Collie & Funzo's Christmas Party

Last night saw the launch party for the new album from Dublin rapper, Collie. "The Bitter Truth" is the 4th album release from the original Irish rapper. The gig took place in the intimate surroundings of The Twisted Pepper. The evening began with a short and sweet acoustic set from talented teenager Dale O’Hanlon. He performed to a room of no more than 10 people but that didn’t stop him from putting in a very professional performance. He played a mixture of original songs, some cover versions and some medley/mash up songs. His original songs show a songwriting maturity beyond his years. A cover of Backstreet’s "No Diggity" proved very popular also. A great way to kick off proceedings. The crowd were kept sweet, literally, with the free mince pies in between sets.

Next up onto the stage was Funzo, who drew the largest crowd of the evening. It’s easy to see why as front man, Liam McDermott is a natural showman whose charisma and sense of humour show through. Early on in the set, Funzo are joined on stage by Rapthor (who according to Liam, has just hit number 3 in the North Korean charts) who gives a very impressive performance, a performance which was equalled by Nugget who joined the stage to drop his "Dublin Tune". “Me And Her” was met with such a response that the crowd demanded it be played again immediately to which Funzo obliged. Siyo then took to the stage for “Drunk” which ironically is exactly how he looked but still managed to deliver without missing a beat. The set finished with LCG’s "Figured Out" unfortunately without the man himself but Row-B took his place.

The final part of the show was the reason we all came and that was Collie. he immediately went into the new album and pumped out songs such as "Day One", "True Champ" and the simply brilliant "Due In The Ministry” which really got the crowd going. Some old school songs appeared on the set list including Collie’s debut single “Some Sham”. The finale of the show was breathtaking. Collie was joined on stage by a who’s who of the Dublin rap scene including Funzo, Rapthor, Row-B, Siyo & Russell Flow for a killer performance of “Method 2 The Madness”.

After a show like this, it’s easy to see why Collie is still at the top of his game and how he has helped to shape the whole scene in Ireland. Whether its as a producer or being an inspiration to the younger rappers, Collie has shown that he is the godfather of Irish rap. Based on tonight, it looks like the scene will be in good hands for a long time to come.

By: Dave McMahon

#blogentry