Orla Gartland

Dublin singer-songwriter Orla Gartland had a childhood steeped in music. Taught traditional folk instruments at the age of five, she moved onto the guitar at 12 and posted her first video to YouTube at 13.

The ever-humble musician’s online following grew exponentially over the next few years and she progressed to writing folk-pop originals influenced by the likes of Joni Mitchell and Imogen Heap. She released her debut single Devil On My Shoulder in 2012, with the EP Roots arriving the following year.

Roots started things rolling for the teenager, the mainstream Irish media taking note and Apple Music picking the title track as its Single Of The Week. Gartland kept busy, contributing a song to Niall Breslin’s Simple Things compilation in aid of suicide prevention and collaborating with Gretta Isaac on a cover of Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. A second EP, Lonely People, followed in 2014.

A string of singles arrived in mid to late 2018, putting an end to a quiet few years for Gartland. Two more EPs, Why Am I Like This? and Freckle Season followed in 2019 and 2020 respectively. The two were combined into Why Is Freckle Season Like This? along with two bonus tracks in 2020.

The singles Pretending, More Like You and Zombie! laid the groundwork for Gartland’s debut album, earmarked for a 2021 release.