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The Most Famous

SINGERS from Ireland

This page contains a list of the greatest Irish Singers. The pantheon dataset contains 3,528 Singers, 34 of which were born in Ireland. This makes Ireland the birth place of the 22nd most number of Singers behind Turkey and Israel.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Irish Singers of all time. This list of famous Irish Singers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Irish Singers.

1. Enya (1961 - )

With an HPI of 64.99, Enya is the most famous Irish Singer. Her biography has been translated into 110 different languages on wikipedia.

Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin (born 17 May 1961), known mononymously as Enya, is an Irish composer and singer-songwriter. The music of Enya is widely recognised for featuring multi-layers of her vocals, varied instrumentation, lengthened reverb, and subtle Celtic elements. Her career as a solo artist, now over four decades long, is notably an atypical path to success in the music industry. As the second-best-selling Irish music act overall, after rock band U2, Enya is the best-selling Irish solo artist, believed to have sold over 80 million albums worldwide.Enya was raised in the Irish-speaking region of Gweedore. In 1980, Enya (as Eithne Ní Bhraonáin) began her musical career playing alongside her family's Celtic folk band Clannad. She left Clannad in 1982 to pursue a solo career, working with the former Clannad manager and producer, Nicky Ryan, and his partner Roma, as their lyricist. Over the following four years, Enya developed her sound by combining multitracked vocals and keyboards with elements from a variety of musical genres such as Celtic, classical, church, jazz, ambient, world, pop, hip-hop and Irish folk. The earliest releases by Enya as a solo artist were two instrumentals for the Touch Travel T4 cassette compilation (1984) composed around 1982–83. The majority of the soundtrack for The Frog Prince (1985) was composed by Enya, and she sang two songs with lyrics, however these were not heard in-film. Enya composed a body of work for the BBC documentary series named The Celts (1986). A selection of her pieces for The Celts were released as her debut album, Enya (1987). Former chairman of Warner Music, Rob Dickins found himself enjoying the music from The Celts. He happened to meet the trio, expressed his interest in Enya's music, and so she agreed to sign with Warner Music UK. The initial record deal granted her considerable artistic freedom and minimal interference. The success of Watermark (1988) propelled Enya to worldwide fame, helped mostly by the international hit single "Orinoco Flow (Sail Away)". This was followed by the multi-million-selling albums Shepherd Moons (1991), The Memory of Trees (1995), and A Day Without Rain (2000). Sales of A Day Without Rain and its lead single, "Only Time", surged in the United States following its use in media coverage of the 9/11 attacks. After Amarantine (2005) and And Winter Came... (2008), Enya took a four-year break from music, returning to the recording studio in 2012 to begin work on her eighth studio album Dark Sky Island (2015). Regarding a new album, there have been several mentions by close sources of Enya, particularly her siblings, about Enya recording new music since her 2015 album. According to her sister Moya, Enya was recording music as of 2019. Enya's latest statement in-print, from the vinyl release of A Box of Dreams in June 2023: "Beidh muid ag teacht le chéile gan mhoile", is approximated as "we will meet again soon".

2. Bob Geldof (1951 - )

With an HPI of 61.87, Bob Geldof is the 2nd most famous Irish Singer. His biography has been translated into 45 different languages.

Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part of the punk rock movement. The band had UK number one hits with his co-compositions "Rat Trap" and "I Don't Like Mondays". Geldof starred as Pink in Pink Floyd's 1982 film Pink Floyd – The Wall. As a fundraiser, Geldof organised the charity supergroup Band Aid and the concerts Live Aid and Live 8, and co-wrote "Do They Know It's Christmas?", one of the best-selling singles to date. Geldof is widely recognised for his activism, especially his anti-poverty efforts concerning Africa. In 1984, he and Midge Ure founded the charity supergroup Band Aid to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. They went on to organise the charity super-concert Live Aid the following year and the Live 8 concerts in 2005. Geldof currently serves as an adviser to the ONE Campaign, co-founded by fellow Irish rock singer and activist Bono, and is a member of the Africa Progress Panel (APP), a group of ten distinguished individuals who advocate at the highest levels for equitable and sustainable development in Africa. A single father, Geldof has also been outspoken for the fathers' rights movement. Geldof was granted an honorary knighthood (KBE) by Elizabeth II in 1986 for his charity work in Africa: it is an honorary award as Geldof is an Irish citizen, but he is often referred to as 'Sir Bob'. He is a recipient of the Man of Peace title which recognises individuals who have made "an outstanding contribution to international social justice and peace", among numerous other awards and nominations. In 2005, he received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.

3. Sinéad O'Connor (1966 - 2023)

With an HPI of 56.62, Sinéad O'Connor is the 3rd most famous Irish Singer. Her biography has been translated into 52 different languages.

Shuhada' Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor shin-AYD; 8 December 1966 – 26 July 2023) was an Irish singer, songwriter, and activist. Her debut studio album, The Lion and the Cobra, was released in 1987 and achieved international chart success. Her 1990 album, I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got, was her biggest commercial success, selling over seven million copies worldwide. Its lead single, "Nothing Compares 2 U", was honoured as the top world single of the year at the Billboard Music Awards. O'Connor achieved chart success with Am I Not Your Girl? (1992) and Universal Mother (1994), both certified gold in the UK, as well as Faith and Courage (2000), certified gold in Australia. Throw Down Your Arms (2005) achieved gold status in Ireland. Her career encompassed songs for films, collaborations with numerous artists, and appearances at charity fundraising concerts. O'Connor's memoir, Rememberings, was released in 2021 and became a bestseller. O'Connor drew attention to issues such as child abuse, human rights, racism, and women's rights. During a Saturday Night Live performance in 1992, she tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II to protest against abuse in the Catholic Church, sparking controversy. Throughout her musical career, she openly discussed her spiritual journey, activism, socio-political viewpoints, and her experiences with trauma and struggles with mental health. After converting to Islam in 2018, she adopted the name Shuhada' Sadaqat while continuing to perform and record under her birth name.

4. Maria Doyle Kennedy (1964 - )

With an HPI of 46.20, Maria Doyle Kennedy is the 4th most famous Irish Singer. Her biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Maria Josephine Doyle Kennedy (born 25 September 1964) is an Irish singer and actress. With a singing and acting career that has spanned more than 30 years, she has established herself as one of Ireland's most prolific artists and entertainers. As an actress, she is best known for her extensive television roles as Patsy in Father Ted (1998), Catherine of Aragon in The Tudors (2007–2010), Vera Bates in Downton Abbey (2011), Siobhán Sadler in Orphan Black (2013–2017), and Jocasta Cameron in Outlander (2018–present). More recently in 2022, she starred as the Scottish journalist Tannie Maria in the series Recipes for Love and Murder, set in the Karoo in South Africa and adapted for the screen from the book of the same name by Sally Andrew. Doyle Kennedy has also appeared in numerous films, including The Commitments (1991), The Matchmaker (1997), The General (1998), Miss Julie (1999), Tara Road (2005), Albert Nobbs (2011), Byzantium (2012), Jupiter Ascending (2015), Sing Street (2016), and The Conjuring 2 (2016). In 2020, she was listed as number 46 on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors. As a singer, Doyle Kennedy has released nine solo studio albums and two live albums, alongside two albums as a member of The Black Velvet Band.

5. Barney McKenna (1939 - 2012)

With an HPI of 46.08, Barney McKenna is the 5th most famous Irish Singer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Bernard Noël "Banjo Barney" McKenna (16 December 1939 – 5 April 2012) was an Irish musician and a founding member of The Dubliners. He played the tenor banjo, violin, mandolin, and melodeon. He was most renowned as a banjo player.

6. Luke Kelly (1940 - 1984)

With an HPI of 45.72, Luke Kelly is the 6th most famous Irish Singer. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Luke Kelly (17 November 1940 – 30 January 1984) was an Irish singer, folk musician and actor from Dublin, Ireland. Born into a working-class household in Dublin city, Kelly moved to England in his late teens and by his early 20s had become involved in a folk music revival. Returning to Dublin in the 1960s, he is noted as a founding member of the band The Dubliners in 1962. Known for his distinctive singing style, and sometimes political messages, the Irish Post and other commentators have regarded Kelly as one of Ireland's greatest folk singers.

7. Damien Rice (1973 - )

With an HPI of 44.99, Damien Rice is the 7th most famous Irish Singer. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Damien George Rice (born 7 December 1973) is an Irish musician, singer and songwriter. He began his career as a member of the 1990s rock group Juniper, who were signed to Polygram Records in 1997. The band enjoyed moderate success in Ireland with two released singles, "The World is Dead" and "Weatherman". After leaving the band in 1998, Rice worked as a farmer in Tuscany and busked throughout Europe before returning to Ireland in 2001 and beginning a solo career. The rest of Juniper went on to perform under the name Bell X1. In 2002, Rice released his debut album, O. It reached No. 8 on the UK Albums Chart, won the Shortlist Music Prize, and generated three top 30 singles in the UK. He released his second album, 9, in 2006. After eight years of various collaborations, Rice released his third studio album, My Favourite Faded Fantasy, in 2014. He has contributed music to charitable projects such as Songs for Tibet, the Enough Project, and the Freedom Campaign.

8. Andrea Corr (1974 - )

With an HPI of 43.40, Andrea Corr is the 8th most famous Irish Singer. Her biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Andrea Jane Corr (born 17 May 1974) is an Irish singer, songwriter, musician and actress. Corr debuted in 1990 as the lead singer of the Celtic folk rock and pop rock group The Corrs along with her three elder siblings Caroline, Sharon and Jim. Aside from singing lead vocals, Corr plays the tin whistle, the mandolin, the ukulele and the piano.With the others, Corr has released seven studio albums, two compilation albums, one remix album and two live albums. Corr has also pursued a solo career, releasing her debut album, Ten Feet High, in 2007. The album moved away from the sound of the Corrs and features a dance-pop sound. Her next album, released on 30 May 2011, was entirely made up of covers of songs that were important to her when younger. Corr is involved in charitable activities. She has played charity concerts to raise money for the Pavarotti & Friends Liberian Children's Village, Freeman Hospital in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, the victims of the Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland and The Prince's Trust in 2004. She is an ambassador for the Nelson Mandela's "46664" campaign, raising awareness towards AIDS in Africa. During the Edinburgh Live 8 on 2 July 2005 The Corrs performed "When the Stars Go Blue" alongside Bono to promote the Make Poverty History campaign. Along with her siblings, she was appointed an honorary M.B.E. in 2005 by Queen Elizabeth II for her contribution to music and charity.

9. Róisín Murphy (1973 - )

With an HPI of 42.38, Róisín Murphy is the 9th most famous Irish Singer. Her biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Róisín Marie Murphy ( roh-SHEEN, Irish: [ɾˠoːˈʃiːnʲ]; born 5 July 1973) is an Irish singer, songwriter and record producer. She first became known in the 1990s as one half of the pop duo Moloko alongside English musician Mark Brydon. After the breakup of Moloko, she embarked on a solo career and released her debut solo album Ruby Blue (written and produced with experimental musician Matthew Herbert) to critical praise in 2005. Her second solo album, Overpowered, was released in 2007. After an eight-year hiatus—which was sporadically interrupted by non-album singles, side projects and guest appearances on other artists' records—Murphy released her third solo album Hairless Toys in 2015; it was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize and Ireland's Choice Music Prize. The following year, she released her fourth album Take Her Up to Monto. In 2018, she released four 12" releases in collaboration with producer Maurice Fulton. Murphy released her fifth and sixth solo albums, Róisín Machine and Hit Parade in 2020 and 2023, respectively. The albums received critical acclaim.

10. Charlie McGettigan (1950 - )

With an HPI of 41.49, Charlie McGettigan is the 10th most famous Irish Singer. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Charles Joseph McGettigan (born 7 December 1950, Ballyshannon, County Donegal) is an Irish singer. He lives in Drumshanbo, County Leitrim.

People

Pantheon has 34 people classified as singers born between 1939 and 1996. Of these 34, 29 (85.29%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living singers include Enya, Bob Geldof, and Maria Doyle Kennedy. The most famous deceased singers include Sinéad O'Connor, Barney McKenna, and Luke Kelly.