Glen Hansard calls out division over housing as Christmas Eve charity busk returns

Dermot Kennedy, Glen Hansard and Imelda Might have been among the many well-known Irish musicians that gathered in Dublin metropolis centre because the Christmas Eve busk returned for the primary time in two years.

hey have been joined by Roisin O, Gavin James, The Coronas, Liam O Maonlai, The Pale and Loah who took half in a various efficiency that lasted for greater than two hours.

“Thanks all people for the primary Christmas again in a couple of years,” The Frames frontman Hansard instructed the a whole bunch who had gathered exterior the Gaiety Theatre, positioned off the bustling Grafton Avenue.

He devoted Take Coronary heart to these searching for a spot to remain on Christmas Eve, and to the folks of Ukraine.

“We have to open our arms, we have to open our hearts to the individuals who want us,” he stated, including that there shouldn’t be division between those that are homeless and people looking for asylum.

“They shouldn’t be mutually unique.”

Two Ukrainian singers, Ana and Alex, joined Hansard, and adopted the track with a Ukrainian carol.

Hansard and Imelda Might did a rendition of Fairytale Of New York, with Might thanking individuals who had “put their palms of their pockets” to donate cash to the homeless.

Singer Loah carried out River by Joni Mitchell and Skinny Lizzy’s Dancing In The Moonlight, dedicating the track to these pressured to sleep on the streets.

The finale noticed all of the musicians be a part of on stage and a medley of songs together with Without end Younger by Bob Dylan, Little Drummer Boy and The Previous Triangle.

A variety of Simon Neighborhood volunteers stood on the fringes of the gang with buckets, encouraging folks to donate.

In what started as an impromptu music session in 2010, the Christmas Eve busk has became a high-octane festive custom within the capital.

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Because of the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, that is the primary time it has returned to Grafton Avenue in two years.

Final yr, artists gathered in St Patrick’s Cathedral for a musical occasion that was streamed on-line – a characteristic that was made out there once more this yr.

The busk comes after 4 consecutive months of official homeless figures reaching report highs amid hovering lease prices and home costs which are unaffordable for a lot of staff.

The federal government’s October figures present that 11,397 folks have been recorded as homeless throughout Eire, which incorporates 3,480 kids.