49th & Main Releases Debut Single "Streetlights"

Irish born indie-pop duo 49th & Main (Ben O’Sullivan and Paddy King) announce their signing to Counter Records (a Ninja Tune imprint) alongside the release of new single “Streetlights”. Although the 23-year-olds only started releasing music in 2020, their self-released projects–‘Neon Palm Trees’ and breakout single "Catching Eyes" have seen the duo gain 20 million streams across platforms in less than two years. 

The duo's first single with Counter Records, “Streetlights”, is an apt up-tempo account of ‘wasted’ youth for our times. Mixed by Nate Burgess (Denzel Curry, A$AP Rocky, Brandy), the track features twinkly guitars and a catchy beat paired with Paddy's dulcet vocals that evoke both solace and joy in carefree measures. 

"‘Streetlights’ is a song about the eternal journey to find a peace of mind," 49th & Main share. "Whether that be through getting down ‘six pints’ or ‘getting high alone in the moonlight’ we all have our own way of going about it. Everyone deserves a fair shot at their own piece of paradise. And during times of darkness, hopefully the streetlights can be a guide and let a little brightness in.

The song is written through internalized conversations with the voice deep inside your head. The type of conversations that nobody will ever hear and even if they did hear, they probably wouldn’t understand. In ‘Streetlights’ similarities are drawn between a troubled mind and a city fraught with strife and the resolution that can be found upon reconnecting with your true self."

49th & Main - "Streetlights" (Official Visualizer)

Hailing from the Irish town of Kilkenny, 49th & Main are an indie-pop duo consisting of producer Ben O’Sullivan and vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Paddy King. The pair first met in school and after growing close, they began working on music, with Ben dabbling with acoustics and unsuccessfully recording Paddy's guitar. As time passed, having cut their teeth in video editing, learning production techniques via YouTube tutorials and busking, the pair moved to Vancouver (just off 49th & Main Street) for the summer in 2019, and took some recording equipment to further experiment with their sound.

Around this time, Ben was diagnosed with aplastic anemia–a rare blood disease making him chronically fatigued and immunocompromised. He admits it was a significant factor in releasing music as a new artist. “I didn’t know what was happening.” he explains. “If I hadn’t gotten sick, we probably would have waited, wouldn’t have put those songs out when we did and who knows where we would be.” 

On the eve of a worldwide lockdown, 49th & Main introduced themselves with the trap-infused “Party Alone”. Less than a month later, they released their debut project ‘Neon Palm Trees’, which jumped between genres effortlessly as the pair blended dual influences without fear of insult. In April 2020, 49th & Main released "Catching Eyes", an electro-pop banger which has gone on to generate over 10 million streams on Spotify alone and propelled the duo to new heights. 

Since then, 49th & Main have been on a roll, releasing collaborations with artists such as Sarah Carton, Khakikid, Landis and Chameleon and offered remixes for the likes of Landis, Chany and Tom Ferry. Both of their first headlining shows sold out in under 24 hours, making for an undeniable testament to their allure as live performers.