Molly Donnery Finds Her Way Home With New Single The Stream

By Chris Kennedy | Published 22nd Oct, 2026

With a sound rooted in contemporary folk and a clear love for Ireland's traditional music heritage, Molly Donnery has been steadily building a name for herself. Her songwriting brings together poetic storytelling, traditional influences and a voice that's unmistakably her own, something she first introduced to listeners with her 2024 debut EP, Times We Shared In Innocence.

Having spent several years living in Berlin, Donnery eventually made the decision to return home to Ireland and give music her full attention. It was a big move, particularly with Dublin becoming an increasingly difficult city for artists to make a living in, but one that has helped shape the next chapter of her career.

Since returning, Donnery has been making her presence felt on the live circuit. Appearances on The Late Late Show as part of TradFest 2025, a performance at All Together Now 2025 and a headline show in Whelan's Main Room for Whelan's Trad and Folk Festival 2026 have all helped put her music in front of a wider audience.

The Stream - A Song About Taking the Leap

Written just days before leaving Berlin behind, The Stream finds Donnery trying to make sense of everything that comes with starting over.

Speaking about the track, Donnery explains:

I wrote The Stream a few days before moving back home from Berlin to Ireland. It was written as a way to cope with the huge changes I was going through at the time, and the fear of choosing to try to make music work as a full time job in a place like Dublin, which is becoming harder to make a living in no matter what field you end up in. The song was more of a momentary escape at the time but very quickly became one of my favourite songs to perform live.

Traditional Irish Folk With a Modern Touch

The Stream opens with Donnery's delicate vocal phrasing sitting over a simple strum of strings. Her Irish accent comes through beautifully, with those distinctive Celtic inflections giving the opening a traditional feel. It's a gentle introduction that puts her voice front and centre, allowing the song to find its feet before the arrangement begins to grow.

As the track moves forward, the strings take on a more pronounced, almost chomping rhythm, bringing a welcome sense of movement. Donnery's vocals gradually become more powerful too, moving away from the softer opening as the instrumentation gathers pace. It's a natural progression that gives the song plenty of room to develop without feeling forced.

The arrival of backing vocals from close collaborators and bandmates Naoise May and Cait Fleming is another lovely touch. Their voices weave around Donnery's lead, adding warmth and a real sense of togetherness as the track opens up. It's here that The Stream really comes into its own, with the different elements working together rather than competing for attention.

There's also a nice balance between the traditional and contemporary sides of Donnery's music. The fiddle, bodhrán and strings give the track a strong connection to Irish folk, while the arrangement has enough of a modern approach to keep things fresh. It never feels like she's trying too hard to push the song in either direction.

A Familiar Cast of Musicians

The track was recorded at Camden Studios with producer Bernhardt Bix McKenna-Doeblitz, and features Izzy Donnery on bodhrán, Cait Fleming on fiddle and vocals, Tadhg Byrne on viola and Joshua Sampson on drums. Alessandro Di Camillo handled mixing duties, while Ruadhrí Cushnan took care of mastering, bringing the finished recording together.

Final Verdict

With The Stream, Molly Donnery has delivered a lovely piece of contemporary Irish folk that feels personal without being overly sentimental. The gradual build, rich traditional instrumentation and beautifully blended vocals make it a track that grows on you with each listen.

Having already made an impression with her debut EP and a growing list of live performances, Donnery sounds increasingly comfortable finding her own place within Ireland's folk scene. If 'The Stream' is anything to go by, taking that leap from Berlin back to Dublin might just prove to be one of the best decisions she's made.

The single, The Stream, is available through all streaming platforms.

Photo Credit: Kate Lawlor (Daisy Chains)