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Kevin Herm Connolly returns with new single Cariñito

May 3, 2023

Irish singer-songwriter Kevin Herm Connolly returns with new single Cariñito (English Version), in advance of the release of this third album later this year. Recorded between ARAD Studio in Dublin (IRL) and Rio Bravo Studio in Valencia (ES), the track is a cover of a classic song from the Peruvian cumbia repertoire.

Known for his introspective yet playful indie folk music, Kevin Herm Connolly has built a reputation as a critically acclaimed and versatile singer-songwriter. Born in Galway in the west of Ireland and influenced by artists such as Tom Waits, Devendra Banhart and Sufjan Stevens, his indie folk stylings have of late taken on a Latin and Mediterranean tint, due to his time spent living and travelling in South America and Spain. This is especially the case with this new single. He explains: “It was on a tiny dancefloor in Mancora, northern Peru, where I heard Cariñito for the first time. I was living there at the time and was immediately taken by it, its rhythm, its catchy chorus, the fact that everyone was singing along and dancing like crazy… I decided I had to work up my own version.”

His translated version went viral in Peru during the pandemic when, during one of the various lockdowns, he posted a video performance online. The press there latched on to it and it was shared widely, eventually reaching the ears of the widow of the original writer of the song, Aníbal Rosado, who contacted Kevin to give her approval.

Cariñito will be available on all digital platforms on the 26th of April followed by a new album, Kevin’s third, later in the year. Kevin is currently on the promotional trail in South America and is launching the single with a concert in Lima, Peru, on the 26th of April, with further concerts to follow in Colombia, Spain and Ireland.

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