Music with Eddie Rowley
GROWING up in a family steeped in music, it was inevitable that Danny O’Reilly would be bitten by the bug.
The son and nephew of Mary and Frances Black respectively, Danny is currently celebrating 10 years on the road as a songwriter and lead singer with The Coronas.
He recently took part in a Late Late Show tribute to Mary, but Danny admits that when he launched his own career, he shied away from associations with his famous mum. “I’m very proud of my mam, but in the early days I would have been uncomfortable mentioning my mother in interviews because what we’re doing is a different genre of music,” Danny tells me.
“Now that The Coronas are established and have done it off our own bat, I don’t mind talking about Mam.”
The first piece of advice his mother gave him, Danny reveals, was to get a good education before embarking on a career in music. “She said, ‘finish off your college first and get that sorted’, and then she was happy to let me give it a go.”
Mary also had another piece of sound advice for her son. “One of the few pieces of advice she gave me was just be aware that there are hundreds of really talented people out there that can’t make a career out of it for whatever reason, whether it’s luck or timing, so it’s not just if you’re good, it will happen,” he says.
“That advice was something that gave me a work ethic and appreciation when it did happen. She also encouraged me to write my own songs, something she regretted not doing herself, and that was essential.”
The Coronas are celebrating a decade in music with the release of their latest album, Trust the Wire, out this Friday.