We are excited, proud, and humbled to announce that we've been selected as winner of the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival 2023 Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase!
Over 70 bands from around the world applied for the first round of consideration by a jury of industry professionals. Of these, five were selected as finalists for the 2023 Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase: Arise & Go (USA) , Chloe Matharu (Scotland), Delhaven (Canada), Fiárock (Ireland), and Kinnfolk (USA).
Once the finalists were announced, the second round of consideration commenced: a 10-day online public vote by fans of the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival, fans of the bands, and fans of Celtic music worldwide. Over 20,000 votes were cast in total...
...and, thanks to all of you, a majority of those were for us!
Above: some of the social media posts we made to drum up votes during the 10-day online voting period (we happened to be on our honeymoon in Ireland at the time!)
We are astounded, flabbergasted, shocked, elated and so, so, so grateful to be selected for this honor. As winner of the showcase, we now have the opportunity to participate in a series of artist development sessions with the festival and its sponsors. We're also invited to perform on the main stage at the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival in Ontario, Canada—our first ever international performance!
Here's a quote from the Artistic Director, Cheryl Prashker: "We are thrilled to have Kinnfolk join us as the Robinson Emerging Artist winner...Their music is exciting, fresh and dynamic, and we know our audience will love them. We can't wait to see them on stage at the 31st Goderich Celtic Roots Festival."
To read more from the official press release, click here.
Special Thanks
We want to take a moment to extend thanks to everyone who helped us achieve this dream opportunity...
To the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival and its sponsors, Dolmen Entertainment Group, Irish Music Magazine, and Soundbox Music: Thank you so much for putting together the Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase. It's difficult to overstate just how meaningful this opportunity is for artists in the early stage of our careers. The requirements for entry (such as a robust website and an active social media ecosystem), the guidance provided along the way, and the exposure from participating in this showcase not once, but twice, have helped us develop as a Celtic band on the international stage.
To the jury of industry professionals who selected us to participate in the showcase: Thank you for believing in us! We're glad that you enjoyed our application video, and we were honored to appear amongst such a strong lineup of international peers. We will definitely be keeping an eye on Arise & Go, Chloe Matharu, Delhaven, and Fiárock, and can't wait to see what they do next.
And to everyone who supported us during the 10-day voting period: We literally couldn't have done it without you! Every time you voted, every time you spread the word online, every time you called up a friend and asked them to give us a hand—all of these actions led to our win! We are immensely grateful for all of the kind words and support you have given us during our nearly five years as a band...and we hope you feel a sense of pride that you helped us achieve something great. We can't wait to bring you along for the journey when we fly up to Ontario in August!
Thank you, thank you, thank you all.
~Julie & Josh
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