And the Winner of the 2016 Mercury Prize Is…

September 15, 2016 Alan Cross 0 Comments

…Skepta and his album, Konnichiwa. The grime rapper went into the final judging for the 2016 Mercury Prize with odds of 7-1 behind the favourite, David Bowie’s Blackstar.

The Mercury Prize is an annual juried competition to name the best album of the year in the UK and Ireland.

Konnichiwa also beat out entries for Radiohead, Savages, Bat for Lashes, The 1975 and half a dozen others. Skepta–the first grime winner at Mercury since 2003–takes home a £25,000 cash prize. Here’s a sample:

Next up? Canada’s Polaris Music Prize, the ceremony for which is coming up Monday in Toronto.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 38061 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross