The Shortlist for this year’s Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award has been officially revealed ahead of next month’s final award ceremony at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh on Friday 6th September.
The 2019 SAY Award Shortlist, in alphabetical order –
Aidan Moffat and RM Hubbert – Here Lies The Body
Andrew Wasylyk – The Paralian
Auntie Flo – Radio Highlife
C Duncan – Health
Carla J. Easton – Impossible Stuff
Fergus McCreadie Trio – Turas
Free Love – Luxury Hits
Karine Polwart with Steven Polwart & Inge Thomson – Laws of Motion
Kathryn Joseph – From When I Wake The Want Is
Mastersystem – Dance Music *public vote winner
The SAY Award celebrates the most outstanding Scottish albums each year, regardless of sales, genre or label affiliation. The newly announced Shortlist recognises artistic achievement and endeavour across a wide range of genres, from a selection of artists who contribute to Scotland’s internationally admired music scene and vibrant cultural identity. The SAY Award celebrates, promotes and rewards the incredible strength and diversity of Scottish music, and a remarkable 293 album submissions were narrowed down by 100 valued and impartial nominators who were all asked to vote for their favourite new releases, subsequently creating the Longlist. The newly announced Shortlist is comprised of ten albums; nine chosen by The SAY Award Judging Panel and one chosen by music fans via this year’s online public vote.
The live announcement was made on BBC Radio Scotland by Nicola Meighan and Vic Galloway this evening. Nine albums on the Shortlist were chosen by a highly respected panel of judges made up of eleven key influential and experienced tastemakers from across the creative industries. In what was an incredible milestone for the Scottish music industry, this year’s esteemed panel featured a 50:50 gender split and included input from The List’s Editor Arusa Qureshi, YouTube Music’s David Mogendorff, PRS Foundation’s Maxie Gedge, YWCA Scotland director Patrycja Kupiec and television and film director Michael Hines.
The final shortlisted album was chosen by music fans, who voted for their favourite Longlisted album across a 72 hour voting window which closed at midnight on Wednesday 14th August.
Speaking about the Shortlist, Robert Kilpatrick General Manager of the Scottish Music Industry Association said:“A huge congratulations to the ten albums making up The SAY Award Shortlist for 2019. This year’s Shortlist presents an incredibly exciting and eclectic snapshot of the strength of Scotland’s recorded output, and we’re delighted to celebrate, promote and reward the incredible works of Scottish artists as we approach this year’s ceremony at The Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh.
“Best of luck to each of the Shortlisted albums. It’s with great pride that through The SAY Award we can shine a light on truly incredible pieces of artistic works that play a key part in our cultural identity as a nation.”
