Choice Music Prize: Profiles of the records in the running for Irish Album of the Year
L-R: Grian Chatten of Fontaines D.C.; CMAT; Dermot Kennedy: some of the frontrunners for this year's 2023 RTÉ Choice Music Prize
She wanted to be a cowboy, baby, and after helping a lot of people through lockdown with Instagram Live sessions and hilarious videos that announced her to the world, Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson looks well on her way to achieving her goal of being the biggest popstar in the world. It helps that she’s an incredible songwriter (presumably helped by a workshop she attended in London with Charli XCX), opening track Nashville an allegory for dealing with depression, for example. Across the album, there’s references to chicken fillet rolls, dance-offs, and dreams of affairs with the late director Peter Bogdanovich. Welcome to the pop culture and country-infused world of CMAT.
