Bellaghy singer-songwriter 'excited' to perform at iconic Nashville venue

A County Derry singer-songwriter has spoken of her excitement over the opportunity to perform at the iconic Bluebird Cafe in Nashville where global megastar Taylor Swift's career began.

On Sunday, December 1, Bellaghy woman Lauren Craig will take to the stage at the US venue which has gained worldwide recognition as a songwriter performance space.

Over the last four decades, The 90 seat venue has seen world famous singers such as Garth Brooks, Keith Urban, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Kris Kristofferson, Faith Hill and Vince Gill perform there.

Former country star turned pop icon Taylor Swift was discovered at The Bluebird back in 2004 when she was just 14 years-old.

Lauren, who has been singing since she was a small child, is hoping this weekend's gig will give her greater exposure.

The 25 year-old moved to New York at the beginning of this year with the hope of pursuing her dreams of becoming a famous singer.

Lauren has already built up a massive following on social media and has performed at venues throughout Ireland, Scotland, Canada and the US.

“I always sang growing up, taking part in talent shows, drama showcases and singing through school, but I don’t think I took my singing seriously until after I got my voice trained from age 13-17,” said the former St Louis Grammar School student.

“I moved to Vancouver in Canada when I was 19 to pursue an acting career, also singing in bars in Vancouver on the side, but the pandemic hit and I moved home, started a degree in Psychology at Ulster University and that’s when I’d say my career took a turn for the better.

“I started playing gigs in local venues in Derry, Antrim and Tyrone and built a social media following which led me to book more shows in Belfast, down south, Glasgow and New York.”

After taking a few holidays in New York, Lauren fell in love with the city and decided to move there.

“I was fortunate enough to get a visa and since January of this year I’ve been really pushing my name and music in hopes someone will notice me,” she continued.

“New York is one of those places that anything could happen in. You’re constantly meeting new people and all it takes is that one person to make a difference in your life and goals. I’ve played some really great shows here and from those shows I’ve met other people in the music industry, who I’ve been fortunate to work with and those people are helping to develop the base that I started back in my hometown.”

Lauren writes all her own music and currently has six songs out on music platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

“I always found it hard to describe what I wanted my music to be. Anytime I’d be in the studio, the question was always 'what do you want your sound to be?' I think it’s only recently that I’ve realised I want people to associate me with a country-pop/singer/songwriter style of music. I’m inspired by so many different musicians, it was only recently I got to see Amble in Mercury Lounge here in New York, and I went home and put pen to paper for my next song, whereas I could come home from The 1975 concert and do the exact same thing,” Lauren continued.

“I write all my own music. I’ve currently six songs out on music platforms, all produced by the very talented Ross Lavery from The Moy, in Tyrone. It’s only since I’ve moved to New York that I’ve found someone else that I can trust enough to produce my new music. Writing music can be very personal and like a lot of songwriters, I tend to write my songs about my own life experiences. You want to find somebody that will do a good job of bringing that to life. Sometimes just being in the studio can inspire new lyrics to come into your head and before you know it, you’ve another song to add to the list.”

For Lauren, getting the chance to perform at The Bluebird Cafe, a venue that is notoriously difficult to get onto the stage, is a dream come true.

“Yeah so, I’m fortunate enough to play down in Nashville in The Bluebird Cafe. It’s where Taylor Swift often played and she got a record deal out of it, so I’m manifesting that the same happens to me. But even still, I’m just really excited to get down there. If you’ve been to Nashville, you know it is literally music paradise. I’m going to be recording in a studio while I’m down there too and also getting to showcase my new song that will be coming out at the start of 2025,” she said.

“I will be performing on Sunday, December 1st at 8pm. Tickets go on sale this week, so if you happen to be in Nashville, come to The Bluebird!

“I will be performing my own songs. Definitely my new one that will be coming out 'Calling Out Your Name', 'Chasin’ The Dream' and a few others.

“I really do hope that this will give me greater exposure, but whatever the outcome, this is such an opportunity and I’m just really fortunate to be able to do this.”

Lauren is hoping that like Taylor Swift, her Nashville gig will open other doors for her.

“I have a lot of hopes for the future, but I would say in five years time I would hope to be signed with some kind of record deal, at least have opened for someone big or sell out my own shows, but mainly just really to still be doing the thing I love - which is music,” she added.

You can follow Lauren on Instagram here