'A dream come true' for County Derry artist who supported Snow Patrol in Belfast and Dublin concerts

As a student working in SSE Arena's box office, Feeny woman Shannon O'Neill would often day dream about performing there one day.

Just last month, Shannon's dreams came true when she was given the opportunity to open shows for rock band Snow Patrol in the Belfast venue and also at 3Arena in Dublin.

Better known as Sister Ghost, an alternative rock and garage punk band, Shannon is signed to Third Bar Records, a label run by Snow Patrol front man Gary Lightbody.

Speaking about how the opportunity to perform as a support act at the Snow Patrol concerts came about, Shannon said: “I first met Gary Lightbody in the Ulster Hall after I won Best Live Act at the Northern Irish Music Prize in 2019 and then a second time in Derry when we were both taking part in the Peace Walk from Belfast to Derry in memory of Lyra McKee. It was after these run ins that he told me he loved my music and wanted to release my debut album on his label. I was obviously over the moon and also very proud that he liked my music. The Snow Patrol concert offers came last autumn and of course I said yes and kept it a secret until the announcement in January.”

Shannon's journey into the music industry began at an early age with her first ever gig taking place in St Canice's GAA club in Dungiven at the age of 12.

“I started out playing the violin and piano when I was wee but when I picked up the guitar when I was about 10 or 11 I fell in love with it,” said the former St Canice's PS Feeny pupil.

“Throughout high school I played in different bands, and gigged around County Derry and then when I left school I started a band called Vanilla Gloom - we were the only all female band in Ireland at the time, so we did quite well over the short period of time we were together. When that band ended I started my solo project Sister Ghost in 2014 and never looked back. I would describe the Sister Ghost sound as a nice mix between alternative rock, art rock and pop rock. I’m very inspired by the music of the 70s, 80s and 90s and I’ve been told that shines through in my songs.”

To date, Sister Ghost has released two EPs, various singles and an album through Third Bar Records.

Sister Ghost's current single She’s Wild is from their debut album Beyond The Water, which was recorded in Los Angeles in 2022 with producer Brad Wood.

“She’s Wild is about allowing your wildness out - we live in a world that tells anyone in the margins, to be quiet, be docile and dull their spark, so this song is like a middle finger to that and it goes down really well at gigs, people always jump up on stage for it, which you can see in the music video for the song,” explained Shannon.

Speaking about her opening performances in Belfast and Dublin, Shannon has described them as 'surreal'.

“I was so excited and so ready for the opportunity, I’ve been playing gigs since I was 12 so I’ve dreamed of playing venues like the SSE Arena and 3Arena since I was a teenager,” she said.

“I’ve always been a fan of Snow Patrol, I saw them four or five times back in the 00s, so it’s very surreal to think how things have turned out now.

“I enjoyed every second I was on those stages - it was honestly so fun and it meant the world to spot my family and friends in the huge crowds too - and a woman I’d never met made a sign with a wee ghost on it and she was holding it up in the front row. It really was like a dream coming true, especially in the SSE Arena because I worked in the box office when I was a student and always day dreamed about playing there.”

During the shows, Shannon performed songs from her album Beyond The Water, one song from my EP Stay Spooky and she played a cover of Teenage Kicks by The Undertones as 'a wee nod to the amazing music history of Derry'.

“These were my biggest shows so far and I really enjoyed looking out at everyone and to see the crowd get bigger with every song was very cool too. It was scarier in Dublin because it was the first time playing an arena but then Belfast just felt exciting because I knew what to expect and still had the excitement from the previous show,” she said.

ABOVE: Sister Ghost on stage in Dublin's 3Arena.  Photo: Bradley Quinn Photography

Shannon said she was 'so grateful' to have had family and friends who made it to both of the shows, and in Belfast her parents, one of her siblings and a few of her cousins were there to share the moment when she paid tribute to her late grandmother.

“That meant a lot to me to see them singing along during Cut Like A Thorn, a song I wrote in memory of my granny who passed away from cancer in 2021, because myself and many of those same family members were end of life carers for her and we loved her so much. I wore her white blouse as part of my stagewear for both shows in her honour and I’ll choose to believe she was there in spirit with us,” she said.

Shannon says she hopes she can now inspire other artists from rural areas to follow their dreams.

“It’s massive (getting to open for Snow Patrol), it just isn’t something that happens to people from the countryside, so I felt like I was up there flying the flag for rural musicians,” she said.

“I am so proud to be from the country and I was also able to rehearse outside Feeny with my band thanks to a friend I went to school with who’s started a rehearsal space to bring more access to those based in rural areas. I hope that any up and coming musicians from rural areas know that they can do it and they deserve the opportunity as much as their city-based counterparts. It’s just so surreal to say that in the morning I tended to my goats and in the evening I was performing to thousands of people in an arena.”

Looking ahead to the future, Shannon has her sights firmly set on playing more shows.

“I would love to play more shows, especially outside of Ireland and a big goal of mine would be to write and record another album,” she added.

Sister Ghost's album Beyond The Water and current single She’s Wild is now available to stream and the music video is available on YouTube.