Liam McCay (born 28 February 2005) is an Irish musician from

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He is best known for his project Sign Crushes Motorist, although McCay has released music under multiple other pseudonyms throughout his career, including "Birth Day" and "Take Care". Named after a Duster song of the same name, Sign Crushes Motorist had several tracks take off in 2023. In December 2023, Eli Enis of ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...

'' tabbed Sign Crushes Motorist as "one of the most popular

slowcore Slowcore, also known as sadcore, is a subgenre of indie rock characterised by its subdued tempos, minimalist instrumentation, and sombre vocal performances. Slowcore's influences are diverse, involving varying other genres, including folk rock ...

bands on the internet".

Early life

Liam McCay was born at

University Hospital Galway University Hospital Galway () is a major acute hospital in Galway, Ireland. It is managed by Saolta University Health Care Group. UHG and Merlin Park University Hospital (in the east of Galway city) comprise Galway University Hospitals. Histor ...

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

, Ireland. When he was eight weeks old his family moved to

Buncrana Buncrana ( ; ) is a town in Inishowen in the north of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern Provinces of Ireland, province in Ireland. The town sits on the eastern shores of Lough Swilly, being northwest of Derry and north of Letterkenny. I ...

, where they have remained since. McCay learned to play the fiddle at age eight and listened to artists such as

Simon and Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...

and

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian songwriter, singer, poet, and novelist. Themes commonly explored throughout his work include faith and mortality, isolation and depression, betrayal and redemption, soc ...

growing up.

Personal life

McCay is in a relationship with fellow artist Olivia O., who joined him on tour in 2024.

Discography

Albums

* ''I'll Be Okay'' (2022) * ''Hurting'' (2023) * ''Saddest Truth'' (with

KayCyy Mark Makora Mbogo (born September 23, 1997), known professionally as KayCyy or KayCyy Pluto, is a Kenyan-American rapper, singer and songwriter. Born in Keroka, Kenya, Mbogo moved with his family to the United States at an early age. Througho ...

) (2025)

References

{{reflist 2005 births Living people 21st-century Irish male musicians Musicians from County Donegal Slowcore musicians