Latest news with #OliveBranch
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Behind the music - Nathan O'Regan
Irish singer-songwriter Nathan O'Regan has released his new single, Better Days. We asked him the BIG questions . . . It's the second track to be lifted from his forthcoming debut album Olive Branch, set for release 19 September on Belfast label Zenith Cafe Records. Having just completed a support tour with Lucy Spraggan, Nathan will be performing at festivals over the summer before embarking on the Olive Branch tour in September and October, including a date at The Workmans Cellar, Dublin on 8 October and other Irish shows including Mullingar, Castlebar, Limerick and Belfast. He wrote Better Day for his partner when she was pregnant with their first son. "It was written just before we had Arthur, and we were living in this tiny little house just outside of Belfast. It felt like we were boxed in," he says. "You couldn't step in a straight line, you were climbing over things to get anywhere, and we just didn't know where a baby was even going to fit. I just wanted to tell her everything was going to be ok eventually and to keep the faith." Tell us three things about yourself . . . I was born in Cork but moved to Belfast when I left school. I'm the proud Dad of two little boys, Arthur, who's three and Oscar, who's five months old. I love cooking and think if I didn't work in music I would have wanted to work in a kitchen of some sort. How would you describe your music? I'm so incredibly bad at answering this question but I'll try: I try as much as I can to keep my lyrics conversational. If I can't imagine myself saying it, then I normally won't sing it either. Style wise, people have told me I sound a bit like James Morrison, Gregory Porter, Springsteen. Most of the stuff that I think has informed the music I like making are probably from my Dad's record collection. Marc Cohn, Jackson Browne, Billy Joel all have left big impressions on me. Storytelling at its finest with the lyric front and centre at all times. More recently, I'm obsessed with Lake Street Dive, Leif Vollebekk, Stephen Wilson Jr, to name a few. What was the first gig you ever went to? Eric Clapton Live At The Marquee in Cork. I think I was about 14 or 15. I remember the day of the gig, I had the flu or something similar working on me and my Mum thought I shouldn't go but I was adamant that I wasn't going to miss it. We went really early to get near the front and about 20 mins into Clapton's set, it was so hot in there that I fainted. I remember waking up being carried by a paramedic who was screaming "WHAT DID YOU TAKE?" at me. Their instincts were correct so I replied honestly, "two Lemsips." What was the first record you ever bought? American Idiot by Green Day, followed quickly by everything else they'd released. I used to sit for hours with them on repeat and try and work out the guitar parts. I was obsessed What's your favourite song right now? This is going to sound super specific, but right now its a song called Dela by Johnny Clegg. We've been letting our son Arthur watch some movies and he's obsessed with George Of The Jungle and there's a scene at the end where that song plays and he absolutely loves it. It's the first non-nursery rhyme song that he genuinely loves and it brings me a lot of joy watching him dance around and sing it. I'm not sure if I love the song or if I just love that we're not being asked to play Baby Shark all day long anymore, but in any case, it's a banger! Favourite lyric of all time? I have too many to pick just one, but the first one that comes to mind is from a song called Elegy by Leif Vollebekk where he sings, "Gonna find a way to climb out of this basement / Gonna find out what that smile on your face meant." More just from a place of being a fan of songwriting than what that specifically means, but I've never heard someone rhyme "basement" with "face meant" before and it completely blew me away! It's pretty elite stuff I thought.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Vote for the Campbell Clinic girls high school athlete of the week, Feb. 16-22
Voting is open for the Campbell Clinic Memphis area girls high school athlete of the week for Feb. 16-22. The poll closes Thursday at 4 p.m. See the nominees below: Bella Rose Austin, Harding Academy: Austin scored a game-high 16 points in a win vs. St. George's, 10 points in a win over Jackson Christian and 19 points in a loss to USJ. K'laya Currie, St. Benedict: Currie led the Eagles with 24 points in a 62-46 win over St. Mary's. Zaria Moss, Arlington: Moss had game-high point totals in two games with 22 points in a win vs. Germantown and 19 points in a loss to Bartlett. Caleigh Nix, Olive Branch: Caleigh Nix led Olive Branch with 25 points in its 75-44 win over Vicksburg to advance to the MHSAA 6A state semifinals. Kaylin Sheffield, Bartlett: Sheffield scored a team-high 14 points in Bartlett's 69-35 win over Arlington. Justine Su, Collierville: The Dragons freshman placed third at the TSSAA Girls Wrestling Championships in the 107-pound class. Wendell Shepherd Jr. is The Commercial Appeal's high school sports beat writer. Reach Wendell at or on X @wendellsjr_. This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: POLL: Memphis area girls high school athlete of the week, Feb. 16-22
Shafaq News
20-02-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Turkish Defense Ministry: 408 PKK members killed this year
Shafaq News/ On Thursday, Turkiye's Defense Ministry announced that 31 members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were killed over the past week during military operations in northern Iraq and Syria, bringing the total number of PKK members killed this year to 408. The ministry's public relations and media adviser, Zeki Akturk, stated that Turkiye 'remains committed to eliminating PKK threats along its borders.' Turkiye has conducted multiple military campaigns targeting PKK elements and ISIS in northern Syria, including Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018), and Peace Spring (2019). The Turkish Defense Ministry continues these strikes, citing concerns over "border security, militant activity near Turkish-controlled areas, and efforts by PKK-affiliated groups to destabilize the region." Ankara classifies the PKK as a terrorist organization and argues that its military operations are necessary to prevent cross-border attacks, however, those attacks come amid ongoing peace efforts.
Shafaq News
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Turkiye 'neutralizes' three PKK members in northern Syria
Shafaq News/ On Monday, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced that it 'neutralized' three Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) members in northern Syria. Turkish authorities use the term "neutralized" to refer to individuals who have been killed, captured, or surrendered. The ministry said in a statement that 'Turkish army units targeted the militants in areas controlled by Operation Euphrates Shield and Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria.' Notably, Turkiye has conducted several military operations in northern Syria in cooperation with the Syrian National Army, including Euphrates Shield in 2016, Olive Branch in 2018, and Peace Spring in 2019, targeting 'PKK elements and ISIS.' The Turkish Defense Ministry continues to conduct strikes against PKK/YPG elements, citing concerns over "border security and preventing militant activity near Turkish-controlled areas," and what it calls "efforts by PKK-affiliated groups to destabilize the region."
Shafaq News
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Turkish forces "neutralize" 14 PKK/YPG militants in northern Syria
Shafaq News/ Turkish military forces have "neutralized" 14 PKK/YPG militants in northern Syria, Turkiye's National Defense Ministry said on Wednesday. 'The terrorists were targeted in the Operation Peace Spring zone,' the ministry said in a statement on X. Turkish authorities use the term "neutralize" to indicate that the individuals were either killed, wounded, or captured. Turkiye has carried out a series of cross-border operations in northern Syria since 2016, including Euphrates Shield, Olive Branch, and Peace Spring, targeting PKK/YPG positions. The PKK is designated a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the United States, and the European Union.
