INTERVIEW: Kerry-Anne Gleeson - Thurles singer-songwriter finding her voice

Thurles singer-songwriter Kerry-Anne Gleeson, 32, is making her mark on the Irish music scene.

Born in England, she moved to Tipperary at the age of seven and grew up locally, attending primary school in Holycross and later the Ursuline Secondary School in Thurles.

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While music was always her passion from the beginning, confidence held her back from performing publicly in her youth.

“I suffered from low confidence as a child, never really expressed myself. I was always singing away in my bedroom and I always had a guitar, but I never did much performing in front of people,” she said.

 The first time Kerry-Anne truly felt the magnetic pull of the stage was in the school hall at the Ursuline Secondary School.

“I always wanted to be in musicals and do stage work,” she recalls. One memory stands out vividly: watching fellow student Jessie Buckley perform in school productions.

“She was in sixth year when I was in first year, and I remember just looking at her on stage thinking, ‘Oh my God, I want to do what she is doing.’ Jessie was a massive inspiration for me."

Despite that early spark, Kerry-Anne’s path was far from straightforward. Music remained mostly private, a refuge in her bedroom rather than a public pursuit.

It wasn’t until the quiet of the Covid years that she fully committed to her craft. “I realised this is something I wanted to do as a career,” she says.

“I started really working on my guitar, bought equipment for gigging, and began writing. Writing came from a place of just learning about myself.” 

Over the past five years, she has transformed those private moments into a growing repertoire of songs that reflect her life, emotions, and personal journey, blending Irish traditional influences with her own contemporary country-pop sound.

Kerry-Anne’s musical journey has been largely self-directed. She bought her first guitar at the age of 12 and taught herself to play, later taking vocal lessons with Rebecca Keogh in Clonmel to develop her vocals. 

In December 2025, Kerry-Anne released her debut single, Hey Love Me, a song that emerged from one of the most personal periods of her life.

“I wrote it about four years ago,” she explains, “at the time I was going through a break-up and dealing with other traumas as well. I was feeling very low, but I had hope. The lyrics just came naturally to how I was feeling at that time.”

The song is not a lament, she emphasizes, but a declaration of self-acceptance. “It’s about falling in love with myself. It was the first time I had been single in my twenties. The message is that you don’t have to look for love from someone else.”

Since its release, the single has been met with positive reactions both locally and nationally, giving her the confidence to take her music fully into the studio this year. 

For 2026, Kerry-Anne is prioritising studio time over regular gigs, determined to bring her growing catalogue of songs to life.

“This year, it’s all about creating my album,” she says. “I’m getting the songs that are in my notebook recorded in the studio. I want to make sure they capture exactly what I feel and the journey I’ve been on.”

Looking ahead to 2027, she hopes to return to the stage with more intimate, ticketed performances, where audiences can engage fully with her original work.

“I’ve done plenty of pub gigs where people are talking over you, but the first sit-down show I did earlier this year in Finns in Borrisoleigh - that’s the connection I’ve always wanted with an audience. It was quiet, people were listening, and I could really show the raw emotion of my songs.”

Alongside her music career, Kerry-Anne works full-time at MoorHaven Adult Centre in Thurles, supporting children and young adults with intellectual disabilities.

“Some of the people I work with might not be given the opportunity to express themselves,” she explains.

“If not through music, then through acting or other creative outlets. Music is amazing for anyone with autism or other challenges - their rhythm is so natural, and they pick up melodies so quickly.”

For Kerry-Anne, this work is deeply rewarding. “I love being able to watch them express themselves and see the impact music can have. Music has  a way of relaxing their minds when they might be overstimulated.”

Despite her growing success, Kerry-Anne is candid about the challenges she has faced along the way. “Confidence has always been something I’ve had to work on,” she admits.

“Sometimes you have a bad gig because it’s a messy pub or the audience isn’t listening. One of the key challenges is finding the right venues that will truly appreciate my music.”

She credits meditation and self-reflection with helping her stay focused and grounded. “It’s about inner strength. I worked a lot on myself, learned to be present, and to accept that not everyone will connect with my music - and that’s okay. The support I get from people who do like it is what drives me on.”

Looking ahead, Kerry-Anne has clear ambitions for her career. “In five years’ time, I would like to be a well-known Irish artist,” she says, hoping to follow in the footsteps of artists she admires, Mary Black, Sinéad O’Connor,  Amble and Kingfishr she sites as key influences. 

Rooted in tradition, stirred by modern sounds, and propelled by a quiet, relentless determination, Kerry-Anne Gleeson has a voice coming into its own - one whose music hints at a story only just unfolding. 

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