Róisín Murphy

1994–2003: Moloko

In 1994, Róisín Murphy met Mark Brydon at a party, using the chat-up line: "Do you like my tight sweater? See how it fits my body."^[23] Brydon took Murphy to his business Fon Studios, where he auditioned her voice on tape and liked her theatrical delivery. They began dating and formed Moloko, who were signed to Echo Records and released their debut album Do You Like My Tight Sweater? the following year.^[18] Heather Phares of AllMusic described the album as combining elements of trip hop and funk with electronic dance music, using a more-humorous approach than some of their contemporaries.^[23] The band's follow-up album I Am Not a Doctor covered similar musical ground,^[23] and a Boris Dlugosch remix of "Sing It Back" found international success, and was included on more than 110 compilation albums.^[16] Instead of paying Dlugosch, Murphy helped write "Never Enough",^[24] which reached number sixteen on the UK Singles Chart in June 2001.^[25]

Moloko's third album Things to Make and Do was released in October 2000; they used more live instrumentation and arrangements by keyboardist Eddie Stevens.^[26] The album reached number three on the UK Albums Chart, and "The Time Is Now" became the band's most-successful British single, reaching number two.^[25] Murphy and Brydon broke up but were contractually obligated to deliver further albums. After the 2003 release of Statues, Brydon withdrew from much of the album's promotion so Murphy handled most of it.^[19]

No official statement about Moloko's future was issued but Murphy told Q magazine in May 2005:

We left it on good terms after a very successful tour. We shook hands, said "see you later", and haven't spoken since. I don't know what Mark thinks of this record or what he's doing. I don't know if we will or we won't reunite. Myself, I don't not want to.^{[27][full citation needed]}

2004–2005: Ruby Blue

While still in Moloko, Murphy began doing solo work, which included contributions to the works of other artists, including Handsome Boy Modeling School and the "Never Enough" collaboration with Boris Dlugosch.^{[citation needed]}

In 2004, Murphy recorded her first official solo material with producer Matthew Herbert, who had previously remixed tracks for Moloko. Murphy wanted to work with Herbert again, commenting: "it felt very natural ... because Matthew makes things seem quicker and easier".^[28] Murphy and Herbert recorded a few songs and continued working together with support from her label Echo Records. When Murphy presented the label with the album, they found it odd and did not hear any songs that would make successful singles. The A&R division suggested Murphy make some changes to make it more radio-friendly. Murphy refused, stating she "wanted it to be as pure as possible". The label later supported her.^[18]

Murphy released her debut solo album Ruby Blue in June 2005. Before the album's release, the tracks Sequins#1, Sequins#2 and Sequins#3 were made available on three limited-edition, vinyl-only releases featuring artwork by Simon Henwood, who also directed two video clips for the album's singles "If We're in Love" and "Sow into You".^[29] The album samples sounds made by everyday objects and actions, including cosmetics, brass mice, dancing and ornaments.^[30] It mixes the electronic music of Moloko with jazz and pop styles.^[31] Although the album was a commercial failure,^[32] it drew mainly positive reviews; Pitchfork Media called it "perfect, the ultimate combination of human warmth and technological know-how".^[33]

2006–2008: Overpowered

In May 2006, Murphy signed with EMI Records. "Overpowered", her first single for the label, was released on 2 July 2007. The single was written by Murphy and Paul Dolby (Seiji) of Bugz in the Attic, and mixed by Tom Elmhirst, and was accompanied by a series of remixes from Seamus Haji, Kris Menace, Hervé and Loose Cannons.^[34] A second single "Let Me Know", a collaboration with Andy Cato, was released in September and the album, named Overpowered, was released soon after.^{[citation needed]}

In September 2007, Murphy received a pre-nomination for the MTV Europe Music Award for Best Inter Act, but did not make it to the final list.^[35] She performed "Let Me Know" on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross on 5 October 2007.

Murphy sustained an eye injury on 27 October 2007, while on tour in Russia to promote Overpowered. She was forced to cancel several subsequent dates on the tour.^[36]

2009–2014: Hiatus

In mid 2008, Murphy started working with Sejii on a third studio solo album.^[37] In the same year, she recorded a cover of Bryan Ferry's song "Slave to Love" that featured in a campaign for Gucci^[21] and was released on the promotional single "Movie Star".^[38] In 2009, Murphy previewed material at the SeOne club in London, performing "Momma's Place" and "Hold up Your Hands", and in November, she premiered the single "Orally Fixated" on her Myspace page.^{[citation needed]} The song was released later in the month and The Guardian offered a free download of the song for 48 hours.^{[citation needed]}

From 2010 until early 2013, Murphy contributed vocals to Crookers's album Tons of Friends;^[39][40] David Byrne and Fatboy Slim's project Here Lies Love;^[41] Mason's '"Boadicea"; Tony Christie's "7 Hills"; The Feeling's "Dance for the Lights"; an anonymous producer's song "Simulation";^[42] "Golden Era"^{[failed verification]} by David Morales;^[43] "Flash of Light" and "Invisions" with Luca C & Brigante; "Look Around You" by Boris Dlugosch; "Alternate State" by Hot Natured; Freeform Five's "Leviathan"; and "In My Garden" with Invisible Cities^{[citation needed]}.

The only release under her own name in this period was the single "Simulation", which was released in August 2012 on the label Permanent Vacation.^[44]

2014–2017: Mi Senti, Hairless Toys, Take Her Up to Monto

In May 2014, Murphy released a six-track Italian language extended play (EP) titled Mi Senti, which includes a new composition and earlier Italian pop hits.^[45] Her third studio album Hairless Toys followed a year later and received positive reviews.^[46][47]

There was a desire to make an unquestionably refined record. It's multi layered, electronic and live instrumentation, musically it goes to places most pop music never does. It's emotionally bare and laced with irony. I definitely didn't set out to make something unique per-se but ... it really is like nothing you've ever heard before. So it's impossible to describe except to say ... it's heartfelt.^[48]

Her July 2016 album Take Her Up to Monto^[49] was recorded during the same sessions as Hairless Toys, and includes contributions from Murphy's long-time collaborator and producer Eddie Stevens.^[50][51] The album's title is derived from an eponymous Irish folk song "Monto (Take Her Up to Monto)", which The Dubliners popularised in the 1960s and Murphy's father sang to her as a child.^[52] The release was followed by a number of European festival dates and North American shows.^[53]

2018–present: Róisín Machine and Hit Parade

In 2018, The Vinyl Factory released a series of four 12-inch (30 cm) discs that Baltimore house-music pioneer Maurice Fulton produced. Each disc includes two original songs, each of around six minutes, and Murphy directed music videos for the four A-side releases.^[54]

The single "Murphy's Law" was released on 4 March 2020.^[55] During the COVID-19 pandemic, Murphy gave home performances for a livestream concert that were released as six short films.^[56][57]

Murphy's fifth solo album Róisín Machine was released 2 October 2020.^[58] The album has ten tracks, including the singles "Simulation" and "Jealousy" that were released several years prior, and the more-recently produced songs "Incapable", "Narcissus", "Murphy's Law", and "Something More".^[59]

Murphy portrayed the blood witch Mercury in the 2022 Netflix series The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself.^[60] She also took part in Homobloc's charity T-shirt collection initiative which raised funds for LGBTQ+ focused organisations.^[61]

In March 2023, Murphy announced her signing to Ninja Tune with the single "CooCool", which DJ Koze produced. Murphy collaborated with artist Beth Frey and photographer Connor Egan on the single's cover art.^[62] On 17 May 2023, Murphy released the single "The Universe" and announced her sixth solo album Hit Parade, which was released on 8 September 2023 to critical acclaim.^[63][64][65] This was followed in 2024 by the companion Hit Parade Remixed while Murphy continued to tour in support of the release.^[66][67]

Views on trans children

In August 2023, Murphy sparked controversy when a Twitter user shared a screenshot from Facebook showing Murphy commenting on a post about Irish anti-transgender activist Graham Linehan, in which she criticised the use of puberty blockers for transgender youth, saying that "Puberty blockers are fucked, absolutely desolate, big pharma laughing all the way to the bank".^[86][87] Her statements were met with backlash on social media, including responses from LGBT+ allies and activists accusing her of transphobia and misinformation. Commentators noted the disappointment of fans, particularly due to her perceived role as a gay icon.^[88][89][90] In the weeks following the comments, Murphy's material was removed from a scheduled BBC Radio 6 Music line-up, which had been due to broadcast five hours of her songs, interviews, and concert highlights.^[91] The BBC later stated that the schedule change was not a reaction to Murphy's comments.^[92][93]

Murphy later issued an apology on social media, stating she was "deeply sorry" for any hurt caused by her words. However, she did not take back her comments on puberty blockers, only writing her "concern was out of love for all of us".^[87]

In October 2025, Murphy posted to X/Twitter a graph alleging to show a recent decline in the share of 18- to 22-year-olds who identified as transgender or non-binary. She appended the comment, "It was never real." This drew criticism over her apparent denial of the existence of transgender people.^[94] Following the comments, Murphy was removed as a headliner at the 2025 Back In Town Festival in Istanbul.^[95]