Musician who 'built up courage' now wants to do 'hundreds' of gigs

A man who “built up courage” has had his best year yet.

Harry McKenny, 23, from Huyton, said he had been passionate about music since he was a child, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that he actually picked up his guitar. Speaking to the ECHO, Harry said: “I've been into music since I was born basically. It's in the family.

"But in terms of playing music, I didn't start until lockdown which was quite late really. It kind of just flew in from there. I just taught myself in lockdown.

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“I remember one day, I was listening to music because I was quite bored. There was a guitar in the corner of the room and I asked my dad if he could teach me how to play.

“He said I'll teach you one song, it was a song from Catfish and the Bottlemen. I taught myself from there.”

Harry soon picked up the knack for music, learning covers and writing original songs during his spare time while he worked as a personal trainer. However, it wasn’t until last August that he performed his first gig, which was held at The Jacaranda in the city centre.

Harry admitted it had taken time to make the jump to live performances. He said: “I only started it back in August - I had to build the courage to start. I’ve been writing for a while now.

“It's getting that confidence and just believing in what I'm doing, then people telling me they like my stuff. Everything gets better with the first one. Once I did my first gig, I wanted to do hundreds.”

Harry has become well known for his cover songs posted online or performed in pubs across Huyton and Liverpool, but it’s his own