Ivor Novello Awards 2026: CMAT, Little Simz, Jim Legxacy secure nominations

The nominees for this year’s Ivor Novello Awards have been announced.

Presenting awards since 1956, the Ivors have long been established as one of the more prestigious music awards. 

Judged by fellow songwriters and composers, the awards serve to “celebrate the craft, cultural impact and enduring importance of songs and screen compositions.” This year’s ceremony takes place on Thursday 21st May.

This year, 61 individual British, Irish or UK-resident songwriters and composers, and their collaborators, have received Ivor nominations, with 34 of those receiving a nomination for the first time.

While most of the seven categories focus on new music, the PRS for Music Most Performed Work category celebrates songs that received the most broadcast, online and general performances in the last year, based on PRS data.

Each winner receives an Ivor Novello Award, a solid bronze statuette depicting Euterpe, the Greek muse of music and lyric poetry. The design was created in 1955 by sculptor Hazel Underwood and has remained unchanged ever since.

Here are all the nominees for the 2026 Ivor Novello Awards: 

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BEST ALBUM

Black British Music (2025) - Jim Legxacy 

Euro Country - CMAT

The Art of Loving - Olivia Dean

The Clearing - Wolf Alice 

West End Girl - Lily Allen

BEST CONTEMPORARY SONG

‘Damascus’ - Gorillaz 

‘Free’ - Little Simz

‘I Do And I Don’t Care’ - Self Esteem

‘I Stand On The Line’ - Kae Tempest 

‘Know Yourself’ Kae Tempest

BEST SONG MUSICALLY AND LYRICALLY

‘Don’t Fall Asleep’ - Jacob Alon

‘Everybody Scream’ - Florence + The Machine

‘Focus Is Power’ - Self Esteem

‘The Sofa’ - Wolf Alice

‘Weeds’ - Sugababes 

PRS FOR MUSIC MOST PERFORMED WORK

‘Man I Need’ - Olivia Dean

‘Messy’ - Lola Young

‘Stargazing’ - Myles Smith

‘The Days’ - Chrystal

‘Viva La Vida’ - Coldplay

RISING STAR AWARD

Chloe Qisha

Divorce 

Jacob Alon

kwn

Skye Newman

BEST ORIGINAL FILM SCORE

Bugonia - Jerskin Fendrix

Dragonfly - Raffertie

Nosferatu - Robin Carolan

Testimony - Tom Hodge 

The Brutalist - Daniel Blumberg

BEST TELEVISION SOUNDTRACK

Adolescence - Aaron May and David Ridley

Lazarus - Sarah Warne

Summerwater - Gazelle Twin

This City Is Ours - Rael Jones

Terspasses - David Holmes and Brian Irvine

​You can find out more about the Ivor Novello Awards here. 

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