Clare’s karaoke king and queen head to Portlaoise

TWO Clare Karaoke singers will be representing the Banner County at the Irish Karaoke Championships in Portlaoise this weekend.

Suzanne Kenny representing The Mill Bar in Sixmilebridge and Alex Kyriacou emerged as Clare’s Karaoke Queen and King at the Clare final in Magowna House, Inch, recently.
“It is a big deal for them. There were 21 competitors in the Clare final and the standard was high,” Kevin Murphy of Funsounds, who organises the Clare leg of the Karaoke competition said.
The Clare heats started in March, with one female and one male singer, and one wildcard, being put through to the Clare final every week.
“Suzanne and Alex were really good at the final. They both sang two songs. Suzanne sang It’s Raining Men and I Have Nothing, while Alex sang Three Times a Lady and Kingston Town. I think they have a good chance in the final. They will be competing against at least one singer from every county and they only have chance to prove themselves, as it’s only one song per contestant in the final. The winner of both the male and female All-Ireland Karaoke Championship will go on to represent Ireland at the World Karaoke Championships in Moscow from September 23 to 25. It’s a big deal for Suzanne and Alex but they’re really looking forward to it,” Kevin added.
The All-Ireland Karaoke Championships will be held in Portlaoise this weekend.
Last year’s winner, Adrian Kenny (representing the Gerry Ryan Show), went on to win the World Karaoke Championships, while the reigning Irish Karaoke Queen, Jennifer Ward, came in fourth place in the World Championships.
Kevin also said that the Clare heats of the Karaoke Championships were very successful this year. “Overall, the standard was very good and the best people definitely made it through to the final. It was by far the best final we’ve had in Clare. The competition here in Clare is getting stronger and stronger. We hope to have 25 bars involved next year, which will mean that we will need semi-finals as well as finals,” he commented.
Next year will see the World Karaoke Finals being held in the INEC in Killarney in September.
“This will be a massive event for Killarney. There will be karaoke singers from all over the world and the whole event will be great fun. It would be wonderful if Ireland can hold on to at least one of the world titles for that occasion,” Kevin said.
For further information on the competition, see www.karaokeireland.net.