Imelda May's 'Raised on Songs & Stories' tour coming to Derry's Millennium Forum

Globally revered Irish artist Imelda May brings her 'Raised on Songs & Stories' tour to Derry's Millennium Form on February 25 2026, with tickets on sale this Friday, October 17 at 9.00am.

This intimate series will feature stripped-back versions of her songs alongside her famed poetry and storytelling.

Imelda says: “I’m coming to you soon! 18 nights of an Irish tour. It’ll be an evening of songs, poems, stories, joy and beauty.

“This idea evolved naturally over the last couple of years. You see, when I write, produce and release an album I get so excited to perform the songs live that I fizz up and plan and rehearse gigs with such enthusiasm that I’m like a little thrilled whirlwind but too often I leave room for little else.”

Also coming soon on RTE 1 and the RTE Player Imelda presents and executive produce’s a new six-part series Amhráin na nGael, Imelda May: The Songs of the Irish, uncovering the work of Ireland’s great music collectors.

In the series, Imelda May embarks on an exploratory and emotional journey across Ireland’s Gaeltacht regions as she challenges her relationship with the Irish language through songs and sean-nós singing.

Following in the footsteps of the great music collectors, she digs deep in her attempt to understand each and every word from these songs that she takes on. Will she find songs that resonate with her emotionally, and will she connect with this traditional style of singing?

Born and raised in The Liberties area of Dublin, Imelda May has become one of Ireland’s most celebrated female artists as a singer, songwriter, actor, producer, poet, presenter and storyteller.

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Imelda’s breakthrough album Love Tattoo (2008) remains the best-selling album of all time by a homegrown female artist in Ireland, whilst her most recent album 11 Past the Hour (2021) marks her 4th No. 1 album in Ireland and 4th Top 10 in the UK. Her debut poetry book A Lick & A Promise (2022) is already on its third re-print, with the Irish government using one of her poems on billboards across the country for their “ReThink Ireland” campaign as well as included in the school curriculum.

A dynamic live performer with her unique blend of rockabilly, jazz, rock and blues she has toured across the world and performed with legends such as Jeff Beck, Lou Reed, Bono, Noel Gallagher, Jeff Goldblum & Ronnie Wood. This year Imelda was special guest for Sting on his outdoor UK shows, The Corrs on two homecoming shows in Dublin and Cork, and is about to join Jools Holland on his 30 show UK autumn tour.

Imelda returned to her critically acclaimed portrayal of Kathleen Behan this summer, in the one woman show ‘Mother of All The Behans’ by director Peter Sheridan. Her first foray into theatre, Imelda returned to the role for a third summer extending to a week’s run in Belfast & Waterford in addition to a sell-out return to Dublin’s Olympia & Cork’s Everyman Theatre.

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Imelda’s recent turn to the silver screen also saw her latest film role as Pierce Brosnan’s wife ‘Betty’ in Niall William’s Four Letters of Love released globally last month.

A true creative, Imelda immerses herself in art across many forms, and these special Irish evenings will showcase her unique ability to evoke the purest of emotion using her voice as her sole instrument.