Keys can’t lock Jack into a genre

JACK O’Rourke is an overnight sensation 10 years in the making, writes Ed Power

In 2015 his song ‘Silence’ was adopted as the official anthem of Amnesty’s marriage equality campaign. He has since performed on The Late Late Show and sold out Dublin’s Whelan’s venue. It is quite a distance from his days playing piano in restaurants, bars and hotel lobbies. He is aware of how far he has travelled.

“I’m 31 but I don’t see my age as a defining factor,” says the Ovens, Co Cork native. “It wasn’t as if I was frustrated in my twenties. I was really busy with other things. The stereotypical view is that you start off in your twenties. But that’s if you want to be a top 40 artist. A lot of people burn out really quickly in their twenties.”