Denise Chaila

Denise Chaila
OriginZambia/Limerick
Genres
Years active2012 (2012)–present
LabelsNarolane Records
WebsiteDenise Chaila on Facebook

Denise Chaila is an Irish-Zambian rapper, singer, poet, grime and hip hop artist based in Limerick.[1][2]

Career

Chaila began performing on the Limerick music scene in 2012. Chaila released her debut EP, Duel Citizenship, in 2019. She had already featured on the 2016 Rusangano Family album, Let the Dead Bury the Dead and performs with them regularly.[3] Cillian Murphy featured Chaila's music on his BBC Radio 6 show and interviewed her for Port magazine.[4] She was one of the performers at the Perspectives: Imagining Ireland. Speaking Up, Singing Louder in National Concert Hall, Dublin on 9 February 2020.[5] Her first album, Go Bravely, was released on 2 October 2020.[6] Chaila was one of the musical acts featured in the series of remote performances during the COVID-19 pandemic, Other Voices: Courage, in May 2020.[7] The one-hour performance was recorded in the National Gallery of Ireland.[8][9] On 3 July 2021, Chaila was one of the headline acts to appear at a pilot music festival held in the grounds of the Royal Hospital, Kilmainham, held to test how festivals might be run in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] In April / May 2022, she opened for Ed Sheeran on his Irish dates of the Mathematics tour.

Personal life

Chaila was born at Chikankata-Mazabuka District, Zambia, daughter of Elijah and Lydia Chaila. Her family moved to Ireland when she was aged three, when her father, a neurological consultant, was offered a position at a hospital in Dublin. Her mother is a hospital radiographer.[11] The family later moved to Limerick. She attended the Kings Hospital Secondary School in Palmerstown and went on to study English literature and sociology at the University of Limerick.[4]

Discography

  • Duel Citizenship EP (2019)
  • Go Bravely LP (2020)[6]

Awards and nominations

Choice Music Prize

Year Nominated Work Award Result
2020 Go Bravely Album of the Year Won[12]

References

  1. ^ "One to Watch: Denise Chaila". the Guardian. 6 February 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  2. ^ Salazar Winspear, Olivia (4 March 2021). Denise Chaila 'goes bravely' where Irish hip-hop fears to tread (video). ENCORE. France24. Retrieved 10 June 2021 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ McGoran, Peter (4 April 2019). "Music World: Denise Chaila". Hotpress.com. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  4. ^ a b Murphy, Lauren (15 February 2020). "'You shouldn't bend to fit the world and its labels'". independent.ie. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  5. ^ O'Connell, Edaein. "Limerick rapper Denise Chaila is an artist you need to know". Image.ie. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  6. ^ a b "Go Bravely, by Denise Chaila". Bandcamp. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Other Voices: Courage - watch Denise Chaila live in concert". RTÉ.ie. 14 May 2020.
  8. ^ Cleary, Andrea (21 May 2020). "A Sound You Can't Predict". The Journal of Music. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  9. ^ Cleary, Andrea (7 June 2020). "Why Limerick poet and rapper Denise Chaila is the voice of now". Business Post. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  10. ^ Quinn, Daniel (3 July 2021). "Thousands attend pilot music festival in Dublin". RTÉ. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  11. ^ "Formation: Queen of 2020 Denise Chaila opens up on her mental health struggles and how she learned to let her unique light shine".
  12. ^ "Denise Chaila Wins Choice Music Prize for Go Bravely". Hot Press. 4 March 2021.