Niall Breslin
Niall Breslin | |
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Bressie with The Blizzards at Junction 7.08, June 2008
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Background information | |
Birth name | Niall Breslin |
Born | Artane, Dublin, Ireland |
22 October 1980
Genres | Soft rock, pop |
Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, television personality, former footballer |
Instruments | Guitar, drums, piano |
Labels | Sony Music |
Associated acts | The Blizzards Brendan McCahey |
Website | bressiemusic |
Date of birth | 22 October 1980 | ||
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Place of birth | Artane, Dublin | ||
Height | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)[1] | ||
Weight | 100 kg (15 st 10 lb)[2] | ||
Rugby union career | |||
Playing career | |||
Position | Flanker, Second row | ||
Professional / senior clubs | |||
Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
2002-04 | Leinster | 14 | (0) |
correct as of 06 May 2015. |
Niall Breslin (born 22 October 1980), known as Bressie, is an Irish musician and former Westmeath Gaelic footballer and Leinster Rugby player. Breslin found success as the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter with pop band The Blizzards, as a co-writer and producer with XIX Entertainment and as a solo artist. He was the winning coach on the first and third seasons of The Voice of Ireland.
Contents
Biography
Early life
Born in Dublin to father Enda and mother Mandy, Breslin is the second youngest of five children,[3] including siblings Ronan, Laura, Julie and Andrea.[4] At the age of two, he and his family moved to Mullingar. As a result of Enda's military deployment when Bressie was 13, the family relocated to Israel for six months.[5] They then returned to Mullingar, where he discovered a love and talent for sports as well as music.[5]
Breslin attended University College Dublin on a sports scholarship, graduating with a degree in commerce.[6]
Sports career
Breslin represented his native county team, Westmeath, in Gaelic football at Minor, Under-21 and Senior Championship levels.[7] He won a Leinster Under-21 Football Championship medal with Westmeath in 2000. He was also a professional rugby player with Leinster Rugby.[citation needed] He had a scholarship in UCD for rugby and also represented Ireland at Under21 level in the World Cup.[citation needed]
Music career
The Blizzards
With childhood friends, Breslin formed The Blizzards in 2004. They released two albums that achieved commercial success, A Public Display of Affection in 2006 and Domino Effect in 2008. The band split up in 2009.[8] Following the band's split, Breslin joined Simon Fuller's XIX Entertainment as a songwriter and producer in 2010.[8]
Solo career
In 2011, Breslin released a solo album, Colourblind Stereo. Four singles were released from the album. During a performance at the Festival of Fires in Westmeath on 5 May 2012, Bressie urged thousands of fans to vote against the government coalition of Fine Gael/Labour, saying before leaving the stage “I don’t normally do politics, but this Government is an awful bollocks. I want to make an appeal to all you people out there. Don't make the same mistakes we did by voting them in again.”[9] Though one of Ireland's most in-demand stars, he has stated that he eschews the celebrity lifestyle and has no interest in “the bulls**t that comes hand in hand with fame and celebrity”.[10]
In 2012, he was a coach on the inaugural season of The Voice of Ireland,[11] mentoring the winner, Pat Byrne.[12][13][14][15]
Through the end of 2012, Breslin began work on his second solo album. On 29 January 2013, he announced via Twitter that the album would be called "Rage and Romance" with an expected release in April 2013.[16] On 30 January 2013, the first single entitled, "Show Me Love" was given initial radio airplay with a projected release date on 22 March 2013.[17]
A music video was filmed for Show Me Love, featuring Moone Boy actors David Rawle and Ian O'Reilly. In 2014 Breslin appeared on the second series of Moone Boy as a PE Teacher - his first acting role.
In January 2014, Breslin announced putting his solo career as a recording artist on hold, with the intention to focus on his work as a judge on The Voice of Ireland and writing and producing music.[18]
Personal life
In late March 2013, Breslin opened up on his blog about his struggles with Generalized anxiety disorder.[19] Having experienced a severe panic attack on a live show taping during the first season of The Voice of Ireland, Breslin sought professional help and ultimately decided to manage his anxiety by adopting a more active lifestyle. He began training for a triathlon, in support of Lakelands Area Retreat & Cancer Centre (LARCC),[20] a foundation on which his mother serves as director.[21]
Breslin is also an ambassador for Cycle Against Suicide (CAS),[22] an organisation that seeks to raise awareness and bring support to those dealing with mental health issues. In April and May 2013, Breslin participated as a cyclist with CAS, in a series of legs around Ireland, stopping at local schools to give mental health-related talks and also he has been dating with Miss Universe Ireland 2010 Rozanna Purcell.[23]
Discography
- Studio albums
Year | Album Title | Peak chart positions |
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IRE | ||
2011 | Colourblind Stereo
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8[24] |
2013 | Rage and Romance
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1 |
- Singles
Year | Song | Peak chart positions | Album | |
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IRE | UK | |||
2011 | "Can't Stay Young Forever" | 9 | - | Colourblind Stereo |
"Good Intentions" | 36 | - | Colourblind Stereo | |
2012 | "Breaking My Fall" | 14 | - | Colourblind Stereo |
2013 | "Show Me Love" | 53 | - | Rage and Romance |
2013 | "Silence Is Your Saviour" | - | - | Rage and Romance |
- Guest appearances
- 2012 – "Rocky Road to Poland"
References
- ↑ http://www.mayonews.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=18540:interview-bressie-on-training-for-sea2summit&catid=106:features&Itemid=100194
- ↑ http://www.leinsterrugby.ie/team/results/squad_leinster_first_team.php?player=4556&includeref=dynamic
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External links
- Niall Breslin at the Internet Movie Database
- Video interview at Oxegen 07
- Friday interview: Bressie, Hogan Stand, 15 March 2013.
- EngvarB from August 2013
- Use dmy dates from August 2013
- Articles with hCards
- Pages using Template:Infobox musical artist with unknown parameters
- Articles with unsourced statements from March 2015
- 1980 births
- Living people
- Alumni of University College Dublin
- Gaelic footballers who switched code
- Irish guitarists
- Irish male singers
- Irish record producers
- Irish singer-songwriters
- Irish songwriters
- Irish rugby union players
- Irish television personalities
- Leinster Rugby players
- Mullingar Shamrocks Gaelic footballers
- Newstalk presenters
- People from Mullingar
- Sportspeople from County Westmeath
- Westmeath inter-county Gaelic footballers
- The Voice (TV series) judges