Gareth Dunlop’s new single is an important message to his son

Belfast born singer-songwriter and producer Gareth Dunlop, who has been recognised as an accomplished talent ever since the BBC tipped him as ‘one to watch’ in 2010 when he was not long out of his teens, is set to release a new album.

By Julie-Ann Spence

Published 13th Jan 2022, 11:00 BST

‘Animal’ will be released on March 18 ahead of his UK and Ireland tour with Foy Vance, which will finish off at the SSE Arena in Belfast on April 2. As well as the eagerly anticipated new album. Gareth is also releasing a new single ‘Look Back Smiling’ later this month on January 21.

‘Animal’ consists of a diverse set of songs that include the soulful and anthemic ‘Right About Ready’ and first single ‘Look Back Smiling’, of which Gareth said: “I wrote it as a message of sorts for my son. In these weird pandemic years I had noticed him retreating into himself.

“He’d missed out on most of his first year at school and bypassed an important year of making those first connections with would be friends.

“It set my head off in a direction of wanting him to grab life by the horns and be as much of a kid as possible before the real trials and tribulations of life seeped in.”