Isla Grant for New Year Tullamore concert

Isla Grant"s many local fans are in for a treat when the popular performer comes to the Tullamore Court Hotel on Monday, January 5 next with tickets on sale now. In a business where the failures far outnumber the successes, and the rise and fall of artists is equally dependent upon trends and the whim of the public, this Scottish born entertainer struggled long and hard to achieve her stardom. Like others whose music has found a niche in easy listening, Isla found success outside of her native homeland, across the water in Ireland. She"s been compared to Liverpool"s Charlie Landsborough, who also discovered that the Irish were eager to listen to his lyrics and established himself with a song. Then, following in the footsteps of Landsborough, Isla went on to become a household name. Today she"s a major star in Ireland, winning the audience"s hearts with the purity and warmth of her music, collecting Platinum and Double Platinum Discs for her record sales and scheduling five or six week tours that would be the envy of many pop or rock performers. Isla originally became a regular performer on the British country music scene, playing clubs and the occasional major festival, which included a couple of the Wembley International Festival appearances during the latter years of its life, sharing the stage with performers such as Johnny Cash, Crystal Gayle and The Glaser Brothers. 'But you can only go so far working the club scene' she explains, 'It"s a scene where cover songs are the general order of the day, current hit titles and standards. Once you reach a certain level, there"s nowhere else to go'. But she went further than many other artists. She started singing a few of her original songs and audiences, and club organisers, began to ask for more. Isla has signed to Rosette Records in the UK, the label of Daniel O"Donnell to exclusively distribute her albums, videos and DVD"s in the U.K. where she hopes to match the success she"s enjoyed in Ireland. Isla made her first nationwide U.K. tour in the company of Foster and Allen in 2000 and, later the same year, the ever-popular chart duo introduced her to Australian audiences. Now, with considerable success to her credit, Isla Grant can tour in her own right, with her own band, and have the public eagerly waiting at box offices on both sides of the world. For tickets contact The Tullamore Court Hotel on 057 9346666