GWILYM BOWEN RHYS
Gwilym Bowen Rhys has established himself as a worthy ambassador for Welsh language and song both at home in Wales and across the world, confirmed by his nomination for the Folk Singer of the Year Award in the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and winning the Best Solo Artist Award in the Welsh Folk Awards.
Hailing from the village of Bethel at the foot of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) in North West Wales, Gwilym has been singing in his native Welsh language since he can remember, giving him a deep connection with the traditional songs and music of his native land and a love of sharing his music with the local communities of this Welsh-speaking region.
Bringing to life ancient Welsh lyrics and melodies, his music is made unique by his own contemporary musical approach. His first album ‘O Groth y Ddaear’ (From The Womb Of The Earth) was released in 2016 and was shortlisted for Best Welsh Language Album of The Year at the National Eisteddfod, helping to establish him as a new and vital voice for the music of Wales.
LIAM RICKARD
The Worldwide Welshman is Liam Rickard, a Welsh singer-songwriter & illustrator on a mission to save the world. This has proven rather difficult, so in the meantime he's been collaborating with a host of international musicians to entertain audiences around the world with his multilingual musings on modern life.
"Humour is an integral part of my artistic output, as is celebrating diversity of language & culture, and trying to do something different that challenges the mainstream but also appeals to a wide range of people."
Liam comes from a rich musical heritage on both sides of the family – his father is a singer-songwriter from Lancashire from a line of singer-guitarist-pianists, and his maternal grandmother was a folk singer from Bessarabia, herself the granddaughter of the famous Bessarabian-Jewish cantor, Yankel Der Heizeriker Gottlieb. Liam & his brother, Siôn, got into alternative pop & rock music in their teenage years, forming the folk-rock band Naughty Magic Simon with their best friend, Rob. They were soon joined by guitar whizz, Rico, and later by Gareth, Tom and Dafydd. In 2010, Liam went to university to study architecture, and formed his second band, Timestealers, with uni friends Nick, Adam, Jess & Paul (check out Paul's solo project here).