In case you don’t know, the Mercury Prize is awarded to the best album of the UK & Ireland every year. The judges, a combination of musicians, produces, composers, music journalists, and other figures of the music industry, listen to every album that was submitted over a period of time and select 12 of them for a shortlist. The shortlisted albums are released about a month before the awards ceremony, where the list is reduced to six and the overall winner is announced. This year, for the first time ever, the public was given the opportunity to vote for one of the six final albums on an online poll. The ceremony was held this week in London, and here’s a sum up of the event and the weeks that led up to it.
1. The 12 Shortlisted Albums were announced on August 4th, they were:
The Dreaming Room - Laura Mvula
Made in the Manor - Kano
Making Time - Jamie Woon
Blackstar - David Bowie (Bowie’s nomination was the first ever Mercury Prize posthumous nomination)
Hopelessness - Anohni
The Bride - Bat For Lashes
Love & Hate - Michael Kiwanuka
A Moon Shaped Pool - Radiohead (Radiohead is the Mercury Prize’s most shortlisted act)
Adore Life - Savages
Konnichiwa - Skepta
I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it - The 1975
Channel the Spirits - The Comet is Coming
2. The online poll opened for fans to vote on one of the above albums to make it to the final 6
3. The awards ceremony was held on the Hammersmith Eventim Apollo, in London, on September 15th
Skepta
Bat for Lashes
Savages
4. All of the twelve shortlisted acts performed before the ceremony went live on TV (Michael C Hall performed ‘Lazarus’ from David Bowie’s Blackstar)
(Execpt for Radiohead, who couldn't make it to the ceremony and so sent in a video of them performing instead)
Link to the performances below:
The Comet is Coming: http://bbc.in/2cRIoly
Michael C. Hall performing Bowie's 'Lazarus': http://bbc.in/2d1z0wl
Radiohead: http://bbc.in/2cdop4g
Skepta: http://bbc.in/2cYVWjG
Bat for Lashes: http://bbc.in/2cROgey
Anohni: http://bbc.in/2cuv4Fh
The 1975: http://bbc.in/2cux5od
Kano: http://bbc.in/2cDcFHa
Michael Kiwanuka: http://bbc.in/2croaP9
Jamie Woon: http://bbc.in/2cdPhky
Savages: http://bbc.in/2cARQw3
Laura Mvula: http://bbc.in/2cZD2cD
5. The final six were announced live, these were:
The Dreaming Room - Laura Mvula
Konnichiwa - Skepta
Winner of the fan vote: I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it - The 1975
Blackstar - David Bowie
A Moon Shaped Pool - Radiohead
Love & Hate - Michael Kiwanuka
6. The final six performed again, this time on live TV
(… and with a few minor differences like Matty from The 1975 singing on top of the table)
7. The overall winner was announced, and it was…
Konnichiwa - Skepta
