CelticLounge.com founders Larry Kirwan, left, and Mike Farragher.
It may shock some faithful Irish Voice readers to learn that columnist and music critic Mike Farragher grew up hating–he puts the word in capital letters–Irish music. It was because “my parents rammed it down my throat,” he explains. You know, like Brussels sprouts and the need for deodorant–those parent things that you don’t appreciate till you get older.
Then Farragher heard Black 47, the New York City Irish band that wove Irish music with rock, reggae and hip-hop. Suddenly, he says, here was Irish music that appealed to his modern-day Celtic soul. “Finally the beautiful Celtic culture made sense. It was as if Black 47 was an interpreter that translated my culture back to me. I think they’ve been turning people onto their own roots for years.”
More than a decade ago, Farragher met Larry Kirwan, front man for Black 47, and found a kindred spirit. They’ve been friends ever since, and recently became collaborators on a new website, CelticLounge.com, a “virtual pub” where artists can come to play and meet and fans can come, like Farragher, to hear music that will connect them to their roots.” But it’s more than just about music, as Farragher explained to us recently. In fact, in the beginning, it wasn’t really about music at all.
How did you come up with the idea of Celtic Lounge?
I had been kicking around the idea of doing a social network for Irish writers. I had written a novel called Collared (www.collared.net), which was a suspense novel set in the church scandals. I discovered that writing was a very lonely life. You never know if what you’re writing is on target or not,
and I thought there was a need to put a quasi-support group together. At the same time, Larry Kirwan from Black 47 was considering doing something similar for musicians. Celtic rock and ethnic music in general is a difficult thing to get played on the radio, so he thought it would be a good thing to put a network together to promote the genre. We discussed this over a pint and decided to create something together, which has turned out to be bigger than either of us imagined!
What do you hope to accomplish with the site?
Nothing short of the rebranding and reimagining of what it is to
be a Celt in general and an Irishman in particular. You Google images of “Irish” and you get shamrocks, drunken leprechauns, and Aran sweaters. It is a narrow, slightly insulting view of what we are. Celts are vibrant, wildly creative people, and that is what we are hoping to put out there. A cultural revolution! On a smaller scale, it is a place for Celtic artists and fans of that art to come together. I was speaking with a very well known NY-based band today, and the leader was lamenting how the smoking ban and other factors have really killed the Irish bar scene in the Big Apple. “People now get their music on an iPod instead of on a barstool,” he said with a sigh. Well, that trend plays into our “online pub” concept very well when you think about it!
What kind of response are you getting?
Overwhelming. It’s twice as much fun and four times the work than what I was expecting. Reaction is great….we have Irish Americans in the military guarding the Korean border who log in to get a slice of home and their culture. We have young writers getting the rush of having their very first story published on our online magazine. I even heard of some hookups that have been facilitated by our social network. So, people log in for different reasons and we have something that will interest most people who click in and grab an “e-pint.” On another note, we are working with a liquor company on a writer’s contest that will award $1000 for the best short story or essay writer. Wouldn’t it be great if the next Joyce or Behan was found hanging out at CelticLounge? A record company is working on a compilation CD featuring some of the artists that are featured in our radio player. We have people buying t-shirts with our logo on them. So, you start creating an online community, minding your own business, and before you know it, you’re a clothing designer and a record producer! I can’t wait to see where we take CelticLounge next!
What are your biggest challenges?
Getting the word out is a challenge. We have 70,000 visitors a
month with 46 million people claiming to be Celts or coming from Celtic roots of some sort on both sides of the Atlantic. So, we have our work cut out for us! While the site is making enough money to sustain it, there is always the problem in most businesses of a million ideas and not enough cash to launch them. I think that keeping the content fresh is always a challenge, wehave loads of writers and musicians contributing to the site.
How are you handling the extra workload? Neither of you has given up your day (or night) jobs, I take it.
Sleep? What is that? Right now, Larry and I manage the content.
Our technology partner is WebSignia (www.websignia.net), who really brought our vision to life digitally. They do amazing work. When you are doing something you love, the time flies by. I’m blessed because I LOVE my day job and I love playing with CelticLounge.com. I am both a left brain AND a right brain
guy, so I love working in the business world by day and then creating on CelticLounge and writing by night. On top of that, there is a lovely and understanding wife and children in the mix. It’s a hectic lifestyle, but a balanced one.
How do you and Larry work together?
It is amazing to be working with such a creative spirit. Rocker! Author! Playwright! Sirius Radio DJ! You learn a lot orbiting his solar system. We have had plenty of disagreements as we create CelticLounge.com, but they are minor and resolved quickly because our creative vision and passion are evenly matched for the most part. It’s been a blast working together and I hope it continues to be this fun!