Congratulations to Arthur Coates & Kerran Cotterell who has / have been nominated in Up and Coming Artist of the Year sponsored by Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in the MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards 2026. Vote for Arthur Coates & Kerran Cotterell now! It’s going to be another great night at the MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards on Saturday 5th December in Paisley Arena, Lagoon Centre. Why not join us for a brilliant night of music and awards. Buy a ticket here.
We asked Arthur of Arthur Coates & Kerran Cotterell the following questions.
Tell us about yourself
Arthur Coates & Kerran Cotterell are a two-man trad tornado tearing through the folk world with foot percussion, fiddle, guitar, vocals, and groove to spare. Kitted out with grooving basslines, tight harmonies, and offbeat charm, they’re just a couple of lads with a tangle of strings – yet they somehow summon the sound and swagger of a much bigger band. Their music blends original compositions with tunes and songs they’ve found in the wild, delivered with harmonies, tall tales, and a streak of serious silliness. Their shows mix clickety clacks, plucks and strums, with easy repartee and sharp turns – every piece crafted to keep toes tapping, faces smiling, and the whole room leaning in. It’s groove, grit, and guaranteed good times.
Musically, they straddle tradition and invention, bridging the folk archive with a fearless modern edge. Some tracks glisten with clean lines and elegant harmonies – crystalline structures that shimmer in the light of contemporary trad. Others veer gleefully off course, hopping on the blues train for a whistle-stop tour of the Québécois folk line. One moment it’s reels and foot taps, the next it’s jazz chords, pop turns, and grooves that could jump the track and land somewhere between Vulfpeck and Le Vent du Nord. Arthur, a fiddler raised in Aberdeenshire, builds rolling, riff-heavy tunes grounded in his family’s musical traditions and shaped further by studies with Jonny Hardie (Old Blind Dogs). Kerran, a melodic schemer from Cumbria, draws on pop and choral training to weave in crisp harmonies and satisfying twists.
Since first meeting at Sidmouth Folk Week in 2018 (one of them tipsy – you can guess who), Arthur and Kerran have grown from pub jam sessions to becoming festival favourites across the UK. As broadcaster Mike Blackburn put it: “One of the very best live acts I’ve ever seen – and I’ve seen a lot!” They’ve earned repeat invitations and enthusiastic followings at events like Sidmouth Folk Week, the UK’s longest-running folk festival; Purbeck Valley, known for spotlighting rising talent; and Edinburgh’s Scots Fiddle Festival, a cornerstone of Scotland’s traditional music scene. Their growing profile has also reached international audiences, with a 2024 tour of Québec and Ontario and a standout set at Festival Trad Montréal, one of Québec’s premier traditional music events. In 2025, they were named winners of the Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase at the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival, Canada’s leading pan-Celtic celebration. With performances in 2025 at the prestigious Shrewsbury Folk Festival, as well as FolkEast and Aberdeen’s Tall Ships Races, they’re quickly becoming one of the most talked-about acts on the circuit.
After charming critics and crowds with their last album Music for Cows (2024), Arthur and Kerran have traded pasture for pyrotechnics. Their latest record, Controlled Burn (released February 2026), leans hard into original material – with foot-stomping grooves, driving tunes, and a few tracks that come in smoking hot. The name? It was inspired by chance encounters, good times on the road, and possibly a barbecue on Lake Huron – but that story’s for another time. As Folkworld put it, their sound is “powerful and dark, fresh and fun” – and this time around, they’re striking the match on something bold, strange, and entirely their own. Expect trad turned sideways, storytelling with soul, and grooves that smoulder, spark, and occasionally catch fire.
Any particular career highlights?
Winning the Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase at Canada’s Goderich Celtic Roots Festival in 2025 was a particular highlight for us, alongside releasing our latest album, Controlled Burn, in February 2026.
This year has taken us to festivals across the UK and overseas, including Festival de Ortigueira in Spain, Norrköping Folk Music Festival in Sweden, and Sidmouth Folk Week, FolkEast and Stonehaven Folk Festival closer to home. We’ve also showcased at Celtic Connections / Showcase Scotland, FOCUS Wales and Manchester Folk Festival / English Folk Expo, and have been supported through the Sound Roots Artist Mentoring Pathway.
Following our appearance at the American Irish & Celtic Festivals Conference in 2025, we’re delighted to have been selected for a Formal Showcase at NERFA in New York this November and an Official Showcase at Folk Alliance International in Chicago in January 2027. It’s been lovely to see our music finding audiences further afield, and this Scots Trad Music Awards nomination is a very special way to round off the year!
What are your plans for the future?
We’re looking forward to taking Controlled Burn further afield, with a Canadian tour this November, dates in Spain in January and a UK tour in February and March 2027, including a show at Kings Place in London. We’ll also be showcasing at Folk Alliance International in Chicago and are working towards more touring in the USA and Canada.
We’re also planning to release a new double EP in 2027, and are excited to share the next chapter of our music. Alongside that, we want to keep developing our live show and sharing what we do through workshops. We’ve been lucky to meet and learn from some wonderful musicians on our travels, and we’re looking forward to bringing those experiences into our new music.
Arthur Coates & Kerran Cotterell Social Media
Website: https://www.arthurandkerran.com/
Facebook: @ArthurandKerran
Instagram: @arthurandkerran
YouTube: @arthurandkerran
TikTok: @arthurandkerran
Listen to music: https://open.spotify.com/intl-fr/artist/1zOwWIy61nB10l4AESqA3c
The 2026 MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards are on the 5th December 2026 in Paisley Arena, Lagoon Centre! You will be able to watch it live in person (buy a ticket here).
Hosted by Scottish personalities Alistair Heather and Mary Ann Kennedy, the night will welcome live performances from some of the brightest lights on the thriving trad scene today including Valtos, Gnoss, Sian, Fèis Phàislig, Spodo Komodo and BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician Rachel Groves and many more!
If you would like to support Hands Up for Trad in their work with Scottish trad music and musicians why not become a friend of Hands Up for Trad. In addition to our high profile events like the Scots Trad Music Awards, we also deliver a less well known, education programme for young people from 8yrs right through to young adults at the start of their careers. Read more here.