The shortlist for this year's Mercury Prize has been revealed with a number of returning nominees.
A total of seven of the 12 nominated albums are from women or women-fronted acts.
Stormzy, Laura Marling and Michael Kiwanuka have all secured nods in previous years, and are up for the prize once again, while Dua Lipa, Anna Meredith and Georgia made this year's shortlist for the first time.
Nominations for the album of the year award were decided by a panel of judges which included Anna Calvi, Annie Mac, Supergrass frontman Gaz Coombes, Jamie Cullum, Jorja Smith and Vice.com’s editorial director Tshepo Mokoena.
Last year’s Mercury Prize was won by rapper Dave for his album Psychodrama, fending off competition from nominees including Slowthai, The 1975, Little Simz and Foals.
Organisers say it is likely a live awards show will not happen in September as planned, but the winner will be announced on September 24.
Here's the full list of nominations:
Charli XCX – How I’m Feeling Now
Charli XCX, real name Charlotte Aitchison, created her fourth album, How I’m Feeling Now, during the first months of the pandemic.
The 27-year-old popstar worked on the album from her home in Los Angeles and gave fans access to her creative process through social media.
Recalling her creative process, she said: “I decided basically once quarantine began that I could not really sit still and I had to create something really for my own peace of mind."
Michael Kiwanuka – Kiwanuka
North London singer-songwriter Kiwanuka is nominated for his self-titled third album, meaning all three of his studio albums have now made the Mercury Prize shortlist.
He told the BBC that, after nearly quitting music around the time of his second album, he had found “a fresh confidence”.
The singer-songwriter’s soul-inflected sound has won him a legion of fans, including Kanye West, who invited him to join the sessions for his Yeezus album in Hawaii.
Dua Lipa – Future Nostalgia
While many artists delayed album releases due to the pandemic, Dua Lipa decided to bring hers forward after it leaked online.
Future Nostalgia reached number one in the UK charts and was lauded for its fresh take on classic 80s pop.
Speaking on BBC Radio 6 Music, she told Lauren Laverne: “I’m so excited to have been shortlisted and for the recognition. It’s kind of surreal because maybe I just didn’t think I was cool enough.”
Georgia – Seeking Thrills
Georgia Barnes, known mononymously as Georgia, released her self-titled debut album in 2015 but failed to dent the charts.
Things changed with the release of her follow-up in January – Seeking Thrills, which streamlined her dance floor-focused sound and soaring vocals.
Barnes began her career as a drummer for artists such as Kwes and Kate Tempest, and is the daughter of electronic music duo Leffield co-founder Neil Barnes.
Stormzy – Heavy Is The Head
Grime star Stormzy scores his second Mercury Prize nomination after a bumper two years, headlining Glastonbury and launching his own publishing imprint #MerkyBooks.
In the wake of Black Lives Matter protests, Stormzy and his #Merky company pledged £10 million over the next 10 years to organisations engaged in the fight for racial equality and social justice.
Kano – Hoodies All Summer
Multi-talented rapper, songwriter and actor Kane “Kano” Robinson was nominated for the 2016 Mercury Prize for Made In The Manor, which featured guests including Wiley and Damon Albarn.
Released in 2019, follow-up Hoodies All Summer tackled knife crime and the importance of good times using a stripped-back production style.
Kano also starred in the successful Netflix series Top Boy as Sully, a gritty crime thriller set on a London estate.
Lanterns On the Lake – Spook The Herd
Singer Hazel Wilde began writing the songs for Spook The Herd while Lanterns On The Lake took a break in 2016 after touring heavily.
A year later, the indie rock group began recording at Distant City studios in Ripponden, West Yorkshire, with songs taking in politics, grief and the climate crisis.
The band formed in 2007 in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Laura Marling – Song For Our Daughter
Laura Marling has landed her fourth Mercury nomination for Song For Our Daughter, which she recorded between her home studio in London and Monnow Valley Studio in Wales.
The album’s title addresses a fictional daughter and was inspired by writer Maya Angelou’s book Letter To My Daughter.
Recalling the album’s release, Marling said: “It came out three weeks into lockdown and it was a trip – it was quite a fun trip.
“This is a nice addition to the weird trip I have been on in the last few months, as we all have.”
Anna Meredith – FIBS
Scottish composer and electronic music producer Anna Meredith is up for her 2019 album FIBS, a sweeping and unpredictable series of instrumentals influenced by disco and film scores.
The 42-year-old is a former composer-in-residence with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and has won accolades including an Ivor Novello Award.
Moses Boyd – Dark Matter
Moses Boyd is a drummer, composer, producer and former resident DJ on BBC 1Xtra.
This eclecticism shows through on Dark Matter, the Londoner’s debut album, which charts the capital’s burgeoning jazz scene from the perspective of one of its key players.
Porridge Radio – Every Bad
Brighton indie band Porridge Radio formed in 2015 and created a buzz with their slacker rock style.
Every Bad was critically acclaimed for its exploration of confused adolescence and staccato riffs.
Singer Dana Margolin revealed that her sister had shaved a rat into her head after losing a bet over whether the album would get a nod.
Sports Team – Deep Down Happy
Indie rock band Sports Team, who formed at Cambridge University, were the only act to secure a nomination with a debut album.
Upon release in June this year, Deep Down Happy was prevented from topping the charts only by Lady Gaga’s Chromatica.
The outfit have been compared to Parklife-era Blur over their angular music and frontman Alex Rice’s witty lyrics about Middle England, Wetherspoons and the M5.
