15 in ’15: The Irish rising stars who are taking over 2015

“You’re going to be a star, kid.”

Remember when we told you Conor McGregor was going to be huge before he exploded on to the UFC scene?

Then we helped uncover countless bands, who have since become huge in New Music Is Hard To Find.

Now that we’re in to the swing of 2015, we’ve teamed up with An Post Admailer.ie to name 15 people who we reckon are going to be massively successful before the end of the year.

Gerard Barrett, Film Director

Gerard’s debut feature film, Pilgrim Hill, was critically acclaimed. His follow up, Glassland, starring Jack Reynor, was loved by even more people. It even went to Sundance.

This guy knows how to make great films and we can’t wait for his next movie, Brain on Fire, which is set for release next year.

Jordan Casey, Entrepreneur

This genius entrepreneur is only 15.

When we were that age we were too busy trying to get the attention of girls (literally, any girl), not trying to build a business.

Jordan Casey, on the other hand, has set up Casey Games and developed loads of apps including Greenboy Touch, Alien Ball V Humans and Food World.

Joseph Duffy, MMA Fighter

Joseph Duffy is the latest Irish fighter to join the UFC and he looks to be a bit of a beast.

He’s the last fighter to beat Conor McGregor and his UFC debut finished with a first round TKO victory.

With all the training involved in being a top fighter, we don’t know where he gets the time for his call-in radio show.

Angela Scanlon, TV Presenter

Already a huge hit in Ireland, Angela is set for even more success across the water.

She is now working as a presenter for The Voice UK. Well deserved too, as this gorgeous lady is not only talented, she’s completely likeable too.

Adrian Martin, Chef

He’s already one of Ireland’s top chefs, at the tender age of 23. Adrian Martin is a Cavan native who has trained in some of the top restaurants in Ireland.

Apart from his excellence in the kitchen, Mr. Martin is also a dab hand at the media work, with several television appearances and a regular magazine column already under his belt.

Al Porter, Comedian

At only 22, Al Porter is already one of Ireland’s top stand-up comedians. A regular on the Republic of Telly, Al combines charisma, quick wit and brilliant stage presence.

You know he’s good when his peers, like our own Eric Lalor, rave on about his talent.

He’s just one funny fecker. (Link NSFW)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8yu2Oe2dUM

Rob Stears, Illustrator

We’re big fans of Rob Stears here at JOE HQ.

The Dublin artist is really taking the cheese out of occasions with his greeting card illustrations. Just have a look at this cool Mother’s Day one.

Conor Lynch, Design

Conor Lynch turns sawmill offcuts into beautiful clocks, bowls, candlesticks etc.

The talented Offaly man is only 17-years-old and does all this while studying for his Leaving Certificate.

The Academic, Band

We’re big fans of the Mullingar band in the JOE office. They recently signed a worldwide publishing deal with Global Publishing and they’re new single ‘Different’ has more hooks than Lady Gaga’s hat-stand.

We’ve seen them live a few times ourselves and we’ve been very, very impressed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRpH7mqbZdE

Ruth Medjber, photographer

Ruth Medjber’s photography business, Ruthless Imagery, has gone from strength to strength because of one simple reason – this lady’s immense talent.

Live music is her niche and she’s also very active on Twitter.

Here’s an example of her work.

Colin Barrett, Author

His book of short stories, Young Skins, is already adored by critics and the public alike. Colin was a winner of The Guardian’s first book award in November and looks to be carving out a great career as a fantastic writer.

We expect huge things from him.

Gearóid McDaid, Surfer

One of Ireland and Europe’s top surfers and still only 17, Gearóid McDaid, has really made a name for himself. He won the coveted Sea Sessions’ Surf Competition last year and he’s coming back for more this year. A real talent.

RuggedWood, band

They hail from Tullamore and are aged between 17-20. They’re also absolutely brilliant. Have a look at their cover of Sia’s ‘Elastic Heart.’ 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ndl1e0XUq00

Eve Hewson, Actor

Bono’s daughter is about to arrive on the world stage with her latest movie, Bridge of Spies. She’ll be acting alongside Tom Hanks and the movie is being directed by the one and only, Steven Spielberg.

Harry Arter, footballer

The 25-year-old has recently been drafted into the Republic of Ireland’s full-squad as he bids to make the central midfield spot his own.

His performances with Bournemouth have certainly merited inclusion and we can’t wait to see more from him.

So there you have it, 15 names that will be absolutely huge by the end of this year.

Another name set to make it big is AdMailer.ie 

Admailer.ie  from An Post allows businesses to send hyper-targeted promotional postcards to customers for less than the price of a stamp per item, and campaigns start at as low as €126 ex VAT.

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