Heather Small is set for a glorious mix of sun, song, smiles and happiness when she performs at next weekend's Groove Festival.
Based in Killruddery House in Bray, county Wicklow, the festival features the like of The Stunning, Fun Lovin' Criminals and Something Happens - as well as the former M People singer.
Small's been a solo artist for two decades now and she's no stranger to Irish audiences. The same goes for the festival vibe, which she clearly loves both as a performer and a music fan.
"Usually, I get there maybe a couple of hours before I go on stage, so I'll the acts that are going on before me," she says.
"And usually, if I'm not the headline, I'll watch the other acts after. The beauty of it is that you've got an eclectic mix. And a good live performance is a great experience. The real measure of a band is when they get up there and play live."
And with temperatures set to reach the high 20s over the weekend, she's looking forward to adding to the good humour with a set that will be basically a greatest hits package.
Fans and even those a little unfamiliar can look forward to hits such as Move It On Up, Search For the Hero and loads more. But it's the overall festival feeling that she wants to plug into.
"Outdoor, when the weather is beautiful – there's something about sunshine, music, dancing, eating, drinking outside that has a sense of freedom in that anything could happen," she says, before elaborating "Anything wonderful can happen.
"I love a festival, and I like that intergenerational feel of a festival as well. They're saying that there's going to be family area [at Groove], so I think it's about bringing children as early as you can to appreciate that live experience of music and everything, and what that entails.
"It's a marathon! You know, some people come for two days and it's about pacing yourself," she laughs.
"The Irish – they love their live music. It's a tradition – a family tradition – that you play music together. There's that love of live music. It will be fun.
"I'm going to give the people what they know and love. I hadn't done all those songs together for years and I did it this year with my live shows. I did a tour and it's gone down really, really well.
"For me it feels fresh. It's very big and it's very soulful. Hmm. It's lovely!"
As well as playing live - which she clearly loves - Heather Small is also busy working on her next musical project.
I'm writing and recording right now, and there'll be something out before the end of this year," she says. "And I'm really happy as well," she adds, "and that's the other thing!"
There's another laugh. She does that a lot a lot, does Heather Small.
Sunday's gig could be something really special.
