SexyTadhg returns with their anticipated new EP TADHG – a daring, exciting blend of trad-folk sensibilities with moments of explosive punk flare, A cappella intimacy and splashes of vibrant alt-pop colour. The Ep celebrates Irish language through SexyTadhg’s instantly recognisable, theatrical flair.
Arriving alongside a major UK and Ireland headline tour, Tadhg sees the genre-defying artist reconnect with their roots, pulling deeply from Irish trad and folk influences while continuing to blur the lines between pop, jazz, soul, and folk. The result is a deeply personal body of work that completes SexyTadhg’s artistic introduction.
Where debut EP SEXY embraced vivacity, sexuality and outspoken confidence, Tadhg turns inward, tracing themes of vulnerability, heritage, identity, and belonging.
“Having embraced my vivacious, sexual, and outspoken side with my debut EP SEXY, I wanted to follow the thread of vulnerability introduced in Never Been Loved in the Daylight, and complete my artistic introduction with this EP, Tadhg,” Tadhg explains. “I wanted to blend images and themes of queer and pop culture with Irish culture in hopes that one day this inclusive image of Irish culture would feel tangible and less surreal.”
Raised on traditional Irish music, SexyTadhg began learning fiddle at just seven years old, competing in Fleadh Cheoil competitions across Ireland in ensemble performance, solo fiddle and sean-nós singing. Yet despite a profound love for trad music, they eventually felt alienated from the scene as they grew older and more certain of their identity.
“Despite my deep love for trad, I began to pull away from it in my teens,” they say. “As I developed a stronger sense of self, I started to notice that no one like me seemed to exist in that space – it began to feel like a club I wasn’t invited to.”
Instead, SexyTadhg gravitated toward pop, jazz and rock – genres whose histories of queerness, flamboyance and camp offered both freedom and belonging.
“I turned instead to genres like pop, jazz, and rock, drawn to their established queer identities and sense of camp,” they continue. “When I began performing professionally, I believed I had left trad behind entirely.”
That journey comes full circle on Tadhg, which opens with Róisín Dubh, a powerful statement of artistic reconciliation and self-acceptance.
“That’s why I open this EP with Róisín Dubh: to prove to myself that I could honour the art form of sean-nós. From there, I allowed myself to re-engage with Irish traditional music on my own terms – blending its styles and themes with my own artistic perspective.”
Tadhg ultimately becomes an exploration of duality: past and present, exclusion and self-definition, tradition and reinvention.
“It is also a tribute to the artists whose kindness and support gave me the confidence to return,” they add. “Especially my bestie/bass player Tadhg O’Brien (also known as Silverglass) who gave me the energy and guidance to complete this project.”
The EP arrives following a breakout 2025 for SexyTadhg, including tours across the UK and Ireland with The Mary Wallopers and the release of critically acclaimed debut EP SEXY — a politically charged exploration of queer experience that balanced joy, empowerment and celebration with struggle and stigma.
Lead single Townie Girl perfectly captures SexyTadhg’s gift for turning hyper-specific Irish experiences into something universal, celebratory and thrillingly contemporary.
“Townie Girl is a tribute to the strong, beautiful women of my childhood,” they explain. “The women who taught me what it means to be an individual, to be strong, to be feminine, and to be proud.”
Musically, the track fuses traditional Irish textures with the “scauldy” energy of classic house music.
“I wanted to blend trad music with the scauldy energy of house music like MK17 and Miniac 2000 – the songs we would have danced to as teenagers in nightclubs, pubs and house parties.
Being a Townie Girl deserves to be held in the same category and respect as more traditional or established Irish personalities. Singing this song, I get to feel like the Townie Girl I am, all while celebrating the women who made me.”
SexyTadhg has rapidly built a reputation as one of Ireland’s most fearless emerging artists. Support has come from BBC Radio 6, RTÉ 2FM, RTÉ Radio 1, Dork, Clash, Notion, Hot Press, The Irish Times and more, alongside multiple national television appearances on The Six O’Clock Show, Ireland AM, Ireland in Music, and Irish language programmes including Síorstíl and Glúin Z.
Live, SexyTadhg has become equally renowned for their commanding performances, touring extensively across the UK and Ireland with appearances at Fairview Park, Galway Big Top and Cork Marquee summer gigs, alongside major festival main stage slots and numerous sold-out headline shows.
With TADHG, SexyTadhg doesn’t simply revisit tradition – they reclaim it, reshape it, and boldly open the doors for a new generation to see themselves reflected within it.
Listen below:
