Top line-up for Rachel Goode's charity concert in Ballinasloe

Ballinasloe singer Rachel Goode is organising a charity concert in her home town next week, which will feature special guests Sean Keane and Eleanor Shanley.

The event, entitled 'The Magic of Christmas', will take place in the Shearwater Hotel on Thursday next, December 15, at 8pm. It will raise money for the Ballinasloe-based East Galway & Midlands Cancer Support Centre.

Rachel has put together other charity concerts in previous years, and she was thrilled to be able to organise one again after the disruption of the pandemic.

"This is my fourth charity concert to organise and I am delighted to bring it back again after a few years of no live music!" she said.

"East Galway & Midlands Cancer Support is a wonderful centre which is used by many people. I know that people travel from Birr and Longford, among other places, to use the centre.

"I have a fantastic line-up of artists on the night, and top-class musicians including Bill Shanley on guitar, James Blennerhassett on bass, Robbie Casserly on percussion and Enda Dempsey on guitar.

"These are some of the best musicians in Ireland and some have worked over the years with Mary Black, Derek Ryan, and more."

Rachel said the music on the night would be a mixture of Christmas, folk, and country, with a few twists added as well.

Sean Keane draws on the sean nós style of singing and is known for his memorable voice and distinctive musical style. Leitrim native Eleanor Shanley, meanwhile, is renowned for her unique interpretation of Irish folk and roots songs.

In addition to these special guests, the local Ard Scoil Mhuire School Choir will be singing on the night, and there will be pre-concert entertainment from 7pm provided by the Ard Scoil Mhuire Trad Group.

"It will be a fantastic night's entertainment and all for a wonderful cause," said Rachel.

Tickets for the concert are priced €25, and there will be concessions on the door for children if they wish to attend. Tickets can also be booked online on the Eventbrite website.

This has been a particularly eventful year for Rachel, as she reached the final of the ‘Glór Tire’ country music talent contest on TG4, and was also a finalist last February in Late Late Show's Eurosong competition to choose Ireland's Eurovision entry.

The song Rachel performed for the Eurosong contest, 'I'm Loving Me', helped make 2022 a bumper year for her on Spotify, as her music attracted more than 167,000 plays from nearly 50,000 listeners internationally on the popular streaming service.