Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson (born 23 February 1996), known professionally as CMAT (/ˈsiːmæt/, SEE-mat), is an Irish singer, songwriter, and musician.[1] Her debut studio album, If My Wife New I'd Be Dead, was released in February 2022 and entered the Irish Albums Chart at number one.[2]The Guardian wrote of her music, "Her songs are mournful yet accessible, emotionally literate and cleverly crafted, but, crucially, with a huge sense of humour..."[3] Her second studio album, Crazymad, for Me, was released in October 2023.
Early life
CMAT was born on 23 February 1996 in Dublin, and moved with her family to Clonee and Dunboyne in County Meath as a child.[4] She returned to Dublin to study at Trinity College Dublin,[5] but left the college and moved to Denmark.[6]
Career
CMAT, who had aspirations to become a professional musician from a young age, relocated to Manchester, England, to pursue a career in music with her then boyfriend, performing together as Bad Sea.[7][8][1][9] She has since described their relationship as toxic and isolating, and she stopped pursuing a music career, living a partying lifestyle.[9] She attended an in-person listening session at a London studio with the English electropop singer Charli XCX, who advised CMAT to reimagine her approach.[10]
Breaking up with her boyfriend and returning to Ireland, she began self-releasing her music online to considerable attention and received radio play from RTÉ Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music.[11][12][13][14] Her debut studio album If My Wife New I'd Be Dead was released in February 2022. Metacritic, which aggregates review scores, gives the album a score of 85 based on 9 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[15]Hot Press magazine wrote that the album was "undoubtedly one of the most thrilling Irish pop debuts of the century".[16] In a four-star review, DIY wrote, "If My Wife New... feels like a more well-rounded, modern proposition than one solely indebted to the oldest style going could suggest."[17] The album entered the Irish Albums Chart at number one.[18] In June 2022, she released a single called "Peter Bogdanovich", which came with a music video which featured CMAT dressing as the late director.[19][20] On 19 August 2022, "Peter Bogdanovich"[21] charted at number 20 on the Irish Homegrown Top 20.[22] In March 2023, If My Wife New I'd Be Dead won the Choice Music Prize for Irish Album of the Year.[23]
In June 2023, CMAT announced her next studio album, Crazymad, for Me,[24] which was released in October 2023. Like her previous album, this album debuted at number one on the Irish Albums Chart.[25] Her album was later nominated for the Best Album Ivor Novello Award on Thursday 23 May 2024.[26]
CMAT has been noted for her large fanbase among Irish LGBTQ+ people,[27][28] once telling an NME interviewer "I'm making music for the girls and the gays, and that's it."[29]
In May 2024, the BBC were forced to disable comments on a video on its Instagram page of CMAT's performance at the Radio 1 Big Weekend festival, following a spate of comments labelled "fat-shaming."[30] Later that month, CMAT pulled out of a performance at that summer's Latitude Festival due to the festival's sponsorship by Barclays, and the company's financial involvement in the Israel-Hamas war.[31]
Personal life
CMAT is bisexual and has been described as a "bisexual icon".[32][33]
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