Words by: Amanda Marano

In our new reality of cancelled flights and shows, Dermot Kennedy brought a little light back into everyone’s lives Thursday night. The 28-year-old singer/songwriter has grown popular over the last couple of years, with fans across the globe praising his soulful vocals, emotionally driven lyrics, poetic writing skills, and rap-like flow. His music mixes elements of pop, rock, hip hop, and contemporary folk, with vulnerable and thought-provoking lyrics. His success continues to grow, with over a billion cumulative streams and a debut album that topped the charts in 2019.

During an exclusive YouTube livestream event entitled Some Summer Night, Dermot performed a set from London’s iconic Natural History Museum. Surrounded by stunning Romanesque architecture and below Hope, an 82-foot blue whale skeleton (the largest creature to have ever lived, found off the coast of Ireland), Dermot gave his first live performance since the pandemic made our world stop turning. Teaming up with Hulu series Normal People’s Paul Mescal, the two young Irish artists curated a special night for their fans. The symbolism of his voice echoing against the high ceilings, flowing through Hope suspended above him was not lost upon anyone. With an incredibly moving one hour set, Dermot offered fans a moment to get lost in, and a little hope to keep them going.

Starting out strong with his hit single, “Outnumbered,”  Dermot emerged surrounded by glowing blue light. Each song was announced with titles in both English and Gaelic. With the camera zooming in and out around him, the gentle piano begins. He looks directly into the camera, his strong accent emphasized with each word as he sings, “I see everything you can be, I see the beauty that you can’t see / On the nights you feel outnumbered, baby, I’ll be out there somewhere.”  He gives a heartwarming rendition of the track, and right from the start it feels like he’s singing directly to viewers through the screen.

When the track ends, the camera pans up the stained glass window to reveal Paul Mescal. As he circles the museum, walking into the light and past the displays, he recites the first of several beautiful spoken-word monologues. In his deep voice he remarks, “My days and nights and dreams, everything feels like it fits and makes sense. I live without worry and I am free.”  The sound of his voice transcends the speakers and it feels like he’s whispering the words right into your ear.

Coming back to Dermot illuminated by glowing yellow, the full band joins him as he begins to sing “Lost.”  With emotional, hard-hitting lyrics like, “But if only you could see yourself in my eyes / You’d see you shine, you shine / I know you’d never leave me behind / But I am lost this time / Are we destined to burn or will we last the night? / I will hold you ’til I hold you right,”  he gave a goose-bump inducing performance.

“Lost”  flowed nicely into the third number, “Power Over Me.”  Starting off with quick drums and powerful bass, he steps back to the mic and joins the band to sing and play his guitar. At one point the band goes quiet and above the silence he sings, “You’ve got that power over me, my my / Everything I hold dear resides in those eyes.”  The audio is so clear, and you hear the strain in his voice and the grain of his vocals. The performance was, for lack of a better word…powerful.

He takes a sip of water as the sweat drips down his face, and somehow it feels like you’re sitting in the first row. He begins “All My Friends”  with an emotional quiver in his voice. Against the purple light, he sings the verses softly and transitions seamlessly to the flow of a rapper. Above the shimmer of the symbol, suddenly it all feels too real as he sings the lyrics that titled the night. “To all my friends / You’ll find your way / Some summer night, I hope I see you again.”  The camera pans up to show Hope, watching Dermot sing from above.

The camera turns back to Paul, walking down the hallway past the fossils that line the wall.  He recites, “I knew a day would come where I would reach out and wouldn’t feel your hand and that’s okay…”  He continues, “You showed me love, unconditionally, complete and selfless… I was robbed of you… I’ve been forced to leave you in the past and I wasn’t ready to do that. So I carry you around like an imaginary friend. You see… I wish I could’ve had that feeling forever.”  He speaks without so much as a stutter, staring straight into the camera as he walks closer and closer.  This monologue was a personal favorite, as it put into words so many of the feelings the past five months have brought upon us all.

Joined by a lovely choir, Dermot begins to sing “For Island Fires and Family.”  Synced seamlessly with the powerful voices of the choir, they deliver heavenly harmonies.  The acapella cover of the piece becomes almost spiritual as the acoustics echo from the tall curves of the walls surrounding them.  At certain points, he speaks with such rhythm and poetry that it sounds more like spoken word. He sings some of my favorite lyrics of the set, “But she’s bringin’ the moon and stars to me / Damn permanent reverie / And even though this life, this love is brief / I’ve got some people who carry me.”

Guided by the sound of the idyllic violin, Paul walks to meet Dermot under the archways, among an orchestra, and “An Evening I Will Not Forget” begins. It’s hard not to become teary-eyed at the cadence of his voice above the melancholy piano, and the genuinely and directness he possesses as he sings into the camera. As the song finishes with a stunning return of the orchestra, the view pans flashes back to Paul, watching silently.

Pulling out his guitar, he begins to sing “The Corner.”  The reinforcement of the choir singing softly into their mics sends shivers, and as the orchestra joins, the three become one. The performance feels somewhat otherworldly. Panning back to Paul, he speaks, “So what knows the dust settles… How do I reclaim space still empty from your absence?”  As “Moments Passed” begins, Paul continues, “You let me hide and I loved you for that… Teach me how to hide in plain sight.”  Flocked by his choir and warm, glowy light, Dermot sings.  

After switching guitars, “Glory” begins to play, starting off soft and slowly growing in intensity. Amplified by not only the acoustics but also the sight of the majestic statues and remarkable architecture around him, the song is utterly lifting.

Transitioning soundly into “Giants,” the lights turn pink and red.  With the band visibly having fun and dancing along, Paul Mescal walks up to a second mic.  Paul proves his talent surpasses his acting abilities as their voices melt perfectly together.  The duo absolutely kills the performance and leaves fans loving this newfound friendship and wanting to hear more from Paul in the future. Dermot thanked Paul on Instagram earlier today, “Getting to collaborate with other like-minded souls is truly an honour. I can’t thank you enough for lending your voice, your talent and your heart to that night @mescal_paul 🇮🇪 X.”

Winding down with “Without Fear,”  Dermot is cloaked in a deep purple and blue light as the choir sings softly to the light beat of the drums until his voice breaks through the silence. In a beautiful arrangement supported by the string orchestra once again, he gently strums his electric guitar as the camera pans out and up toward Hope, the light shining against her.

To close the night, Dermot performed a chilling acoustic cover of “The Parting Glass.”  In a new hallway surrounded by paintings, he puts his own style to the iconic song.  Move over Ed Sheeran, we’ve got a new favorite cover of the song! With fitting lyrics and the echoing acoustics of the high ceilings, and his voice is whole, all-encompassing. It was the perfect choice to close the set.

In such a remarkable, mind-blowing hour-long set, Dermot Kennedy has already set the bar impossibly high for a new kind of performance. In such an iconic and visually stunning setting, he created an atmosphere that was truly special and rare.  The brilliant addition of Paul Mescal’s unembellished, honest monologues added depth and artistry that raised it from a concert to true performance.  Despite the separation of screens, oceans, and continents, Dermot manages to give off such authenticity and warmth that it feels like you’re right there in front of him. With the ability to hear every bit of grain and background noise, it was easy to forget the distance that exists.  Dermot Kennedy somehow achieved a level of intimacy that can’t even be attained from the front row of his live shows.  If this is what he can achieve through a screen, just imagine how it will feel to hear him live, in person, someday soon.

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