“Luke Concannon is my hero; I owe a large part of my career to him” – Ed Sheeran

Folk duo Nizlopi of  #1 hit ‘JCB’ will open for Ed Sheeran on the UK & Europe leg of his LOOP tour in December. As one half of folk duo Nizlopi, Luke Concannon has been an integral part of Ed Sheeran’s formative years, when the young artist became their intern and was deeply inspired by them in his own music. Now, in a true full-circle moment, Luke will be opening for the superstar singer-songwriter on the UK & Europe leg of his LOOP world tour.

Luke Concannon: ‘Ed is a young master at this singer-songwriter thing and it’s amazing that he counts Nizlopi and I as a part of his formation. I’m excited and nervous to be opening for him on his European tour this December, I hope I get to connect with and serve those present.’

The duo – Luke Concannon and John Parker, best known for their 2005 #1 hit ‘JCB Song’ – have played Paris Zénith (Dec 1), Munich Olympiahalle (Dec 3), and come to this country from tomorrow Coventry Building Society Arena (Dec 5), Manchester Co-op Live (Dec 7) and Dublin 3Arena (Dec 9). The tour follows the release of Luke’s new album Midnight Bloom (out now) – a passionate return to recording after illness and burnout.

Luke Concannon has early memories of falling asleep at Irish family parties to the sound of guitars, singing, and dancing. He has been making music in the community ever since. Upon meeting double-bassist John Parker in school, the two formed the folk hip-hop duo Nizlopi (best known for the ‘JCB Song’), selling a million records in their twenties and deeply influencing the young Ed Sheeran who interned with them. Through the strain of recording and touring world-wide with a small family-run label, Nizlopi parted ways.

Luke’s first solo album Give It All was released in 2013, kindling the fire for a solo singer-songwriter career. Ecstatic Bird in the Burning, Luke’s 2022 album, debuted at Number 12 in the folk charts on both sides of the Atlantic, including a Number 7 single, ‘Doing Nothing,’ and garnered rave reviews. Luke recently found his way back to music through an unexpected path, dealing with illness and currently living in a yurt in the Vermont wilderness with his family.

What’s now emerged is a deeply personal collection of soulful folk-pop songs, exploring themes of our fractured world and finding connection. True to form for the activist musician, Luke doesn’t shy away from difficult subjects.

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