Belters Only: 'We didn't know Make Me Feel Good was gonna be that big'
Belters Only bring their dance sounds to Musgrave Park and Leopardstown during the summer.
Dublin singer Jazzy finds herself alongside the likes of Harry Styles and PinkPantheress, having been nominated for an Ivor Novello award for ‘Giving Me’, up for most-performed work. The awards seek to recognise the work of British and Irish songwriters and composers - the winners will be revealed in London on May 23. The song was co-written with Dublin dance duo Belters Only, whose rise over the past three years or so, like that of Jazzy, has been incredible to witness.
The pair go by Robbie G and Bissett. They’re still in their mid- and late-20s and only released their debut single, ‘Make Me Feel Good’, with Jazzy, in November 2021. Over 105m Spotify streams and two years later, they’ve headlined Dublin’s 3Arena, tickets selling out in under 30 minutes. This summer, they’re playing their own festival at Punchestown over the June bank holiday weekend, Musgrave Park in Cork on June 21, as well as massive shows in Galway and Belfast.
“Playing in the 3Arena was probably our biggest goal we've ever had,” says Bissett, the older of the pair. “And on the day that we stepped on that stage, it was probably the best day of our lives.”
As for those upcoming shows, “the stuff we have planned is something that Ireland has never seen before. Visuals, lights, production…” Robbie finishes the thought for him: “Spectacle! We brought in the biggest LED screen for the 3Arena. And all we can say [about the summer shows] is it's 10 times crazier than what we brought to the 3Arena in October.”
Despite the extraordinarily quick ascent of Belters Only, it wasn’t an overnight success. Robbie, a producer before he was a DJ, started making music for himself when he was 16. Bissett, a DJ first, had been signed as a solo act before covid hit. They had a club night in Dublin, dubbed Belters Only, and having built a studio in his garden during the initial lockdowns of four years ago, Bissett asked Robbie to come over.
“We were really the only two people that were making the type of music that we were making at the time. So we were obviously aware of each other,” explains the latter. They had the same vision too. “We were always getting criticised; the mindsets of people were like, 'they're not gonna go anywhere', that ‘the music's shit’, whatever it is they say.”
But the duo are - were - thinking about more than just themselves. “We want to change that mindset of people in the country of where if we can do it, anybody can do it.”
Robbie says: “We're the first of many artists in Ireland that haven't seen the light of day or haven't seen this style of music. So us releasing a body of work is not only just for us, but it's also showing the world what Dublin is about and what the house music scene in Ireland is about. It's not just about us releasing a product, it's movement for us.”
Hence the music festival, as well as a nascent record label and plans for a clothing label too. Bissett: “We're all about the community, the culture of the whole music scene over here.”
While ‘Make Me Feel Good’ was based on a sample, ‘Giving Me’ is wholly original, written and produced in Bissett’s studio together with Jazzy. Did it feel special in that room together?
“We knew with that track, that was a big one. We knew when we were writing that song, we knew it was huge,” says Bissett. Over 135m streams on Spotify and ubiquitous on Irish radio - it’s second only to Niall Horan’s ‘Heaven’ as the most played song by an Irish act in 2023 - it saw Jazzy win the RTÉ Choice Music Prize for Irish Artist of the Year and Irish Breakthrough Artist of the Year and was nominated for International Song of the Year at the Brit Awards in March.
Bissett continues: “It was mad as well, because the label sent it around everywhere to try and get some more writers on it.”
Did they know just how big ‘Make Me Feel Good’ would be (it has over 105m streams on Spotify)? Bisset: “I mean, we knew it was a big sample. We knew how good Jazzy sounded on it. The instrumental was great as well. And I think yeah, we knew it was a big tune, but we obviously didn't know it was gonna be that big, I suppose.”
Robbie: “We obviously didn't expect it to grow at the rate that it did and how quick it did. But we were gonna get it right at some point, because this is what we were working towards at the beginning anyway.”
The lesson is to not bet against Belters Only. They’re confident rather than cocky, knowing they have a big summer ahead. They’re working on a debut album and as well as the huge shows at home, will be back at the clubs in Ibiza. But they aren’t forgetting the most important thing, as Robbie says: “The music comes first no matter what. That's where all of this stems from.”
- MK and Belters Only, Punchestown Racecourse, Kildare, June 1-2; Belters Only play Ormeau Park, Belfast, on June 14, Musgrave Park, Cork, June 21; and Galway Airport, August 11
