Fermanagh folk duo Laytha have been showcasing their talents in America. Cousins, Niamh Carney and Philana Nolan flew over to perform in Kansas in Folk Alliance International Conference.
Niamh described the once in a lifetime experience,
“Kansas was insane, we went over for Folk Alliance, which is the biggest folk showcase in the world, all global acts from all over the world go to it, we were there representing Ireland.”
The opportunity was made possible by Culture Ireland and support from PRS foundation who work with new music and help talent development.
“There was music left, right and centre, we were performing little shows and interviewing people, so we were very lucky to get that opportunity,” she added.
It’s early days for the duo who are only starting in their career with much more music on the way.
“We are currently recording a six track EP, we just released the first track and the response has just been amazing, the support has been insane.
“We have a new song coming out in April and we are very excited for it”, said Philana.
Both girls gave up other jobs making Laytha their full income, a risk that they feel has paid off.
“Last year we both decided to take a year out to do music, its been hard but definitely worth it, we will see how things go this year, every six months to a year we revaluate and make a new plan to see how we will navigate the future,” she added.
The band revealed their plans for the future of Laytha, with more traveling hopefully on the cards.
“We are going to release this EP as a couple of singles up until summer, and then after that go on some kind of tour or just do loads of gigs in as many places as we can,” said Philana.
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