SCOTTISH ALBUM OF THE YEAR AWARD ANNOUNCES LONGLIST INCLUDING BIFFY CLYRO, JOESEF, THE SNUTS AND MORE
THE SCOTTISH ALBUM OF THE YEAR AWARD ANNOUNCE 2021’S LONGLIST FOR BUMPER 10TH YEAR
20 OUTSTANDING SCOTTISH ALBUMS ANNOUNCED VIA VIRTUAL ‘LIVE AT THE LONGLIST’
ARTISTS IN THE RUNNING FOR £20K PRIZE AND COVETED TITLE INCLUDE BEMZ, BIFFY CLYRO, JOESEF, LIZZIE REID, MOGWAI, TAAHLIAH, THE SNUTS AND MORE
MUSIC FANS GIVEN CHANCE TO ‘HAVE THEIR SAY’ IN PUBLIC VOTE
SAY AWARD CEREMONY OPEN TO MUSIC FANS FOR THE FIRST TIME, WITH TICKETS ON SALE NOW FOR 23RD OCTOBER EVENT AT EDINBURGH’S USHER HALL
WATCH LIVE AT THE LONGLIST AGAIN HERE
BUY SAY AWARD CEREMONY TICKETS HERE
WWW.SAYAWARD.COM
#SAYaward
| Scotland’s national music prize, the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award, has officially announced the twenty outstanding Scottish albums which have made it onto this year’s coveted Longlist in the award’s tenth year; whittled down from 327 eligible albums by 100 impartial music industry Nominators. All twenty albums were released during the COVID-19 pandemic, amidst huge turmoil for the music industry, making it an even more extraordinary feat for each and every artist. In alphabetical order, The SAY Award Longlist for 2021 is as follows: AiiTee – ‘Love Don’t Fall’ Andrew Wasylyk – ‘Fugitive Light And Themes Of Consolation’ Arab Strap – ‘As Days Get Dark’ Bemz – ‘Saint of Lost Causes’ Biffy Clyro – ‘A Celebration of Endings’ Carla J. Easton – ‘WEIRDO’ Erland Cooper – ‘Landform (Feat. Marta Salogni)’ Fergus McCreadie – ‘Cairn’ Jenny Sturgeon – ‘The Living Mountain’ Joesef – ‘Does It Make You Feel Good?’ Kübler Ross – ‘Kübler Ross’ Lizzie Reid – ‘Cubicle’ Matt Carmichael – ‘Where Will the River Flow’ Mogwai – ‘As The Love Continues’ Paul Towndrow – ‘Deepening The River’ Rachel Newton – ‘To The Awe’ Stanley Odd – ‘STAY ODD’ TAAHLIAH – ‘Angelica’ The Ninth Wave – ‘Happy Days!’ The Snuts – ‘W.L.’ Robert Kilpatrick, Creative Projects and Communications Director at the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) said, “Each year, the announcement of the 20-strong SAY Award Longlist provides an important focal point to both reflect on and celebrate the strength and diversity of Scotland’s recorded output; recognising the impact that music has on our lives and in driving our ever-evolving cultural identity as a nation. |
| “With each of this year’s Longlisted albums having been released throughout the pandemic, that reflection sees a new depth, and “strength” in the context of 2021 embodies much more than artistic merit – it’s underpinned by resilience, passion, and endurance throughout challenges that our artists and music industry, in particular, have sorely felt. “Music’s power often comes from its ability to tap into inner parts of ourselves; inspiring us, comforting us, and ultimately helping us better understand both ourselves and each other. It brings us together, and at a time of mass uncertainty and turbulence where we’ve had to be apart, never has its intrinsic power felt more special and important. “With a massive congratulations to 2021’s Longlist also comes a thank you – to the artists and their teams for providing escape, connection and outstanding bodies of work at a time when we’ve never needed them more. We can’t wait to celebrate these records – and ten years of SAY – at this year’s ceremony; our biggest to date, and what will undoubtedly be an incredible night to remember for artists, industry, and music fans alike.” Alan Morrison, Head of Music at Creative Scotland said: “If you need proof that the Scottish music scene is emerging strong and defiant from months of lockdown, then look no further than this year’s SAY Award Longlist. With three Official UK Charts No1 albums, an explosion of diversity from some stars of tomorrow and positive recognition of our flourishing grassroots jazz scene, 2021’s contenders make a bold statement about the energy that fuels the music Scotland has to offer and the strength of our creative voice.” |
| SAY AWARD 2021 LONGLIST – ARTIST QUOTES AiiTee said, “I’m still so in awe that ‘Love Don’t Fall’ has been included in the Scottish Album of The Year Award Longlist. I’m so grateful to everyone who has taken time out to listen to my music and I hope I can make more music to bring smiles to people’s faces and uplift them.” Andrew Wasylyk said, “The SAY Award do wonderful work highlighting the creativity in Scottish music. I’m surprised and deeply humbled to be included amongst such great artists. Thank you.” Arab Strap said, “We’re both humbled and proud to make the Longlist this year, and we’re sure we’ll be in excellent company – The SAY Award is a brilliant celebration of Scotland’s diverse sounds, and we look forward to making new discoveries too.” Bemz said, “This project has made a lot of things possible – I just want to say thanks to all those involved in helping me make it & thanks to those who Nominated it.” Biffy Clyro said, “We are delighted to have made the Longlist for The SAY Award with ‘A Celebration of Endings’, alongside some incredible albums from the last year. We’re really proud of this record and we want to thank those involved for the nomination. We hope to see you all soon!” Carla J. Easton said, “It’s so wonderful to be included in this year’s Longlist. What a difficult and challenging year our industry has faced! I’m so thankful for all the continued support. I think this year The SAY Award is more vital than ever for building back our scene and community. I was a bit worried my album would become a ‘lost work’ due to the circumstances surrounding its release so to be able to celebrate it with all those who helped shape it and make it happen really means a lot to me, especially as an independent artist.” Erland Cooper said, “It says a great deal to me about the ecosystem of the Scottish music industry that my experimental record, created out of abstract layers of sound and field recordings, has been recognised in this way. Thank you. It’s an album grounded in place and time.” Fergus McCreadie said, “I am delighted and honoured to have been nominated for such a prestigious award in the Scottish music industry. ‘Cairn’ was a composite of where I was at that time as a musician and composer, and how the band sounded after playing so much together in recent years. To be on the Longlist with so many other great artists is very exciting to me, and I am especially honoured to be representing the jazz scene in Scotland, which I am always so happy to be a part of.” Jenny Sturgeon said, “I’m over the moon to have been included in The SAY Award 2021 Longlist. Scotland has such a vibrant and thriving music scene and The SAY Award does a brilliant job of amplifying this creativity. It’s always a highlight of the year getting to hear new music through SAY.” Joesef said, “I’m proud to say I love these tunes and to be acknowledged by The SAY Award in this way means a lot to me. I thought my managers were joking at first but aye cheers!” Kübler-Ross said, “We are utterly shocked and delighted to be included in the selection for The SAY Award. Thank you!!!!” Lizzie Reid said, “To be a part of The SAY Award Longlist alongside these incredible bands and artists feels totally insane! It fills my heart to think that people have been listening and enjoying my little album. Thank you thank you thank you!” Matt Carmichael said, “I’ve discovered a lot of great music by following The SAY Award in the past and I’m very grateful to be included this year after releasing my first album. The awards are great exposure and it’s nice to think that ‘Where Will The River Flow’ will find its way into the ears of new listeners who wouldn’t have otherwise discovered the music. Despite COVID, I think the past year has been particularly exciting for new albums in the Scottish music scene and I’d highly recommend checking out the other eligible albums on The SAY Award website and supporting your favourite artists if you can.” Mogwai said, “We are immensely proud to be included in this year’s SAY Award Longlist alongside so many other great Scottish albums.” Paul Towndrow said, “I’m delighted and honoured to have ‘Deepening The River’ be part of The SAY Award Longlist for 2021. I hope people will take the time to listen to the album, which only exists thanks to the unbelievable talent and commitment of the musicians featured on the recording, all of whom are artists I admire greatly and whose music I would urge people to investigate. Scotland’s music scene has huge strength in depth, massive resilience, and reflects rich diversity. I hope this album goes a little way towards shining a light on some of that talent and potential.” Rachel Newton said, “‘Making ‘To The Awe’ got me through the early days of lockdown and was funded entirely by direct support from fans, so it means a great deal to me and I’m delighted for it to be included in this year’s Longlist.” Stanley Odd said, “Yas! Absolutely pure delighted to be on The SAY Award Longlist. It’s been an amazing year for new music releases despite the ongoing global madness and we’re over the moon to see ‘STAY ODD’ resonate with folks.” TAAHLIAH said, “‘Angelica’ was created out of love for myself and the experiences I’ve had in life which have led me to be who I am today. For my debut project to be recognised in this way feels wonderfully gratifying.” The Ninth Wave said, “We were taken aback when our first album was Longlisted for The SAY Award last year, and when it made the Shortlist we were even more excited. For the follow up to that album to be Longlisted is truly amazing, especially since it includes the first pieces we’ve ever recorded that were completely self-produced. Thank you to everyone who’s supported us on our journey and evolution across these releases.” The Snuts said, “We are delighted for our debut album ‘W.L’.’ to be in the running for The SAY Award. It’s an album that’ll always be close to our hearts and the hearts of our fans.” |
| The SAY Award Longlist is the product of an extraordinary nationwide consultation; encapsulating the strength and diversity of Scotland’s music scene. This year, 327 album submissions, all released during the pandemic, were narrowed down to the 20-strong Longlist by 100 impartial Nominators representing a variety of genres including jazz, classical, hip-hop, pop, trad folk, rock, electronic, indie and many more. The newly announced Longlist will now be whittled down to a final 10 albums to make up this year’s Shortlist, one of which can be chosen by music fans in a 72-hour online public vote. From 27th – 29th September, music fans have the chance to ensure their favourite album from the Longlist makes it onto the Shortlist by voting at www.sayaward.com, with the remaining 9 albums chosen by an esteemed judging panel. This year’s SAY Award judging panel includes the likes of Ian Rankin (Author), Jackie Kay (Poet), Daniel Portman (Actor) and Ashely Storrie (Comedian), as well as Tim Burgess (Musician, The Charlatans), whose “Tim’s Twitter Listening Parties” soundtracked the UK’s lockdown for many by bringing artists and audiences together to listen, discuss and celebrate albums both past and present. The winner of The SAY Award will collect £20,000 – one of the most lucrative prize funds in the UK – while all nine runners-up will be awarded £1,000 and their own bespoke award. Following a digital edition in 2020, the event returns as a physical ceremony, welcoming guests to Edinburgh’s Usher Hall on Saturday 23rd October. For the first time since the award’s inception, music fans are able to join the celebrations and purchase tickets to attend one of the most exciting nights in Scotland’s musical calendar. This year’s Ceremony (marking the award’s 10th birthday) will celebrate the strength and diversity of Scottish music; past, present, and future. The event will recognise 2021’s Nominees and feature special one-of-a-kind live performances, along with the exclusive reveal of 2021’s Scottish Album of the Year. To date, The SAY Award has distributed over £232,000 in prize money across nine previous campaigns, with 2021 set to be another stellar year in showcasing the best of Scotland’s world-renowned musical talent. 2021 has also seen the introduction of two new awards for SAY’s tenth year, with the ‘Modern Scottish Classic Award’ and ‘Sound of Young Scotland Award’. This year’s Longlist will choose the winner of the ‘Modern Scottish Classic Award’, recognising an iconic Scottish album which has inspired music being made today with a special performance at the Ceremony to celebrate the winning album. Additionally, a panel of previous SAY Award nominees including Kobi Onyame, Sacred Paws, SHHE and more, will choose the winner of ‘The Sound of Young Scotland Award’, with the winner receiving up to £5,000 funding to facilitate the creation of their debut album, plus a showcase performance slot at The SAY Award Ceremony in 2022. Supported by Youth Music and Youth Music Initiative (Creative Scotland), The Sound of Young Scotland Award was designed to invest in Scottish music’s future and provide vital support to an emerging artist. Developed and produced by the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA), the 2021 campaign is delivered in partnership with Creative Scotland, the City of Edinburgh Council, YouTube Music, Spotify, Ticketmaster and PPL with Music Declares Emergency returning as the award’s Charity Partner for a second year. With COP26 taking place in Glasgow throughout November, sustainability is at the heart of The SAY Award’s plans, and the SMIA will look to use its flagship project to demonstrate and instill best practice for the music industry both now and in the future. Now in its tenth year, previous winners of The SAY Award include Nova ‘Re-Up’ (2020), Auntie Flo ‘Radio Highlife’ (2019), Young Fathers ‘Cocoa Sugar’ (2018), Sacred Paws ‘Strike A Match’ (2017), Anna Meredith ‘Varmints’ (2016), Kathryn Joseph ‘Bones You Have Thrown Me And Blood I’ve Spilled’ (2015), Young Fathers ‘Tape Two’ (2014), RM Hubbert ‘Thirteen Lost & Found’ (2013) and the inaugural winner Bill Wells and Aidan Moffat ‘Everything’s Getting Older’ (2012). To keep up with The SAY Award 2021 journey, make sure you follow the award on Twitter @SAYaward, Instagram @sayaward, and Facebook @SAYaward. |
ABOUT THE LONGLIST
AiiTee – ‘Love Don’t Fall’
‘Love Don’t Fall‘ is an album that portrays different sides of love. It aims to tell a story, going from the more toxic sides of love to running away from love, to finding what love is really supposed to look like.
Andrew Wasylyk – ‘Fugitive Light And Themes Of Consolation’
FLATOC is the third in a trio of records by Andrew Wasylyk unearthing and reshaping the landscape of Eastern Scotland as shimmering, inventive music.
Low-light on winter fields, empty suburban streets at dawn, ten songs circling the Dundonian’s hometown for meaning, channeling half-heard melodies and misremembered memories. Emerging between spiritual-jazz, neo-classical and library, diffracted by the blues and greys of the River Tay’s estuary. Instrumentation has a soft-focus glow: piano keys gently pressed, metronomic click of analogue drum machines, the wash of strings and brass, singing saw and rippling clàrsach harp. Another Wasylyk song-cycle wonder; a wander through glimmering internal and external landscapes.
Arab Strap – ‘As Days Get Dark’
“It’s about hopelessness and darkness,” says Aidan Moffat. “But in a fun way.” As ‘Days Get Dark’, Arab Strap’s first album since their split in 2006, is a record that manages to feel like both evolution and revolution, a continuation of what has come before but also a bold leap into the future. As Malcolm Middleton, the other half of the band, says: “There’s no point getting back together to release mediocrity.”
Bemz – ‘Saint of Lost Causes’
‘Saint of Lost Causes’ is a project named after the patron Saint of lost causes – Saint Jude. The project talks about my journey of trying to find myself again in life and as an artist. I had been absent from the industry for about 2 years and feeling like a lost cause in the process. I managed to navigate myself back into life. It takes the listener on a journey, from being someone doing things I’m not proud of to finally finding the focus for music, finding love, rediscovering my faith and my goal of making an impact on the Scottish Music Industry.
Biffy Clyro – ‘A Celebration of Endings’
Released on 14th August 2020, Biffy Clyro’s eighth studio record and third UK number one album, ‘A Celebration of Endings’ gained praise from the likes of The Independent, who branded it “an album that soothes, shakes and surprises at every turn” in their 4-star review, whilst the Sunday Times made it their album of the week, describing it as “combining feral sonic attack with an innate melodic touch and lyrics about empowerment, activism, love and connection”. The album won the award for Best Album at the Scottish Music Awards 2021.
Carla J. Easton – ‘WEIRDO’
‘WEIRDO’, is Carla J. Easton’s defiant pop album released via Olive Grove Records with support from PRS
Foundations Women Make Music. Bandcamp Daily described as “all volume needles buried in the red, glitter bursting from every chorus” whilst The Line of Best Fit and Pitchfork praised its “maximalist” tendencies hinting that Scotland has found its own answer to pop titans Carly Rae Jepsen and Taylor Swift. The album features appearances from Honeyblood’s Stina Tweeddale, Micah Erenberg and Stanley Odd’s Dave Hook, though the result is always a sound that is uniquely Easton’s own. This is a pop record for misfits.
Erland Cooper – ‘Landform (Feat. Marta Salogni)’
Erland collaborated with Italian artist, producer and recording engineer, Marta Salogni. ‘Landform’ is an experimental, ambient album of tone poem. Tape loops were drowned in the north sea, dried in gales and sunshine, then unearthed from Orkney soil – ambient tones reborn into hopeful timbres.
Fergus McCreadie – ‘Cairn’
‘Cairn’ is the highly anticipated follow-up to Fergus’ debut and despite all the hype this new album is gaining, he delivers in spades. Cairn is an album inspired by the tradition and landscape of his native Scotland. It declares itself with an energetic freshness of sound and originality reminiscent of the dynamism and personality with which the likes of piano trios The Bad Plus and EST emerged almost two decades ago. Responding to the circumstances of a vastly changed era, Fergus and his trio, with their profoundly mesmerising and compelling music, look set to evoke similar trajectories in progressing to the global stage.
Jenny Sturgeon – ‘The Living Mountain’
‘The Living Mountain’ was inspired by trailblazing nature writer Nan Shepherd’s book of the same name and Jenny’s experience growing up near, and walking in, the Cairngorms. Within the song cycle Jenny explores her personal connection to this highland area as well as delving into Nan’s philosophy of simply ‘being’ in the mountains.
Recorded and produced by Andy Bell at Clashnettie Arts Centre in the Cairngorms National Park, Sturgeon’s twelve songs mirror the chapter titles of Shepherd’s book – ten self-penned songs and two arrangements of Shepherd’s poems, interwoven with field recordings captured within the Cairngorms – from flowing rivers to birdsong.
Joesef – ‘Does It Make You Feel Good?’
This EP draws a line under a relationship that I’ve written about in Play Me Something Nice – if that EP felt more hopeful, this is the end game. The bitterness, and the lies that stem from fading love, to the aftermath of dealing with loss and regret, and finally taking responsibility for my own actions. I don’t really give much away ever, so it will always make me feel uncomfortable sharing such personal aspects of my life, but maybe if it can help me work some shit out, it could help somebody else too.
Kübler Ross – ‘Kübler Ross’
The album is a collection of tracks recorded over a three year period in a variety of studios, rehearsal rooms, and gigs. It was compiled by Oliver Pitt of Akashic records to document the musical variety and ferocity of their incendiary live performances.
Lizzie Reid – ‘Cubicle’
Reid’s songs are microcosms of love, loss and heartbreak experienced in Glasgow’s streets, nightclubs and bars. She covers similarly personal topics on her EP ‘Cubicle’. Within she reflects on a formative summer which saw the end of Reid’s first same-sex relationship.
The EP was recorded in March 2020 with producer Oli Barton-Wood (Mellah, Nilufer Yanya, Molly Payton). Aware of the increasing seriousness of the covid19 situation, Wood packed a case of microphones, leads and equipment and travelled to Lizzie’s home in Glasgow to make the record. They finished the EP just days ahead of the UK-wide lockdown.
As the world outside descended into chaos and its structures threatened to fall apart, Reid created something both strong and vulnerable that will serve to offer solace and hope in the most testing of
times.
Matt Carmichael – ‘Where Will the River Flow’
‘Where Will The River Flow’ is the debut album from saxophonist and composer, Matt Carmichael. Featuring his quartet with award-winning pianist Fergus McCreadie, bassist Ali Watson and drummer Tom Potter, the album comprises nine original compositions that reflect Carmichael’s strong engagement with Scottish traditional music, Scandinavian and singer-songwriter influences as well as his immersion in jazz since his early teens.
‘Utterly compelling… a complete musical statement’ Jazz Views
‘He can make you laugh and shed a tear within the turn of a bar’ Jazzwise Magazine
‘Strikingly organic synthesis of lyrical Jazz and Scottish Folk’ The Scotsman
Mogwai – ‘As The Love Continues’
‘As The Love Continues’ is the follow up to 2017’s Every Country’s Sun, and their third UK Top 10 charting album. It reached number 1 in the UK album charts, and No. 9 in Billboards US Album Sales Chart giving the band the highest scoring chart positions they have ever achieved.
Paul Towndrow – ‘Deepening The River’
‘Deepening The RIver’ is the culmination of a journey that began in 2018 as a specially commissioned work for the City of Glasgow. It received its premiere at The Merchants House of Glasgow, during Festival 2018 (the arts programme accompanying a major international sports event), followed by a repeat performance at the world-famous Celtic Connections festival in 2019. The project was finally completed in 2020 during the global COVID-19 pandemic and released in February 2021. The album features an extended big band line up featuring some of the most prominent musical voices in Scotland and beyond, and spanning multiple musical genres, in an epic hour-long suite.
Rachel Newton – ‘To The Awe’
‘To The Awe’ places women at the centre of its narrative, drawing on old poems and traditional song lyrics to follow the various stages of a woman’s life, often marking a coming of age and an acquisition of power. The record is a tribute to the women who have inspired Rachel and is influenced by her own recent work around representation in the music industry. Composed, recorded and mixed in lockdown, it was a challenging album to make, but ultimately a welcome focus and a vital connection with others in such strange and uncertain times.
Stanley Odd – ‘STAY ODD’
‘STAY ODD’ is about the oddities of the ordinary. It’s a collection of musical stories about about outsiders, outcasts and the universally Odd; the ordinarily unusual; the typically extraordinary. It navigates the geography of the Odd Universe from witches and stolen bikes, to moonlight flits and radical, rebellious women, through hedonism, parenthood, lying politicians and universal outsiderdom. The music is the centre of the album but the centre explodes outward into the films and Matt’s artwork, with the book as a pathfinder to plot the journey of the songs. We are Odd and so are you.
TAAHLIAH – ‘Angelica’
Her debut-EP ‘Angelica’ (out May 28th) brings together TAAHLIAH’s expansive production skills and range of influences, moving effortlessly between squeaky-clean hyper pop textures (Brave, Freefalling) and the jacking hard- dance sounds (FMH, Bourgeoisie, Trans dimensional) which defined her much lauded Boiler Room debut earlier this year.
Throughout ‘Angelica’, the producer details a range of autobiographical experiences that have come to shape her as a person and an artist: from coming to terms with being trans (Brave), to coming from a working-class background (Bourgeoisie); from breaking up (Tears) to falling in love (Freefalling). Always, as TAAHLIAH seeks to represent and bring visibility to her community, she invariably ends up conveying universal messages of power, acceptance, bravery and euphoric fun.
The Ninth Wave – ‘Happy Days!’
The Ninth Wave open an auspicious new chapter of their story with the release of ‘Happy Days!’. Recorded at the suitably gothly Black Bay studio on the island of Great Bernera the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, produced with Faris Badwan, it’s The Ninth Wave like you’ve never heard them before rawer, realer, more playful, and more revealing.
The Snuts – ‘W.L.’
Our debut album ‘W.L.’ is a lifetimes work. It’s a collection of milestones and melodies that time stamp a
dream we had become a reality. It’s a record about being true, loving and resilient.
Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA)
The Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) is a not-for-profit trade body and membership organisation which exists to strengthen, empower and unite Scotland’s music industry.
As a Creative Scotland Regularly Funded Organisation (RFO), we work to create and nurture an inclusive membership community which reflects the full spectrum of Scotland’s music industry. We give voice to our membership when speaking to Government, Parliament and development organisations, and we both produce and support projects and programmes that stimulate sustainability, domestic and international growth, development and innovation in Scotland’s music sector. Our services, projects and events are designed to strengthen and increase the value of Scotland’s music industry on the world stage: economically, socially and culturally.
For further information on the SMIA and its services, projects and events please visit www.smia.org.uk.
Keep up to date with the SMIA across our social media channels:
Twitter: twitter.com/TheSMIA | Facebook: facebook.com/TheSMIA | Instagram: instagram.com/the_smia
Creative Scotland
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports the arts, screen and creative industries across all parts of Scotland on behalf of everyone who lives, works or visits here. We distribute funding provided by the Scottish Government and The National Lottery.
Further information at creativescotland.com
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
City of Edinburgh Council
The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the City of Edinburgh.
YouTube Music
YouTube Music is a new music streaming service made for music listening, on top of the magic of YouTube: making the world of music easier to explore and more personalised than ever. Whether you want to listen, watch or discover – all the ways music moves you can be found in one place – not just music videos, but official albums, singles, remixes, live performances, covers and hard-to-find music you can’t get anywhere else.
Spotify
Spotify transformed music listening forever when it launched in 2008. Discover, manage and share over 70 million tracks, including more than 2.9 million podcast titles, for free, or upgrade to Spotify Premium to access exclusive features for music including improved sound quality and an on-demand, offline, and ad-free listening experience.
Today, Spotify is the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service with 365m users, including 165m subscribers, across 178 markets.
Ticketmaster
Ticketmaster is the global and local market leader in live event ticketing, digital marketing, and mobile fan engagement tools that drive over 500 million tickets to fans in 32 countries.
PPL
Founded in 1934, PPL is the UK music industry’s collective management organisation (CMO) for over 120,000 performers and record companies. We license recorded music in the UK when it is played in public (shops, bars, nightclubs, offices etc.) or broadcast (BBC, commercial radio, commercial TV etc.) and ensure that revenue flows back to our members. These include both independent and major record companies, together with performers ranging from emerging grassroots artists through to established session musicians and globally renowned artists. PPL’s public performance licensing is carried out on PPL’s behalf by PPL PRS Ltd, the joint venture between PPL and PRS for Music.
We also collect performance rights internationally when music is played overseas in public and used on TV, radio and some online streaming services, as well as for private copying. International royalties are an increasingly important revenue stream for performers and recording rightsholders.
In 2020, in total, we collected £225.7 million across all of our revenue streams, while also distributing money to over 135,000 performers and recording rightsholders.
Music Declares Emergency
Since its launch in London in July 2019, Music Declares Emergency has worked with the music industry and artists to harness the power of music to educate, inspire and engage the public with the climate emergency and to facilitate industry wide conversations to encourage and envision a sustainable music industry. Our declarers now number over 5000 and include all the UK major labels and industry organisations across all sectors, globally famous recording artists, and performers and individuals working within the music industry. All are committed to using their influence to bring conversations around the climate emergency into the mainstream of public debate.
Inspired by the lead taken by the UK music industry, Music Declares Emergency now has sister groups operating in Germany, Switzerland, France, Chile and Canada with further countries set to join the fold soon. A demonstration of the power of music to unite across languages and culture, the continued growth of Music Declares Emergency places music at the heart of the message of hope for a green recovery from a global pandemic and a brighter future for all.
Supporters for The SAY Award 2021 include; Dumfries Music Conference, Help Musicians Scotland, Jupiter Artland, Resonate, SWIM, Scottish Refugee Council, The Touring Network, Wide Days, XpoNorth, Youth Music, Youth Music Initiative.
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