I come from a tough cookie of a mum, but I’m really a bit of a softie
Chloe Agnew has showbusiness in her blood, and she has learned all the lessons from her parents in how to deal with the pitfalls
I don’t think my mam will ever get over the intrusion. It’s an invasion of her personal space
CHLOE Agnew walks through the tea lounge at the Westbury Hotel and turns heads amongst the afternoon tea brigade. Her long blonde tresses tumble over her shoulder and her Jackie O style sunglasses keep her hair in check.
The oldest daughter of Adele King (Twink) and David Agnew, celebrity is in her blood and when it comes to the world of showbiz she is well schooled. She has many of the features of her famous mum and all the confidence that comes with making your first television appearance at the age of six. But after ten years touring with Celtic Woman, a path laid down in front of her when she was just 14, Chloe is ready to find her own place in the world.
‘I released a charity single when I was 11. Then on the back of that I did a solo album at 12 and another at 13 and later that year I was approached to be one of the original members of Celtic Women but it was only ever supposed to be one night. We were only asked to do one show and it just took off. I was 14 at the time and I lasted ten years with them. It just took off and I decided then it was time for a change and do something different. So I got my green card and I got a base in LA five years ago and have been happy out since.’
Celtic Woman was formed when she and four others on the label came together to perform a one-off show, which was recorded for PBS television. They went out to the US to promote it, and it was massively successful. It became such a huge phenomenon that Chloe toured the world with Celtic Woman for almost a decade.
As she was only 15, she had tutors teaching her, and the combination of travelling, performing and studying for her Junior and Leaving Certs kept her busy, although she missed home, of course.
But showbiz was in her blood and she quickly learned that there was a price to be paid for the industry she was stepping into.
‘I guess for me I grew up in a household where I was always surrounded by a more adult environment. Because of the nature of my parents work. Then going into the business so young I suddenly learned very quickly how to be in older company.
‘It was all I knew but at the same time it was tough. There were times in the thick of my teenage years I remember being on tour and have friends going to pre-debs and stuff was all happening here and I was working.
‘And I felt I was missing out on these big occasions but then my friends were looking at what I was doing and wishing they were away doing that.
‘I have learned that having a good family and friends is about balance. And I always seemed to figure it out. I had to learn to grow up really quickly.
‘The way the industry is now it is such a cut-throat industry. But for me growing up it was the family business. That was how we put bread on the table.
‘I never saw it through rose-tinted glasses and I knew what was involved in making a living in the business. I think I am lucky in that sense.
‘I have had all the hard knocks and criticism. But it was slightly easier to take and I have had a slightly thicker skin because I have had to watch and see what my parents went through when I was a kid. That has stood to me over time and I have a different outlook and approach with how I go about my business.’
That thick skin was tested over the years when her parents’ divorce became front page news. The now infamous voicemail and bitterness is a thing of the past and Chloe says the only people who haven’t moved on are a minority of curious members of the public.
‘It is funny, I am always loath to talk about it because I find that any time I do the general feedback is, ‘‘God would she ever get over it and stop talking about it.’’
‘I don’t care, we have moved on but people still want to know why or how we are such a close family.
‘I think shit happens to everyone. We all have our own bag of rocks we carry throughout life and we all deal with it in very different ways.
‘Our family, it just so happened that our lives were played out on the front pages of the newspapers.
‘It was just another thing we had to deal with.
‘It wasn’t easy but at the end of the day life is too short. We learned that there is so much other crap out there in the world that is worse and we only have each other at the end of the day.
‘We are good people and we love each other and life is too short to not enjoy the time we have left and my mum and dad have a wonderful friendship now.
‘We have crap patches like every family but we have come out of it far stronger as a result.’
A recent incident where their Knocklyon house was burgled just after Christmas proved to the family once and for all that it is family and not material possessions that really matter in life.
She says the Gardaí never caught the intruders and believes that her mother Twink, will never truly get over the intrusion.
‘They never caught the people who broke into the house so we did not get any of the items back.
‘The scariest thing for me was I didn’t realise how much of an epidemic it is in Ireland. We were loath to share it at the beginning but when we shared it I was suprised at the amount of people who came up to me and shared their own experiences and that it appears to be rampant in Ireland.
‘It was the precious heirlooms that nobody can replace that hurt the most.
‘The intrusion, I don’t think my mam will ever get over that. It is an invasion of her personal space and knowing that someone was there. But if nothing else it makes you really aware to lock the doors and put on the alarm and lock up.’
Chloe is just 26 years of age yet she speaks with a calmness and assuredness that can only come from years of experience.
She says that her time touring the world has given her invaluable life experience but admits that she was protected from within by her fellow cast members.
And she says that while she was lucky not to have experienced any harassment on the road, she was very aware that she was being looked out for and that these sort of dangers existed.
‘I think thankfully I was very lucky to be surrounded by primarily women in Celtic Women’, she says. ‘When I joined I had an extra four mothers and guardians because I was so young.
‘I was also aware that this sort of thing was in our industry and I was aware that I was being protected. I was being sheltered and the girls always had my best interest at heart and I was aware that this was something that they were doing for me and each other.
‘There was great solidarity in that. That’s why the Time’s Up movement and Me Too campaigns have been so good for women in general. Because we knew in the industry that this was going on for a long time but now maybe the rest of the world is finding out about it.
‘I come from a tough cookie of a mother but I am a bit of a softie.
‘I remember when I was younger
it was said to me to be careful because kindness can be mistaken for weakness. I have been very aware since with women in our industry that if you are seen to be nice and kind it can be seen as a fault.
‘In stark contrast if a man comes into a workplace and is strong and open and speaks his mind he is a powerful man and not to be messed around with.
‘If a women does the same she is branded a bitch and a diva and I have noticed that. If nothing else this has given women a platform to speak up about something they feel is not right and for you to be heard and not to be a nag.’
A strong feminist, Chloe admits that she is not comfortable with every aspect of the latest movement.
She feels that through social media there have been a number of witch-hunts that have led to a sort of online trial where people are guilty without any due process.
In particular she feels that comic Al Porter, who was recently cleared of any misconduct by an internal investigation at a hospital, was badly treated.
‘I will also be the first to say that I don’t believe it should be used as a platform for witch-hunts. I think there has to be checks and balances and I am concerned that there is not always the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
‘Public trials are happening and something is just put out there and then suddenly it is game over for the person before they have had a chance to defend themselves.
‘I knew it all along with Al Porter. I think Al is one of the best human beings I have ever met.
‘I think I am an excellent judge of character but I think he is one of the kindest, nicest human beings that I have ever met. I think he is young too and it takes a lot to come back from this.
‘There is a big difference accusing someone like Harvey Weinstein who has had a legacy of abuse and he is at the end of this days.
‘Al is at the beginning of his career and I think it is only fair that he is afforded time to do what he believes is right for him and picks his time to speak out and clear his name. It is not fair to people like that who are getting caught in the fishing net.
‘But I am all for the general ethos of the movements. And it is difficult to say these things. because the minute you say that you are deemed a nay-sayer and a non-believer.’
NOW liberated from Celtic Woman Chloe has taken the time to focus on her new solo career.
She has released an EP of her own music, written in her new home of LA.
The EP is called ‘The Thing About You’ and has just been released on iTunes. But it is a major departure from her Celtic Woman days.
‘I had to prove myself again. I was so lucky to have Celtic Woman but really when I left I was determined to go on and do something else. It was only when I stopped that I realised I had no idea what to do next. I ran away from music from about a year.
‘So I applied for my green card and I had to take a year off while that was processing.
‘I was desperately searching for a new connection with music and I tried song writing, and it was only through that process and soulsearching that I discovered what I was really about.
‘I stepped outside the Celtic Woman bubble and just lived and it was terrifying and it changed me as a person and I found my path and I suddenly have this passion and love and a brand new connection with music.’
Chloe also joins Brian Kennedy, Melanie McCabe, Luke Thomas, Sheena Maguire and The O’Neill Sisters for a special concert celebrating the songs of Burt Bacharach.
They will perform the Bacharach and Hal David Songbook of classic hits at The National Concert Hall on Sunday, June 24.
She added: ‘It is the music of Burt Bacharach and you say the name and people don’t realise how many hits he wrote and he has won six Grammies and there are so many hits.
‘This is the first show I have done in a couple of years and to share the stage with these great Irish artists is wonderful. It is a family show and I hope people will come along and have a bit of a sing-song.
‘The venue has this air of prestige and I grew up watching my Mum and Dad perform there so to be able to continue the tradition is lovely.
‘I am singing The Look of Love in the show and I was rehearsing at home the other night and my mum walked past and said: ‘You know the first time I heard that song I was two rows from the front in Las Vegas listening to Dionne Warwick sing it.’’
So no pressure eh.’ For tickets to the show Tel: (01) 417 0000 or log onto www.nch.ie.
I had no idea what to do next. I ran away from music for about a year