoenix and Wolfe with Brazilian guitarist Cairo Rocha from the Mestre Gamela legacy.
Amanda is heading back into the studio now to record with Cairo after a successful tour of Ireland culminating in their final performance for Culture Night 2023. They look forward to bring the project Eilimintí/Elamentos to fruition very soon.
Amanda is also working on her poetry and submitting her work only this year after years writing just for herself. After the loss of her husband in 2017 she turned to writing songs and poems to channel her life experiences. Her poetry has been read most recently at Blackbough Poetry Open Mic as she delves more into a public sphere with her writing. She has been warmly received by the poetry community and is enjoying the love of writing and is looking forward to announcing some exciting things on this front very soon.