QX Interview: Conleth Kane

Conleth Kane
Conleth Kane

https://qxmagazine.com/area/gay-bars-in-london-open/

Pride and Joy! 

To coincide with what would’ve been Belfast Pride this weekend, LGBTQ+ artist Conleth Kane who is originally from Northern Ireland is releasing a new music video, PROUD, and EP, Liberty. QX’s Jason Reid found out more…

Congrats on the release of Proud. How are you feeling about the finished cut? 

Thank you! It feels incredibly emotional as the past few months have been massively intense. I was due to release my EP Liberty in June but due to Covid I had to postpone as my entire professional calendar evaporated leaving me with no way of promoting my new record live on stage. I have decided to premiere the video for Proud on August 1st to celebrate Belfast Pride ahead of the EP’s new release date on August 8th.  

Equal marriage finally reached the shores on N. Ireland this year and I want to celebrate in some way. The video is really beautiful and it features drag queen Margo Marshall. I am a big fan and think she’s an incredible artist. Margo’s story was the perfect narrative for the video. I filmed it on Old Compton Street and in my old college, ArtsEd. The song is everything to me so I wanted to pair it with a beautiful visual/story and we have most definitely achieved that.

Who is this song for? 

The song is for everyone. I wrote it from an LGBTQ+ angle as it’s my own personal experience but there is no lyric in there that suggests it’s about a gay person. It’s a very empowering song and the message is one of self-belief and self-love. When we look in the mirror we see ourselves and it’s our job to love what we see. We can be so hard on ourselves, and others can be hard on us too. The song is about celebrating you and being proud of yourself. It’s a real anthem. When people sing it back to me at gigs my heart literally pops out of my chest. I love that I have written something that resonates with others.

What does the release of this new material mean to you? 

I’m so grateful that I had the record to finish up during lockdown, otherwise I would have felt completely lost. It saved me as my mental health took a nosedive this year. I had things like choosing artwork, mastering songs, sorting remixes and editing music videos to complete – so the fact that I had a creative outlet was a godsend. I felt like I have waited my entire life for this moment. It has been my dream to release a pop album. I never quite envisaged releasing it during a pandemic though.  Each song means a lot to me and I wrote from the heart. The time has come to share them. It’s a strong body of work and I’m very proud of it.

Conleth Kane
Conleth Kane

What was it like for you growing up gay in Northern Ireland?

Hard. I was very bullied at school. It didn’t stop me from being me, though. I was the boy who wore a Spice Girls t-shirt to non-uniform day in an all-boys Catholic School. I didn’t give a shit. The only time it bothered me is when a group would attack me physically or target me verbally. That happened a lot. I could give as good as I got when it was 1-2-1 but usually I was the victim of group bullying scenarios. My family were supportive; life could have been so much harder if they weren’t. I had very different dreams and aspirations and I made a plan to move to London as soon as I could. I was tired of being different.  

When did you first start to feel proud? 

When I left my hometown and moved to Belfast at the age of 16. I came out like a rocket. I lost weight, I got highlights, I made lots of friends, I had a social life, and I worked on getting myself together to audition for stage schools in London. The inner me was truly unleashed, and seeing others like me felt extremely comforting and reassuring. Starting to feel proud was incredibly liberating and I embraced it to the fullest.

What needs to happen in N. Ireland now and the future to protect LGBTQ+ people?

The DUP need to lose seats. They have said some of the nastiest things in public about the LGBTQ+ community and never once retracted or apologised. They actively promote discrimination. Northern Ireland votes on orange or green. It’s terribly petty to think that in 2020 ‘Catholics vs Protestants’ is still a thing – but it is. I know Unionists who vote DUP but disagree with their ethos. It’s really bad. I think there needs to be LGBTQ learning in education. Children back home are born into religion and are raised with these views imposed on them. It can be mentally damaging and harmful. Everyone should be able to make their own opinion without having guilt attached to it.

Who’s your fave Northern Irish person, apart from yourself, obvs? 

Nadine Coyle. I LOVE HER. She’s the original Derry Girl. I have met her a few times and she has been nothing but glorious. She is everything a star should be: Talented, beautiful and humble. I was so pleased when she appeared in ‘I’m A Celebrity’ because she proved to the nation how amazing she is. She followed me on twitter and I GASPED. I just adore her. Her song ‘Go To Work’ is my getting ready tune.

LIBERTY is out on 8th August 

 

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