MacD on Music: 'Sparkling Dynamite'

The life of a musician isn’t always an easy one. Some of the most talented artists spend years fighting and clawing their way through before they make it.

People like Debbie Harry and Charles Bradley spent years building a name for themselves before finally getting that breakthrough, but they kept going until they got it.

This week, I’m talking to BoaChitta, aka Johanna Fegan, a long-time presence in the local music scene who looks to finally be on her way to getting the recognition she deserves with her upcoming album ‘Come Out Of The Water’ and most recent singles, including ‘Sparkling Dynamite’, which has been reaching millions across Ireland and the UK, being played on a number of prominent radio stations, as well as recently named one of Hot Press’s Artists of the Week.

I caught up with BoaChitta recently to talk about her journey to get to this point: “I’ve just been into music my whole life. I’m from a musical family. There was always a guitar around the house. My mum was big into bringing records home, the radio was always on and Top of the Pops was always on TV. I started learning guitar around the age of five, just by myself, picking strings and making sounds and writing songs, then I decided to learn a few chords and that was me. I was writing from a very young age, because I can remember being in P4 and performing my songs for my friends.”

“I was always into drama before I even knew I would be a musician, so I went after school to study performing arts. I knew I had a bit of talent when everyone else was doing their auditions and I was able to learn the songs they wanted straight away. I was always a writer and I would sing, but I never thought of myself as much of a singer until I joined the band Kice when I was eighteen. They were a band already made from the popular music course.

"Karl, Ivor, Emily and Craic. Sinead Quinn (from the first ever Fame Academy) and Emily were the lead singers. We would go see them on a Tuesday night and I thought they were brilliant. They were doing things like Skunk Anansie, Sinéad O’Connor, No Doubt, all the really cool rock songs, and I loved it. That was when I thought ‘I want to be in a band. I want to sing’. Then they left because they were the year above me so the guys asked me to join their band.”

Next, we spoke about her then-latest single ‘Sparkling Dynamite’: “That’s a song about all the most explosive relationships, the ones you felt so strongly about that ended in disaster, that have torn you to pieces, that have actually led you to yourself. There’s an underlying current of the twin flame connection.

"Everybody knows about soulmates, but the twin flame is supposed to be the other part of your soul that was split, and your journey towards them is the journey to find yourself, because there’s a runner and chaser aspect to it. One minute you could be the runner and them the chaser, then the other way around, but this relationship is meant to help you evolve so that you become your full spiritual being.

MacD on Music: Heat Of The Moment

Return of former Parker frontman Dylan Bradley with his new project Dylan Bradley & the Heat

MacD on Music: Randall Stephen Hall

Co. Antrim-based artist Randall Stephen Hall chats on his return to music

"That’s what the story’s about, because the dynamite explosion is massive but sparkling, it’s meant to be. It’s that realisation that there’s more to this than just a broken heart.”

And that’s it from BoaChitta. Her single ‘Sparkling Dynamite’ is out now on all good streaming platforms and her next single, ‘Lifeguard’, is coming on November 14th.

Now, onto other business. This Saturday (8th November) will see the launch of ‘Chase the Light’, the debut album from Acoustic Vibes, aka Martin Sweeney and Kieran Duffy. Featuring fourteen songs that “celebrate the people, places and stories of Derry and Donegal. There’s also a Limavady song, a song about drinking cheap wine and songs about Derry Girls and Turkey Teeth”.

READ MORE: MacD on Music

The launch will be taking place in An Chultúrlann and promises to be night of “sad songs, mad songs and mighty craic”. Doors are at 7.30 and tickets are £10 and include a free album.

Next, we have another album, this time from local legend and former Whole Tribesman Declan McLaughlin, who’s new album ‘Shadows’ was released last week. The album, featuring new reworkings of some of his classics, is available now in Cool Discs. Keep an eye on this column for more on Declan in the coming months.

And lastly, new music from Lord Jane, the Belfast-based group fronted by our very own Clodagh May, who’s new single ‘These Last Few Weeks’ will be released this Friday (November 7th). The track, taken from their upcoming EP ‘The Lighting Of The Fog’, is “an apology to ourselves, and the people that care about us, for all the wasted time. It’s about the guilt that follows when the Fog finally lifts. The apologies and excuses that need to be made for missing deadlines, ignoring calls, neglecting responsibilities. The fear of the guilt often plays a role in how long it sticks around for”.

Finally, time for the socials. More information on Acoustic Vibes can be found on Facebook, and Lord Jane can be found on Instagram @lordjanemusic, Declan McLaughlin @declanmclaughlin_derry and BoaChitta @boachittamusic.