Craic Boi Mental

Over the past six years, West Cork rapper Craic Boi Mental has occupied his own niche in the Irish hip-hop scene. Emerging online in 2015 with a gift for lo-fi production and earworm choruses, the wordsmith’s surreal style won him a place in the hearts of the burgeoning Irish scene.

In recent times, he’s brought a heavier side to his game - being open with his mental health struggles, and living as a neurodivergent artist after an adult diagnosis. While previous album Craic Magic saw him touch on the subject, upcoming release Autistic Legend addresses it outright - right down to a Ronseal album title.

“I just wanted to talk about my own experience - not just, ‘oh, this is what life is for autistic people’ - I just talk about my experience, and neurodivergent people can relate to it in a way that maybe people who don’t have those issues mightn’t,” says the 25-year-old, originally from Turners Cross and now based in Schull.

Credit : Mike McGrath Bryan (Irish Examiner)