Free Flight Records artist Darren Kiely just released a new track, “Married On My Phone.” It captures the all-too-familiar moment of scrolling through your phone and unexpectedly stumbling across an ex’s wedding photo. Co-written with Joe Fox, Brad Rempel, and Femke Weidema, the track puts a contemporary spin on breakup grief, using a deceptively simple image—a wedding photo on a screen—to frame the gut-punch of letting go when it wasn’t your decision.
The music video, which dropped alongside the single, brings that emotional weight into focus. Shot across a mix of settings—from dense woods to storm-soaked roads—the video echoes the track’s tone without overplaying it. Each scene reflects a shift in mood, moving between quiet resignation and emotional overload, with Darren at the centre, never far from the edge of it.
The single arrives in the middle of a packed touring schedule for the Irish singer-songwriter. This summer, he’s performed headline sets and festival shows across Europe, with stops in Ireland and Switzerland, among others. He’ll take his show stateside this autumn, kicking off a U.S. tour in September.
It’s been a steady rise for Darren, who grew up in a small town in County Cork. His sound—an atmospheric blend of folk roots and modern pop—pulls from both tradition and personal experience. He learned tin whistle at five and fiddle at eight before teaching himself guitar, but it wasn’t until 2019 that he began singing publicly. His voice, rich and unpolished in the best way, quickly found an audience.
Darren relocated to New York City in 2022 to pursue music more seriously, later landing in Nashville, where he signed with Free Flight Records. His debut EP, Lost, introduced listeners to his take on folk-pop: earnest, lyrically grounded, and sonically shaped by the Irish countryside he grew up in. The seven-track release tackled uncertainty, self-doubt, and personal reflection, earning a strong response, particularly with Sunrise, which hit No. 1 on the Irish Homegrown chart, and Mom & Dad, which cracked the Irish Top 40.
His follow-up EP, From the Dark, pushes deeper, focusing on the tougher edges of growing up and the emotional fallout that comes with it. Now, with Married On My Phone, he continues that trajectory, leaning into specificity over spectacle.
Darren also made a recent appearance on the Amazon Music Livestream from The Ivors, performing an acoustic version of The Killers’ When You Were Young, which has since become an Amazon Music Original.
With new music, a major tour on the horizon, and growing international visibility, Darren Kiely is proving that emotional storytelling still is what everyone resonates with.
For more information Darren Kiely, visit darrenkiely.com.
About Author
