The full list of nominees for the 2026 Mercury Prize has been announced, with the shortlist including Paul McCartney, RAYE, Olivia Dean and more.
Celebrating the work of both esteemed and emerging artists from U.K and Ireland, the Mercury Prize is awarded annually and recognizes artistic achievement in LPs across a range of genres. Recent winners include Sam Fender (2025), English Teacher (2024), Ezra Collective (2023), Little Simz (2022), and Arlo Parks (2021) The Prize was first awarded in 1992 to Primal Scream for Screamadelica, and winners include collections by Pulp (1996), PJ Harvey (2001, 2011) and Arctic Monkeys (2006).
Among those featured on this year’s 12-strong shortlist are: RAYE for her chart-topping THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE, Olivia Dean for the chart-topping The Art of Loving, and Paul McCartney for his 20th solo studio album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane. It’s the first time that the latter has been nominated for the prize in his storied career.
Completing the lineup is Dave’s The Boy Who Played The Harp; Florence + The Machine’s Everybody Scream; Dove Ellis’ Blizzard; JADE’s THAT’S SHOWBIZ BABY!; Gnats’ A Great Day In Newcastle; Kojey Radical’s Don’t Look Down; Nia Archives’ Emotional Junglist; Suede’s Antidepressants; and War Child compilation HELP(2).
A number of leading artists miss out on the nod, however. Lily Allen’s West End Girl is omitted, as is Lola Young’s I’m Only F****ng Myself‘ Blood Orange’s Essex Honey, The Last Dinner Party’s From The Pyre and Boards of Canada’s Inferno were also not selected for this year’s list.
The prize will be awarded at a ceremony at Newcastle’s Utilita Arena on Oct. 22. The ceremony moved outside of London for the first time in 2025 with hometown hero Sam Fender collecting the prize for his third album, People Watching, which features his No. 1 hit “Rein Me In.” Fans can purchase tickets for the ceremony, which will include a number of performances by the nominated artists, at the awards’ official website.
Albums released between Aug. 30 2025 and July 17, 2026 were eligible for consideration this year. The 12 shortlisted albums were chosen by an independent judging panel chaired by Jeff Smith, head of music, BBC 6 Music & Radio 2.
This year’s committee consisted of: Afrodeutsche – composer & DJ; Danielle Perry – broadcaster & writer; Jamie Cullum – musician & broadcaster; Lea Stonhill – music programming consultant; MistaJam – songwriter, DJ & broadcaster; Phil Alexander – creative director, Kerrang!/contributing editor, Mojo; Sian Eleri – broadcaster & DJ; Will Hodgkinson – chief rock & pop critic, The Times; and Sophie Williams – writer & broadcaster.
2026 Mercury Prize nominees:
Dave, The Boy Who Played the HarpDove Ellis, BlizzardFlorence + The Machine, Everybody ScreamJADE, THAT’S SHOWBIZ BABY!Knats, A Great Day In NewcastleKojey Radical, Don’t Look DownNia Archives, Emotional JunglistOlivia Dean, The Art of LovingPaul McCartney, The Boys of Dungeon LaneRAYE, THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPESuede, AntidepressantsWar Child Records, HELP(2)
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