Before choosing Queen’s, I was really torn between Belfast or Dublin. I’d been to Dublin before. I knew I liked it. But something in my heart was pulling me in a different direction. I can’t really explain it. I had never been up north at all. I had really no reason, only a hunch, a suspicion that there was something special going on up there and a desire to be a part of it.
Turns out, I was right.
Belfast is one of those cities that sneaks up on you. Every day, I stumble across some kind of reminder that I’m in the right place. It surprises you. Just now, I walked into the Seamus Heaney Centre to write my blog, and one of the PhD students let me know that a certain singer of a certain brown eyed song would be visiting shortly. Very likely, by the time I finish writing, I’ll have waved hello.
These are the kind of surprises I’m talking about. Back in November, I was talking about my songwriting process with a friend at Write Night, when a girl I’d never met before asked if I was a musician. I told her I was, and then she invited me to a women’s music session. This might seem like a kind of natural social interaction, but if you know me, you know this is a dream come true. I’ve been making music for years and saying, “I just wish I had a group of girls to play with.” Of course I have girl friends who are musicians, but it’s rare and it’s special to live in the same place, to come together in a circle and make music together, ceremoniously, every Wednesday at 7.
My women’s music nights are a huge Belfast highlight. These girls have brought out a musical confidence I didn’t know I had and introduced me to an underground music scene that is frankly spilling over in Belfast.
A similar thing happened when I was out for a drink at Maddens one night. The bar manager, Bernie, overheard me talking about music and invited me to one of his Monday night jams. These jams have introduced me to some truly incredible musicians. I’m learning so much, and every week I leave filled up with a sense of possibility and enthusiasm.
The arts scene in Belfast reminds me of New Orleans in a way, my favorite American city. Both places have been through a lot, and I’ve found that where there is pain, there is art and there is healing. Of course there’s art in a lot of places, but it’s these places where you find the best kind of art. The kind that speaks truth to power. Just think of Kneecap.
And while we think of Kneecap, I’ll tell you about another little surprise. Last March, after winning the Mitchell Scholarship, I attended the Oscar Wilde Awards in Los Angeles. There, through the masses of people, I happened to meet Rich Peppiatt and Trevor Birney, the writer and producer of the film Kneecap. A few months later I saw the movie in theaters and internalized it as another little sign. If people are making movies like this in Belfast, then it’s the right place to me. We met up for a drink when I arrived and now, somehow, I landed a job at their film company, Coup D’état. I’m reading scripts and doing research, and I honestly couldn’t be happier or more grateful.
In 2022, after spending my first two years out of undergrad working in TV production in California, I took a big chance on authenticity. I left to move closer to my roots: indie film, music, literature, theatre. I had no idea I would find all that in Belfast.
I’ll leave you with one more highlight. A few months ago, I joined a local poetry class. I’m not particularly ambitious when it comes to my poetry, but I think writing it is important for any artist. It keeps things experimental, cuts the fluff, and brings us back to the point.
Anyway, I show up to this class, and it’s a small class, only 4 of us, and there’s this older woman who is just so wonderful. So funny and warm and endearingly modest. Instantly, she reminded me of my Nana. Then she said her name was Pat, my Nana’s name. After class, she drove me home, and we’ve since formed a friendship.
The best thing about Belfast is its people. I feel so lucky to meet them.
