The shortlist for the Ivor Novello’s new Rising Star Award has been unveiled – with Irish electronic artist lullahush, aka Daniel McIntyre, named among the five nominees.

Daniel McIntyre has been conducting the secret affair of poetry and production. “A game changing producer,” (Earmilk), multi instrumentalist and lyricist, he began playing in bands at age 13 and soon took to the laptop to get to the heart of it all. Working with several emerging Irish artists, his unique style led to him being chosen for the Red Bull Music Academy in Berlin. This experience gave him the confidence to pursue his own project, lullahush, a measure of the distance between ambience and pop. In 2019, the 23 year old artist released three pieces, ‘Terracotta Slow Dance’ (“deftly original and innovative” – Nialler9), ‘Elysium’ (“frantically beautiful” – District Magazine) and ‘If Spring Had A Spare Room I’d Rent It With You’ (“sweetly lilting yet thoroughly unique, as beautiful in writing as it is to listen to” – The Line of Best Fit). His self made videos for these pieces “add yet another gorgeous string to lullahush’s bow” (TLOBF). This year also saw him create his first audio/visual piece, an interactive installation based on his music and videos. Currently locked in the studio creating his debut album, lullahush is writing a story set at the point where beauty and imperfection merge, a slow dance through the anxious energy of a late night mind.

The Rising Star Award with Apple Music is the first new Ivor Novello Award category to be introduced in 10 years and honours young British and Irish songwriting and composing talent who demonstrate exceptional potential and ambition.

The new award helps discover, support, and accelerate the careers of the most promising music creators in the UK and Ireland.

The award includes a new mentoring scheme from Apple Music whereby all nominees receive a year-long mentorship from a well-established Academy member to help develop their networks, discover new opportunities and better understand how to navigate their careers. Representing an incredible array of talent and experience, this year’s mentors are: Nile Rodgers, Fraser T. Smith, Kamille, Anna Meredith and David Arnold.

The winner will be announced on Wednesday 2 September 2020.