Limerick artists pay musical homage to Joe Drennan

LIMERICK artists have joined forces to honour the memory of Joe Drennan.

The late Laois native and UL journalism student was tragically killed in a hit-and-run in October.

In a bid to pay homage to Joe, folk artist Emma Langford and journalism student Molly Cantwell have joined their voices to cover 'River'.

The pair covered the unconventional Christmas track by Joni Mitchell and will donate all proceeds to Gay Community News (GCN), a resource that was close to Joe's heart - he wrote several brilliant pieces for the outlet.

The late 21-year-old never got to see his first GCN cover story with the GALAS Person of the Year, which went to print after the collision.

Speaking about her Limerick Voice colleague and friend, Molly said: “Joe was destined for greatness. He was a force to be reckoned with.

"His passion, talent, charisma, and absolute grá for his work was so evident in absolutely everything he did, and so incredibly enviable.

"The student journalist was so passionate about his work with Gay Community News (GCN) and as editor-in-chief of Limerick Voice.

"He was so determined to build a powerful future for himself. All of us at Limerick Voice and in his class in UL knew there was no question he would be the one walking into a much sought after job at the end of our degree.”

'Joe was going to be a star,' mourners hear at funeral of young journalist killed in Limerick collision

Molly approached her friend, Emma Langford, with the idea of releasing a single in Joe's memory. After Emma quickly jumped on board, the idea snowballed and a multitude of Limerick creatives donated their time so the project could come to fruition.

Joining in on the charity single are a plethora of Limerick friends. Aaron Griffin joins the pair on guitar, Nora Casey on harp, Emer O’Flaherty on piano, and Aoife Hennessy on backing vocals and harmonies.

The track was recorded by Chris Quigley in a studio space donated by Dylan Flynn and the Dead Poets, mixed by Marty Ryan of Anna’s Anchor, and mastered by Richard Dowling at Wav Mastering. The single artwork was designed by Tiffany Glenn.

‘River’ will be available on Bandcamp only until 2024, then becoming available on all streaming platforms.