Given the historic passing of May's same-sex marriage referendum and the subsequent declarations that Ireland is no longer the radically Catholicised little island it once was, it's worth throwing back to an bygone era where priests not only ruled the land, but our television screens and airwaves too.
The time of course was the year 2000. Not three years removed from the comical genius that was Channel 4's Father Ted, the emergence of a different satirical beast altogether; a priest so 'down with the kids' that he probably could have resurrected your Tamogatchi in the communion queue.
His name was Fr. Brian. His band were the Fun Lovin' Cardinals. His story was the Truth.
Yes, that is Saturday Night Show host Brendan O'Connor. The single based on his character on RTÉ game show Don't Feed The Gondolas spent 12 weeks in the Irish Top 40, peaking at number 3. And for good reason.
"Is nothing sacred anymore?" asked the critics, oblivious to the culturally significant charm of the first rap song ever heard in Ireland.
The chicken/egg-like debate as to who came first - Eminem or Fr. Brian - rages on to this day, but there can't be any doubt that both men were revolutionaries, paving the path for white rappers around the globe.
Youtube user 'The Demon's Reflection' probably sums it up best when he says,
I'm an atheist and I actually find this song pretty awesome.
What you might not know is that the song inspired a similar, Americanised rendition which blew the roof off every club from Miami to Wisconsin not three years later:
I think he perhaps strayed too far from the original. Who's In The House?
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