Tommy Sands receives the Lifetime Achievement award and Dolores Keane enters the Hall of Fame at Vicar Street on Tuesday 10 November.
The nominations for the eighth RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards have been announced, with the ceremony taking place at Vicar Street in Dublin on Tuesday 10 November 2026. It will be broadcast live on RTÉ Radio 1, with John Creedon returning as host and a television highlights programme to follow.
It’s a change of season for the awards. The last two ceremonies were held in February, when Lankum and Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin were the big winners in 2024, and Róis took Best Original Folk Track and Best Emerging Artist in 2025. This year’s eligibility window runs from 18 November 2024 to 11 September 2026. As before, the seven main awards are chosen by a jury (of which I am one), with no public vote.
Several of this year’s nominees are back after being shortlisted last time. Joshua Burnside and Macdara Yeates were both in the running in 2025, as was Lemoncello, who are now up for Best Folk Group. Lisa O’Neill was also nominated in 2024, when she was shortlisted for Best Folk Singer and Best Folk Album.
Performers on the night include Beoga, The Unthanks, Declan O’Rourke, Jillian O’Malley, Joshua Burnside and Hammy Hamilton & the Ora Quartet, with more to be confirmed.
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Honorary awards
- Lifetime Achievement: Tommy Sands
- Hall of Fame: Dolores Keane
Best Folk Album
- An Bhearna Bhán – Jillian O’Malley
- Caillte Sa Cheol – Ciarán Ó Maonaigh
- Curlew’s Cry – Barry Kerr
- Ithaca – lullahush
- It’s Not Going To Be Okay – Joshua Burnside.
- Phases – Beoga
Best Folk Group
- An Chéad Ghlúin Eile
- Beoga
- Lemoncello
- Poor Creature
- Ye Vagabonds
Best Folk Singer
- Barry Kerr
- Clare Sands
- Joshua Burnside
- Lisa O’Neill
- Macdara Yeates
Best Folk Instrumentalist
- Caroline Keane
- Ciarán Ó Maonaigh
- Jack Talty
- Seán McKeon
- Altan O’Brien
Best Emerging Artist
- Rua Rí
- Ellie O’Neill
- The Railway Boys
- Leevy
Best Original Folk Track
- ‘Anam Cara’ – Clare Sands
- ‘Heaven Has No Wings’ – Dove Ellis
- ‘Johnny Workman’ – Rua Rí
- ‘The Curlew’s Cry’ – Barry Kerr
- ‘The Wind Doesn’t Blow This Far Right’ – Lisa O’Neill
Best Traditional Folk Track
- ‘Amhrán na Scadán’ – The Railway Boys
- ‘Cad É Sin Don Té Sin’ – Tríona & Maighread Ní Dhomhnaill
- ‘Coleraine Jig’ – Rattling Ark
- ‘De May Bush’ – Macdara Yeates
- ‘Ryan’s Rant’ – Cormac Begley & Liam O’Connor
- ‘The Mickey Dam’ – Damien Dempsey
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
