Irish songwriter Rua Rí has announced his debut album Tell Your Mother I Saved Your Life, set for release on 1st May via Soft Boy Records.
Hailing from Cobh, Rua Rí has steadily built a reputation for his stripped-back, emotionally precise songwriting. Drawing on elements of Irish folk while maintaining a distinctly contemporary voice, his music is defined by its hushed delivery, sharp lyrical detail and understated arrangements.
The forthcoming album brings those elements together across ten tracks, forming a work that is both personal and reflective. Autobiographical in tone, Tell Your Mother I Saved Your Life traces moments of uncertainty, humour and quiet resilience, anchored by Rua Rí’s ability to find weight in everyday experiences.
New single ‘Johnny Workman’ offers a clear entry point into that world. The song has its origins in a childhood memory, where Rua Rí would stand in front of the fireplace in his family home, declaring “I’m Johnny Workman looking for some work” before acting out different roles.
That playful idea is reworked into something more grounded. The track shifts its focus to a later period of unemployment, capturing the frustration of repeatedly sending out CVs and receiving no response. In doing so, it turns a simple phrase into a commentary on insecurity and persistence.
The result is a song that balances humour with a sense of quiet strain, reflecting the broader tone of the album.
Across Tell Your Mother I Saved Your Life, Rua Rí demonstrates a confident sense of identity as a songwriter, one that draws from tradition without being bound by it, and that finds its strength in precision rather than excess.
Tell Your Mother I Saved Your Life arrives on 1st May.
Tracklist
- Johnny Workman
- Easy On The Eye
- Snow
- Not So Brave Now Are Ya
- Sitting On The Wall Beside You
- Fields Of Glass
- Wonderland
- Makeover
- Fish Go Deep
- There’ll Be Liners Floating Down The Holy Ground
Photo Credit: Marta Partearroyo Garcia
