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Emmet O’Riabhaigh
Tel: +353(0)85 123 3500
Email: shookrah@gmail.com
www.shookrah.com

PRESS RELEASE

[CLICK HERE FOR PDF PRESS RELEASE]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Irish Neo-Soul Quintet
Shookrah
SHARES “Flex” Single

SINGLE RELEASE DATE: 30th November
LABEL: Broken Records.

Ireland-based five-piece Shookrah will be sharing their brand new single “Flex” on 30th November via Broken Records. This single release follows on from their track “Don’t Wanna Doubt You”, shared in May this year, and continues the trajectory of highly successful year of writing and recording for Shookrah. The five-piece has already sparked international interest from a host of tastemaker publications, including Afropunk, CLASH Mag, Wonderland Magazine, JOE.ie, Irish Examiner, GoldenPlec and The Irish Times and have also enjoyed radio play on shows such as BBC Ulster’s Across The Line. The Irish Times crowned Shookrah, “Best Irish Act of 2017” and “50 People to Watch in 2018” while GoldenPlec named them one of their Plec Picks for 2016. The band have also been dominating the live music scene, playing headlining shows at Quarter Block Party, Wigwam and K-Fest as well as supporting music legends Billy Ocean and Theo Katzman (Vulfpeck) on their Irish tours.

Although the members of Shookrah are currently all based in Cork, Ireland, the members come from a variety of different cities and countries, including Cork, Kerry, Dublin and South Africa. The group is made up of Senita Appiakorang (lead vocals), Emmet O'Riabhaigh (drums), Daniel Coughlan (guitar), Diarmait MacCarthaigh (keyboard) and Brian Dunlea (bass guitar), all of whom have grown up with their own personal connection to music and creativity.

Inspired by cutting edge modern R&B-infused musicians such as Anderson.Paak, Janelle Monae, Solange, Princess Nokia, Hiatus Kaiyote, D'Angelo, Shookrah’s sound is reminiscent of Erykah Badu and Thundercat.

“Flex” is an uplifting whirl of self-confidence, sass, and camaraderie. The new single was recorded with Brendan Fennessy (O Emperor), mixed by Michael Heffernan, produced by Emmet O’Riabhaigh and Diarmait Mac Cárthaigh of Shookrah and mastered by April Golden, and is a triumphant track that oozes 90s-style R&B elements and confidence. Senita’s vocals effortlessly flow between low and sultry to anthemic and melismatic, all the while backed by the sexy, modern electronic big-band sound created by the rest of Shookrah. “Flex” calls on its listeners to summon their most extroverted and flamboyant selves, abandon the night’s emotional and social responsibilities and show off on the dancefloor.

On Shookrah’s brand new single, Senita comments, “The song’s braggadocious theme is inspired by the emerging vogue-balls and drag culture in Ireland, specifically in Cork, where I recently stole the Drag-Queen title of ‘Miss Opulence’ at Miss Candy Warhol’s annual event. The song for me reimagines these safely created spaces amongst friends, ripe for invoking your most confident self, and falling prey to the music. ‘Flex’ very much embodies that, you’ve got Nile Rodgers-esque guitar picking contrasted with the devilish call of the synths and bass in the chorus alongside spooky vocals.” 

[ENDS]

PRESS

"Shookrah, are not just a sibilance fan’s dream but also one of the most exciting bands around at the moment...the track (Gerascophobia) may be about the fear of growing up but you are certainly gonna want to grow old with this band"
Wonderland Magazine

[WINNER Irish Band of the Year 2017] [50 People to Watch in 2018]
"Shookrah comfortably slide into their jazzy funk style like it’s a vintage suede jacket. You can hear the influence of the groovy cats who blazed 1970s American funk and 1990s neo-soul, as well as new-age Los Angeles beat scene bohemians like Flying Lotus and Thundercat." 
The Irish Times

"Impossible to confine to a genre, ‘Gerascophobia’ sounds like wicked, dirty pop music tousled with a bit of soul and funk that melds into a velvety psychedelic haze. However you want to describe it, the Cork City-based band knows how to hypnotize with their bombastic sound." 
Afropunk.com 

“Cork newcomers have a refreshing, unusual sound...they have found soul delirium. The six-piece have a sound that is all their own, fusing soul influences into a psychedelic template”
Clash Magazine

Cork six-piece Shookrah have always brilliantly blurred the lines between R&B and throwback soul with a decidedly more forward-thinking approach."
The Thin Air

“Gerascophobia… As young and fresh as a soul song in 2017 can be”
Nialler9, Irish Times Song of the Week

"Shookrah have stormed the scene with a fresh sound that isn't what you'd expect from an Irish group" - Hot Press (Issue 39.14)

 

About Shookrah:

SHOOKRAH are a 5-piece outfit from Cork, serving fresh helpings of synth-grooves, interruptive hooks and dystopian romance-themed songs. Their sound sits somewhere between neo-soul and the emerging schools of R&B/Soul that define themselves as ‘Future Soul’. Influences include the likes of Hiatus Kaiyote, Solange, Thundercat, Anderson .Paak and The Internet. Advancing from accolade to accolade (awarded 'Best Irish Band of 2017' and '50 People to watch in 2018' by The Irish Times), Shookrah are positioning themselves as important pioneers in the blossoming urban music scene in Ireland with their debut album set for release in early 2019.

The ensemble formed in 2014 and began to establish their reputation as a fat-banger-churning R&B group with the release of their debut single ‘W.O.M.A.N’. The song became a local anthem of womanity and challenging preconceptions around female identity. The pack have released two EPs since then: Implicit Content and 2017’s Clichés, the most recent of which produced acclaimed singles ‘Gerascophobia’ and ‘Our Own Way’, which led to a string of enviable slots supporting the likes of Theo Katzman, Billy Ocean and Rusangano Family, as well as charming festival crowds at Body & Soul, Electric Picnic and Townlands Festival to Dublin Fringe Festival and Other Voices Music Trail.

Holding true to the predicted successes for 2018, Shookrah are keeping their feet on the pedal with the first single from the upcoming album set for release this April. The track is entitled ‘Don’t Wanna Doubt You (Respectfully Woo Me)’, and is an upbeat, sultry instruction on the key ingredients to seduction as told by Senita; namely respect and patience. With producer Brendan Fennessy (of O Emperor) and a slick new music video, Shookrah are making bold moves to put out a body of work that stands the test of time in its sophistication and pizazz.

Shookrah is:
Senita Appiakorang (lead vocals)
Emmet O’Riabhaigh (drums)
Brian Dunlea (bass)
Diarmait Mac Cárthaigh (keys-synth)
Daniel Coughlan (guitar)