Could you give up meat for a month? Well, that’s what Gaeilgoir Conor Torbóid attempted in RTÉ’s upcoming series, Slán go Feoil.
Guided by nutritionists, chefs and food enthusiasts, seven contributors based in Kerry, Donegal and Belfast discover new flavours, new habits, and perhaps new versions of themselves as they explore vegetarian living, and put their routines, assumptions and beliefs to the test.
VIP Magazine sat down with Conor, an Irish language rapper from Belfast, a passionate advocate for the Irish language. As editor of the Irish language magazine Nós and through rap, his work and passions are deeply connected to his culture — though his relationship with food is a little more complicated…
Hi Conor! Talk to us about getting involved in Slán go Feoil.
To be honest, it was because Ronan McCloskey, the head of Ronin Films. He and I had worked on another project of theirs before called M’Ainm Mo Scéal, which is a TV show targeted at children. It focuses on their names and the history of their names, where their names come from, and any stories related to them. He had asked me to be a part of that a few years back. So when he contacted me about this, I was honestly like, “Nah, I’m not gonna do that, like I’m not gonna go off meat.” But because I had such a good relationship with Ronan, I said yes for the sake of working with him again. When I got into it, I wanted to challenge myself and see if I could stick with it for the month.
So are you completely veggie now?
[Laughs] You’ll have to watch all of it yourself! You’ll see by the end of the journey that there’s a homecoming meal and it was very much enjoyed.
Did you grow up through Irish?
It’s funny the way it happened. When I was born, there was a bit of an age gap between my older siblings and me, so at the time, my mummy was coming back to work. It just so happened that a Naíscoil [preschool through Irish] had opened up the road from my granny’s. My granny was minding me when my mummy was at work, so I ended up in there half convenience. The other half was my great-grandfather spoke Irish. He learned it in the 40s when he was interned on the prison ships. My mummy wanted to pass that down to me. It was kind of like a happy accident, almost.
You’re also a rapper. Why do you think Irish and rap go hand-in-hand?
I think if we look at where hip-hop and rap come from and the historical basis, it makes sense. You have to look at what was happening to the majority Black but also like Latino and Hispanic New Yorkers in the Bronx, Harlem, Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn. There was a lot of death and social destitution, there was a lot of poverty, and there was starvation. When people felt like they didn’t have a voice, this was how they used it. They started with old equipment; they couldn’t afford instruments. They took early tunes and put their own spin on them. They used their voices to fight back against the injustices that they saw. I think when you look at that background and when you look at what’s happened with, not only the Irish language, but the Irish people and Irish culture over the centuries, as you say, it goes hand in hand. It’s a method of revolution in a way of taking your voice back. It’s form of non-violent resistance.
Why do you think Irish culture, as well as the language, has gotten this sudden boost in popularity?
I think at the minute, with the social media landscape and everything moving to online, I think more people are craving that in-person connection. The live music spaces, they want to experience an artist for real. I think in terms of the sessions and the language, it’s always been there, it’s just other people are catching up to it now. People have been doing it for decades, and each generation has continued on the tradition of the language, the music, the culture. The community has grown and more people who didn’t experience it before now see it as something they want to get into.
You are also the editor of Irish language magazine, Nós. Tell us about that.
Nós was founded in 2008. It was initially in print, and in 2015, it went online. So I came in the role as the editor in 2023 yeah so like nearly just under two and a half years now. It’s a lifestyle and cultural magazine all as Gaeilge. It can be stories from the Irish language scene or from abroad. I just love showcasing the talent that’s out there but especially locally. We’ll have writers that write about fashion and politics, the environment, and we’ll have travel blogs and so there’s a lot of content on it. I’ve been grateful that I’m the editor. When I got the job I wanted to get more young people writing regularly for us. Before Nós, I worked in youth work. We also have Gradaim Nós, which is our music awards, celebrating the Irish language music scene in Belfast.
It’s so great to see Irish language content aimed at young people. It is a living language and there’s definitely be a push to highlight that recently…
That was part of the appeal for me. I didn’t want to run a magazine that is in Irish and about Irish. It’s an Irish language magazine but it’s about anything under the sun. As you say, if it’s a living language and we’re talking about it being a living language, then we’ll have to be talking about everything in Irish. That’s something I love about it too, you’re reading about like indigenous peoples in Norway as Gaeilge. You wouldn’t have thought of that in the North 30 years ago.
What advice would you give someone who is trying to learn Irish for the first time?
It’s basically about not giving a f**k. If you’re learning any language, you’re learning that language because you have an interest in it and you shouldn’t let anybody put you off something that you want to do and something that you love. There’s this idea about stuck up Irish speakers who’ll correct your grammar, but that’s not the case. And even if it is, are you going to let a few assholes put you off?
Slán go Feoil kicks off on Monday March 16th at 8.30pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player