The annual music prize recognises outstanding albums by U.K. and Irish artists from the past year.
Raye at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.
John Nacion/Billboard
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).
