Back in April, young Bangor band The Florentinas played an incredible live set as part of the Belfast Live Lockdown Sessions.
With their easy going charm, good looks and - most importantly - clearly brilliant songwriting and performing, it was easy to see why the four-piece were so heavily tipped to be the next big thing.
Not in their wildest dreams though, could the band have predicted the lightning pace at which success has arrived.
Incredibly, The Florentinas' story is a little more than a year in the making.
Their first gig together was in June 2019, following which they were snapped up by some of the biggest business names in NI music.
And just this week, a mere sixteen months after forming, it was announced that they have signed an exclusive publishing deal with global behemoths BMG.
The publishing deal will allow the band to have a space where they can write and rehearse their songs. BMG will also be able to help the band grow as writers and their incredible connections will help to find opportunities for the band's music to be heard. BMG will also collect all royalties due to The Florentinas across the world.
“It’s been pretty crazy,” says singer Paddy Boyd, 17, who is studying for his A Levels at Bangor Grammar along with drummer Jakob.
“Our first ever gig was in June last year and we never could have imagined just how quickly things would take off.”
It was a chance meeting on a train with music manager, Third Bar’s Davy Matchett, that kicked things off for Paddy and bandmates Jacob Kane, bassist, and brothers Jakob and Luke Swann on drums and lead guitar.
“I actually didn’t know who Davy was,” says Paddy. “But my friend recognised him, and told me he worked with Gary Lightbody, and that if we wanted to talk to anyone in music, it was Davy Matchett. That September, three months after their first time in front of an audience, Davy watched the band play – and loved what he saw.
“By this time, we’d had some of our music played on BBC Radio Ulster’s Across the Line programme,” says drummer Jakob, 18. “It was amazing to hear our music on the radio.”
The following month, two huge moments impacted on the band’s success.
On a trip to London with his dad, Paddy got a message from Jacob Porritt (there's a whole lotta Jac/kob's in this story - ed), who works in A&R at BMG.
“I was on the Tube when I saw an email saying he’d heard our music and thought what we were doing was really cool,” says Paddy. “I went to meet him at their offices in London, and he said we had potential.”
The second came weeks later when the band were invited for a session at London’s Maida Vale studio.
“That was an amazing experience,” says bassist Jacob. “The night we found out we’d been invited I was working at Culture Night serving pizza. I don’t know how I finished my shift.”
Continuing their upward trajectory, their return to Northern Ireland saw the biggie.
“My dad came in one night to say, are the boys free?” says Paddy. “Davy had called to say he and Gary Lightbody wanted to come round for a chat. They came to the house, and it was unbelievable.
“They said they really liked what we were doing, and asked if we’d be happy for them to manage us.”
“Of course we said yes,” adds Paddy.
BMG then travelled to Belfast in December to hear the band performing in a practice room in the Oh Yeah Centre and, fast forward to this week, got in touch again with confirmation of the publishing offer.
“It’s been absolutely incredible,” says Jakob, 18. “The whole thing has been quite weird and exciting. A year ago we’d only played two or three gigs, and now all this has happened. We’re so excited about it.”
“Everyone’s been really supportive,” adds Paddy. “Our families have been amazing, the school has been brilliant, and all the management have been too. They’re not putting loads of pressure on us to keep writing and making music.
“They’re supporting us in what we’re doing, and the fact we’ve got that backing is making us more structured in the way we’re working, setting aside proper time for writing and rehearsals. We’re doing more of what we love. It’s like a proper job now, rather than a hobby.”
