Cork-born indie phenomenon, Chubby Cat, has once again gone and shown why she deserves a place on the modern-day music scene. Following a notably formative year for the musical sensation, Cat Doran, who goes under the catchy and alliterative pseudonym ‘Chubby Cat’, has released a single that once again acts as a medium of political expression rather than simply rhythmic supremacy. In the single Kissin’ in the Valley-O, Doran touches on the infamously controversial Irish-housing crisis and cleverly manipulates her talent to act as a voice for Gen-Z.

The singer emphasised this in a recent interview explaining that

“I wanted to create a song that was relevant to me and the people around me in terms of growing up in our 20’s and 30’s. KITVO talks about the housing crisis and the struggles people face when trying to rent somewhere to live that’s not too expensive, too damp or unsafe, worrying about having money for food or money for electricity, breathing in all kinds of mould and getting sick as a result, trying to keep relationships going when you live with housemates who you don’t get along with etc.” 

Yet this isn’t the first time the poetic politician has used lyrical genius and exposure to relate to contemporary struggles and injustice. Doran’s identity as a queer artist has been central to her freedom of expression as she regularly features homosexual actors in her music videos or writes about contentious issues within the gay community. Featuring on Spotify’s ‘Rainbow’ playlist, known to be a platform for queer artists in the music industry, she has coined a reputation for standing as a firm representative for the issues of today.

Kissin’ in the Valley-O gets straight into its fresh beat from the start of the track right through to the end, teleporting the ears of the listener to a young person’s versatile array of emotions with its warped sounds and electronic dance beat with fast breakouts whilst also being cut by the ranging pitches of the artist’s voice, creating a drum and bass-pop like feel for the track. After 20 seconds of listening, you’ll be sure to add this track to the playlist, whether it be for prees with friends or simply a self-hype in your room.