Mercury Music Prize- and the Winner is...

It's that time of year again...the winner of the Mercury Music Prize was announced on Thursday (14th September) and I was so excited! Each year, a judging panel selects 12 critically acclaimed albums to be nominated, with the winner receiving a winner's trophy and £20,000. The nominees also each win their own nomination trophy.

Often it is a mixture of new and current artists and every year, there is stiff competition. But...who won?

First of all, let's check out the competition...

Alt-J - Relaxer

Alt J have previously won the award in 2012, with An Awesome Wave. Question is can they do it again? The only musician to achieve this is PJ Harvey. They have had three years away from the limelight, with their last release being This is All Yours. In terms of where it ended up on the UK album charts, Relaxer entered the top 10 at number 6. Can Alt J continue the success of their comeback by winning the Mercury Music Prize again?

Dinosaur -Together, as One

Dinosaur are quite a niche band, because they are a jazz band, something that, in my opinion, I would not have expected to be on the Mercury Music Prize nomination list. However, why shouldn't the genre of jazz be featured? For those of you who listen to BBC Radio 3, you may have heard of them, as they have featured on the Radio 3 Jazz Show. They were also nominated for the UK Jazz Artist of the Year 2017 by Jazz FM. Now, their debut album, Together, as One, has managed a Mercury Music Prize nomination. Will they win and bring jazz back into the mainstream?

Blossoms- Blossoms

For me, Blossoms have been a breath of fresh air for the indie music market. Okay, we have had new indie bands emerge, such as Bastille, Royal Blood and Wolf Alice but Blossoms, in my opinion, are different. I feel that everyone can like them. It seemed everyone did like them when their album, Blossoms, was released in August 2016, as it went straight to the Number one spot in the UK album chart. Will this album continue with its success by winning the Mercury Prize?

Glass Animals - How to be a Human Being

So...the reaction to Glass Animals has been mixed this past year. Among the fans, everything has been great. Glass Animals have gained big crowds at festivals, their second album, How to be a Human Being, became their first top 30 album, entering at number 23 on the UK album chart, and, thanks to their habit of incorporating pineapples into their stage sets when performing, an interesting tradition has developed for their fans: they have started bringing pineapples to their shows. However, this lead to pineapples being banned at festivals, such as Reading and Leeds! (Yep...really...I'm not making this up.) Do you think they will win the Mercury Music Prize?

J Hus- Common Sense

J Hus, it seems, has emerged out of no where and listening to Radio 1, I have got to know about his song, Spirit, and it is beautiful. Often, people complain about a relatively unknown artist getting the Mercury Music Prize. I mean, look at 2013, when James Blake won. However, despite this, I believe that it is a good thing. In fact, it is mainly the unknown artist that wins. Will J Hus win the Mercury Music Prize? We'll see.

Kate Tempest - Let Them Eat Chaos

Kate Tempest had previously been nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2014, with Everybody Down. However, she was pipped to the post by Young Fathers' Dead.  Let Them Eat Chaos was released two years after Everybody Down, and it did great in the UK album charts, entering at number 28, becoming Tempest's first top 40 album. Now, the question is, will she also do better with this album at the Mercury Music Prize and win?

Ed Sheeran- Divide

To be honest, this list could not miss out Ed Sheeran, considering the huge success he has had with this album, and his comeback in general. Ed's Divide album notched up a total of 17 weeks at Number 1 on the official UK album charts. Furthermore, every song ended up in the top 20 of the UK singles chart, a first for a musician. His arena and forthcoming stadium tours have both been sell-outs and he had the honour of performing at the 2017 BRIT awards, featuring a collaboration with fellow Mercury Music Prize nominee, Stormzy. Surprisingly, Ed has previously never been nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. Will his success with this album continue with a win?

Loyle Carner - Yesterday's Gone

Loyle Carner started to emerge into the music scene way back in 2014, when he released his first bit of music, in the form of an EP, A Little Late. Since then, he has played at Glastonbury and on Huw Stephens' Radio 1 show, Piano Sessions in 2015, supported Nas on tour and collaborated with fellow nominee Kate Tempest. In January 2017, he released Yesterday's Gone. Carner himself has received positive reviews, such as those from the NME, who said he was "sensitive and eloquent" Will these positive reviews help him win the Mercury Music Prize?

Sampha - Process

For those who may have watched the Glastonbury coverage on television, you may have caught Sampha doing an acoustic set. For fans of Jessie Ware, he collaborated on two songs of hers, Valentine and What you won't do for love. He has also collaborated with Drake. However, now he has branched out on his own and released (No-one knows me) like the Piano, which has gained popularity thanks to being played on Radio 1. Process itself has gained positive reviews, with the NME calling it "finely crafted," and Entertainment Weekly noted that it helped Sampha to "build on his enormous potential." Will the judges take note and award him the prize?

Stormzy- Gang Signs and Prayer

Stormzy has had a great year, whether it be getting the chance to perform at Glastonbury or collaborating with Ed Sheeran on a new remix on Shape of You. He has since gained numerous fans, notably Jeremy Corbyn, when Stormzy used his platform to encourage people to vote, and even got his single, Too Big for Your Boots, quoted in Eastenders (Yes...really). His debut album Gang Signs and Prayer entered the UK album charts at Number One. In fact, last year's winner was also a Grime artist, in the form of Skepta. Will the popularity of Grime continue to dominate the Mercury Music Prize? Only time will tell.


The Big Moon - Love in the 4tth Dimension

The Big Moon are a new band, from London. Fans of bands such as The Maccabees and The Vaccines will have heard of them, as they have supported these bands on their tours. They have already released an EP, The Road, with Love in the 4th Dimension being their debut album. Although the debut did get a disappointing chart position, it still managed to get to number 66 and for an unknown band, this is pretty good. Will they manage to beat popular artists, Ed Sheeran, Stormzy, etc to win the Mercury Music Prize?

The XX- I See You

Like Alt-J, The XX have previously won, with their album, XX, in 2010. Also, like Alt-J, they have had a long hiatus, with their last album, Co-exist, being released in 2012. They have since returned with comeback single, On Hold, played numerous festivals, and earned a number one on the UK album chart, for I See You. Will they continue their successful comeback with a Mercury Music Prize?


So...the winner is...Sampha! 

Yep, Sampha managed to defeat a strong competition (I mean, the list had Ed Sheeran...). what I like about the Mercury Music Prize is that they don't pick an obvious winner and I think this is good. It also puts musicians into the spotlight that might not have been noticed, had they not been nominated. Anyway, congratulations Sampha. His performance of (No-one Knows me) like the Piano was beautiful and he deserved to win based on that, let alone the whole album.



Here's to next year's Mercury Music Prize. I wonder who will be nominated?

Em x