Folkandroots Present BLÁNID and Jennifer Lee Ridley

“completely captivating” — Sian Eleri Evans, BBC Radio 1

BLÁNID’s hauntingly powerful voice and confessional, folk-infused songwriting style have been causing a stir in her native Ireland and beyond.

With a distinctive songwriting style and a voice that demands to be heard, Irish singer-songwriter BLÁNID has been recognised as a rising talent industry-wide across the UK and Ireland. She has garnered plays on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 6, RTÉ Radio 1 and more; TV appearances on RTÉ 1’s The Late Late Show, All Arts TV & PBS; and featured vocalist slots on both Netflix’s ‘The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf’, and ‘Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin’ video game.

Fresh off her 2023 UK tour with American folk icon Judy Collins, BLÁNID shows no signs of slowing down. She made her solo debut on RTÉ TV 1’s Fingal Sessions earlier this year, and was hand-selected by the Ivors Academy for both an International Women’s Day performance & YouTube Music songwriting camp. With a wealth of new music to release this year, BLÁNID is “well on her way to stardom” (Earmilk).

Emotive songstress, Jennifer Lee Ridley passionately uses influences of a Romantic folk nature to create poignant and touching music. She has studied in depth the poetic nature of song and has a strong affinity with writers such as William Shakespeare, John Keats and William Blake. More recently she has combined these influences with her own song-writing to create more modern fusions whilst carefully retaining the purity of the lyrical content. Her dark warm vocals combined with her individual folk sound mirrors the poetic lyrics which explore the many facets of emotions.

This has had a profound effect on her own songs which she continues to develop and enhance through working with other composers, musicians and writers locally and in London. She feels strongly that collaborating is an important part of growing and building an understanding of the nature and the impact of poetry and prose on music.