MTV set to name top star for free Cork gig

MTV is set to crash Ireland for the first time with a free and exclusive live gig in Cork which could be worth up to €10m to the local economy.

The global music network will announce plans tonight to stage its first Irish MTV Crashes gig in Cork later this year — the network’s first event in this country for 15 years.

The concert will be recorded for broadcast by MTV in 161 countries.

While headline artistes have yet to be confirmed, it is understood talks are ongoing with Lady GaGa, Robbie Williams, Kodaline, Lana Del Ray, and Little Mix. Hollywood’s Irish A-listers Michael Fassbender, Colin Farrell and Saoirse Ronan are among the high-profile invitees.

The event, first reported by the Irish Examiner in February, will be confirmed by MTV executives and the city council’s tourism unit in City Hall tonight.

The gig will take place in the civic building’s concert hall at the end of November or early December, with announcements on dates and artistes due next month.

Tickets will be limited to about 800, and will be made available free through a competition on a website built specifically for MTV and Cork.

They will also reveal plans for a three-day build-up, with an MTV music trail running across the city, featuring up to 30 bands.

Robert Quirke, the CEO of Action Media, who has spent two years working to secure the project, described it as a “major win” for Ireland, and Cork in particular.