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2025 Marks the 35th Anniversary of the Formation of
The Irish Descendants.
Celebrate With Us!

On top of our big news of the ECMA nomination, our front man and founding band member, Con O’Brien, was also the recipient of a prestigious King Charles III’s Coronation Medal. đŸ„‡ 
Criteria to be awarded this honour: 
‘Have made a significant contribution to Canada or to a particular province, territory, region or community of Canada, or have made an outstanding achievement abroad that brings credit to Canada’. 🇹🇩  
35 years this year of the Irish Descendants being an entity, Con has performed over 8000 live shows across Canada and the world, sharing the music and history of Newfoundland & Labrador. To be recognised with this award is a huge honour, and gives us that extra push to keep on doing what we’re doing. 
We have just been nominated for the East Coast Music Association ‘Album of the Year’ for our most recent Christmas album, ‘The Irish Descendants Christmas’. 🎄 
A huge thank you to all of our loyal fans, friends and listeners, but especially to recording engineer extraordinaire Robert Kelly, as well as Rum Ragged’s Aaron Collis for his master musicianship on the album. đŸŽ¶

The Story

The Irish Descendants played a pivotal role in introducing traditional Newfoundland music to a broader Canadian audience during the early 1990s, sharing the stage with other iconic bands like Great Big Sea. Their authentic renditions of timeless tunes from the East Coast, blended with an Irish twist, have made them a cherished part of Canada’s folk music scene. Their popularity soared to such heights that they were chosen as the official band for Newfoundland and Labrador’s 500th-anniversary celebrations, where they had the honour of performing for Her Majesty the Queen. This landmark event marked a turning point for the band.

The Band

Con O’Brien has been the lead singer & frontman of the Juno Award winning Irish Descendants since its formation in 1990. A professional musician since 1984, Con to date has close to 8000 shows under his belt. His voice has been described as “larger than life” and capable of “waking the dead”! His ability to tell the tale of his people and ancestral home of Newfoundland & Labrador in songs and stories is legendary. He has led this iconic ground breaking Canadian folk group through 15 albums including 2 certified gold records, along with multiple awards. Con, who hails from Bay Bulls NL, continues to entertain and share his talent as one of the provinces leading tourism ambassadors!
Con O’Brien has been the lead singer & frontman of the Juno Award winning Irish Descendants since its formation in 1990. A professional musician since 1984, Con to date has close to 8000 shows under his belt. His voice has been described as “larger than life” and capable of “waking the dead”! His ability to tell the tale of his people and ancestral home of Newfoundland & Labrador in songs and stories is legendary. He has led this iconic ground breaking Canadian folk group through 15 albums including 2 certified gold records, along with multiple awards. Con, who hails from Bay Bulls NL, continues to entertain and share his talent as one of the provinces leading tourism ambassadors!
Rowan Sherlock originally hails from Waterford, Ireland, having moved to Newfoundland in 2017 after coming to NL on tour with a band from Ireland, aptly named ‘Newfoundland’! Now a Canadian citizen - currently a full-time music teacher and gigging musician. He plays mandolin, piano and fiddle for the group, as well working as regular gigging fiddle player for ‘Rugged Shores’ and as a side musician for others too. Rowan has a BA in Music Composition and Classical Violin performance and completed his Masters Degree in Music Composition, from Ireland. Rowan has since toured the world extensively with many orchestras and groups, before making Newfoundland his home, residing in tropical Conception Bay South.
Rowan Sherlock originally hails from Waterford, Ireland, having moved to Newfoundland in 2017 after coming to NL on tour with a band from Ireland, aptly named ‘Newfoundland’! Now a Canadian citizen - currently a full-time music teacher and gigging musician. He plays mandolin, piano and fiddle for the group, as well working as regular gigging fiddle player for ‘Rugged Shores’ and as a side musician for others too. Rowan has a BA in Music Composition and Classical Violin performance and completed his Masters Degree in Music Composition, from Ireland. Rowan has since toured the world extensively with many orchestras and groups, before making Newfoundland his home, residing in tropical Conception Bay South.
Madeline Carter is a fiddler originally from Aulac, New Brunswick who has been playing for 15 years. Playing a variety of different genres of music including Celtic, Country, and Folk, she also composes her own music. Along with her sisters, they make up “The Carter Girls” and their debut album "Crossing Borders" was released in July of 2020 featuring 6 original tunes. The album was recorded at "The Loft Studio" in Moncton, New Brunswick with the help of Studio Engineer and good friend Tyler Vollrath. Now living in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Madeline has graduated and received her diploma for Music Performance Business and Technology at College of the North Atlantic.
Madeline Carter is a fiddler originally from Aulac, New Brunswick who has been playing for 15 years. Playing a variety of different genres of music including Celtic, Country, and Folk, she also composes her own music. Along with her sisters, they make up “The Carter Girls” and their debut album "Crossing Borders" was released in July of 2020 featuring 6 original tunes. The album was recorded at "The Loft Studio" in Moncton, New Brunswick with the help of Studio Engineer and good friend Tyler Vollrath. Now living in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Madeline has graduated and received her diploma for Music Performance Business and Technology at College of the North Atlantic.
Jeff Kinsman has worked for many years as a live sound technician for local and touring acts, including The Irish Descendants numerous times in the past, and has been a professional bassist since 1995. Born and raised in Halifax, and moved to St. John’s in 2008, Jeff graduated from NSCC recording arts program in 2002. Having performed over the years with many groups such as: The Reels, Hip Waders, Rugged Shores, Those Beautiful Uglysticks, and many other east coast original and Irish bands, Jeff is a 3 time ECMA nominee, as well as being a 4-time MusicNL nominee AND a Music NL winner for Jazz/Blues album of the year 2014 with Hip Waders (Composer, Bassist, Recording and Mixing Engineer)
Jeff Kinsman has worked for many years as a live sound technician for local and touring acts, including The Irish Descendants numerous times in the past, and has been a professional bassist since 1995. Born and raised in Halifax, and moved to St. John’s in 2008, Jeff graduated from NSCC recording arts program in 2002. Having performed over the years with many groups such as: The Reels, Hip Waders, Rugged Shores, Those Beautiful Uglysticks, and many other east coast original and Irish bands, Jeff is a 3 time ECMA nominee, as well as being a 4-time MusicNL nominee AND a Music NL winner for Jazz/Blues album of the year 2014 with Hip Waders (Composer, Bassist, Recording and Mixing Engineer)

The 35th Anniversary Box Set

The Irish Descendants 35th Anniversary Boxset

LIMITED EDITION

Beautiful hand numbered embossed gold foil enhanced box set includes:
35 career spanning remastered songs on 3 LPs
35 Songs on 5 CDs
100 Page Book “The First 35 years”
Poster and Stickers
$199.99
Order HERE

Celebrate St. Paddy's Day with
The Irish Descendants!

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