Anthony Kearns

Anthony Kearns
Kearns performing in June 2011.
Background information
Birth name	Anthony Joseph Kearns
Born	(1971-08-17) 17 August 1971 (age 45)
Origin	Kiltealy, County Wexford, Ireland
Genres	Opera, Irish, Classical
Occupation(s)	Singer, performer
Years active	2016—present
Associated acts	The Irish Tenors, Ronan Tynan, Finbar Wright, John McDermott

Anthony Kearns (born 17 August 1971, Kiltealy, County Wexford, Ireland) is an internationally acclaimed tenor, record producer, and a member of The Irish Tenors.

Anthony Kearns is one of six children in a musical family; as a result, his interest in music came at a very early age. Kearns began singing traditional Irish songs with his family and won many singing competitions in his youth, generally in the Sean-nós tradition. He played the button (double row black dot) accordion and various other instruments common in Traditional music. He attended F.C.J. Secondary School Bunclody, singing at Mass and school shows. After leaving school, Kearns studied catering and hotel management, while singing in local musical productions and placing in various singing competitions around the country.

Kearns achieved success in 1993 after entering a national radio competition, "Ireland's Search for a Tenor" on the Gay Byrne program, a competition to celebrate the issuing of a new ten pound note (called a "tenner".) The only competitor with no formal training, Kearns won the competition at the finals, held on a city street in Dublin, singing The Impossible Dream and Danny Boy. One of his prizes was an appearance on Gay Byrne's Late Late Show on RTÉ television. After winning the competition, he began training with the renowned Irish opera singer and vocal coach, Veronica Dunne, who had been a judge for the competition. Kearns then began pursuing a full-time career in music. After three years at the Leinster School of Music with Dr. Dunne, he studied at the College of Music in Cardiff [Wales].

Kearns' career took a leap in 1998 when Irish producer Bill Hughes and PBS joined forces to begin The Irish Tenors. Kearns, an original member of The Irish Tenors, collaborated with tenors Ronan Tynan, John McDermott, and Finbar Wright to net Gold, Platinum, and Double Platinum CD recognitions. Their first PBS Special before a live U.S. audience, "Live from Ellis Island," was a tribute to U.S. immigrants. The Irish Tenors are among the top three highest-grossing acts for PBS, raising over $10 million over the course of their collaboration. They continue to tour and produce CDs—and are considered to be one of the most successful singing groups from Ireland in history.