Wallis Bird is really looking forward to performing in this year's Tradfest in Dublin - which she describes as "my favourite festival in the city".
The Wexford born and Berlin-based musician was amongst an army of A-list trad folk who performed a series of tunes on Friday’s Late Late Show as a prelude to Tradfest.
She told host Patrick Kielty: "The atmosphere is unreal. It’s actually my favourite festival in the city. The festival is taking over the city, lots and lots of venues and the atmosphere is unreal.
"Walking through the streets, there are musicians - world class musicians - it’s like nothing before."
Patrick Kielty pointed out that "trad music is on a crest of a wave at the minute" and Wallis Bird agreed. "It truly is, yeah. Ever since covid I feel like there’s been a really strong identity for Irish people.
"Being happy with what you’re playing, knowing yourself, and I think we all want hooleys, don’t we?" The audience roared in agreement.
Patrick Kielty also spoke to Mike Hanrahan, describing him as the man who "put the bat signal up and got all these guys together. What makes it so special when the musicians come together like this?"
The Stockton's Wing man told him: "I love Tardiest as it gives me the opportunity to get all the musicians together for the show, we meet everybody, we play all day and have a bit of fun.
"We just hang out and I work with Alan - the great piano player from the house band - and we spend a couple of months just trying to get the tunes and the songs together. It’s just so much fun."
Mike Hanrahan also paid tribute to the late Johnny Duhan before singing one of his songs, The Voyage.
"We were friends many years ago," he recalled, "and Johnny - as a writer - he listened to people and took in his surroundings and wrote about them. He was a very honest writer and he always fought the good fight for songwriters.
"He was a songwriter’s songwriter," he added.
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