As the evening darkened on the cold wintry night of Thursday, 10th January, many of us were snuggled up by a warm fire, tucking into the last stash of mince pies and the dregs of the Christmas vino.

But not our B!

She unearthed her red lippy from the bottom of her handbag, grabbed the coolest, cleanest t-shirt she could find, keyboard in tow, and made for St. Patrick’s Mental Health Services, where a very special event called Cistin was taking place.

Cistin is part of the European First Fortnight Festival, which hosts a series of events across Europe in the first two weeks of every new year to raise mental health awareness through creative arts and cultural action. Joining acclaimed storytellers, 6 piece band Laura Ryder Ampersand and The Sacreblues, Blaithin took to the stage for the first time in 2019 for a very worthwhile cause.

Joining the conversation around mental health, Blaithin spoke intimately about the inspiration behind ‘Crystallize’, a heart-rending song she co-wrote with New Zealand treasure and dear friend, Sir Paul Holmes. The performance gave us a rare but charming insight into the mind-set of Blaithin, who normally lets her strong-willed lyrics do her talking!

‘Crystallize’ will be released later this year - sign up for the newsletter at the bottom of this page to be among the first to hear it!

To see some of B’s performance on the night, check out her Instagram Highlights on her profile here.