The Liam O Flynn Award was established in memory of the late, great piper Liam O Flynn who passed away in 2018, and offers a bursary of €15,000 to the winner each year.

The 2023 winner of the award is Limerick rapper and hip-hop artist Strange Boy, the award will afford him the opportunity to take residence at, and to innovate, collaborate and create new work to be performed at the National Concert Hall.

An extremely compelling artist Strange Boy’s blend of hip-hop and traditional Irish music, and searing social commentary has been hailed as excitingly innovative, with his reputation further enriched by the raft of rave reviews that his debut album ‘Holy/Unholy’ received on release in 2021.

Speaking about his award Strange Boy had this to say – “I have always believed that rapping was a modern form of storytelling. Preserving Irish culture and the tradition of the old Irish storytellers, or Seanachaí, has always been a passion of mine. As a traditional artist, I feel it is essential to preserve our ancient bardic traditions while also introducing new and innovative ideas. That is why I am so grateful to be awarded the Liam O Flynn award and to have the support of the Arts Council. With access to ancient archival stories in the National Concert Hall, I am able to pay respect to Liam O Flynn’s legacy by celebrating the role of the individual creative traditional artist in the creation of new works, unique artistic collaborations, and innovations. 

I am thrilled to be joined by Irish storyteller Aindrias De Staic, guardian of Eddie Lenihan’s collection John Lilis, my all-star band of traditional musicians, and long-time producer Enda Gallery at the prestigious National Concert Hall. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perform at a venue that has held so many great Irish musicians before me. I am excited to continue pushing the boundaries of Traditional Irish music and storytelling while also paying homage to the rich history that has come before me”.

Strange Boy is the fifth recipient of the award; previous recipients include uilleann piper Louise Mulcahy (2022), concertina player and composer Jack Talty (2021), multi-instrumentalist, singer and composer Barry Kerr (2020) and harper and composer Úna Monaghan (2019).