New record deal for Clara

A singer-songwriter from Strabane has signed a deal with one of the UK’s leading song writing and production companies.

Clara McHugh, a student at the prestigious British and Irish Modern Music Institute (BIMM) in Brighton and who has previously played at Glastonbury, says she’s “over the moon” to have joined Xenomania Records. And with five million Spotify plays with her previous two singles, Clara has high hopes for her new track, ‘Eulogy’ which was released on Xenomania in recent days.

“I’m buzzing about it. It’s scary but I’m excited,” Clara remarked this week.

“With uni I got the opportunity to do some session work for the label. The guy who owns it liked my voice and he asked me to play any songs I’d written myself and then he decided he wanted to sign me.”

That ‘guy’ is Brian Higgins, Xenomania’s founder. He says he knew he had found a star in Clara at soon as he heard her sing.

“Initially, I was looking for a session singer but as soon as I saw her perform her own songs, I was transfixed,” he remarked. “It’s a real privilege to work with her; she’s the full package.”

Eulogy was co-written with, and produced by, Tim Bidwell with additional production credits from Oliver Ross and Brian Higgins.

Clara’s ability to connect and resonate with audiences around the world began in 2017, when she posted an acoustic version of ‘The Rush’ on Facebook. Unilad picked it up and it went viral, accumulating millions of streams in a matter of weeks. In 2019, Clara performed at Glastonbury Festival, The Great Escape, Barn on the Farm, 2000 Trees and many others.

“They want to release 15 songs in 18 months,” Clara continued. “It’s stuff that I’ve written and stuff I’ve yet to write… but we have a few ready to go already.

“Eulogy on Friday is my first release with them, so I’ve very excited.”

• Eulogy is available on all the current streaming platform. For more information on future releases check out Clara McHugh Music on Facebook.