Here are the nominees for The Ivors 2026

The nominations for The Ivors 2026 have been announced — read below to see the full list of nominees.

The 71^st Ivor Novello Awards will be presented during a ceremony at Grosvenor House in London on 21 May, with the awards set to celebrate ‘the craft, cultural impact and enduring importance of songs and screen compositions’.

61 individual British, Irish or UK resident songwriters and composers — as well as their international collaborators — have received Ivor Novello nominations this year, with 34 of those earning a nomination for the first time.

Olivia Dean, Jacob Alon, Wolf Alice’s Ellie Rowsell, Self Esteem, Johan Hugo, Kae Tempest and Fraser T Smith have each received two nominations, with Olivia, Jacob and Johan all being nominated for the first time by The Ivors Academy.

Among the awards categories is the PRS for Music Most Performed Work, which celebrates songs that received the most broadcast, online and general performances in the last year, based on PRS data. This year's nominees are Olivia (for her song Man I Need), Lola Young (Messy), Myles Smith (Stargazing), Chrystal (The Days) and Coldplay (Viva La Vida).

Tom Gray, Chair of The Ivors Academy, said in a statement: 'To be recognised by your peers for exceptional craft and originality at The Ivors is one of the greatest honours in music writing, and we look forward to celebrating their achievements.'

Roberto Neri, Chief Executive of The Ivors Academy, added: 'I want to congratulate these incredible nominees, whose work reflects the strength, diversity and global influence of British and Irish songwriting, which we are honoured to celebrate.

'An Ivor Novello Award has for over 70 years been the most prestigious recognition of excellence in music and I'd like to thank our judges for working hard to recognise this year’s nominees.'

As well as these awards categories, which you can see details of below, Gift of the Academy awards will be presented on the night to 'recognise individuals for their lasting contributions to music'.

Best Album

• Black British Music (2025) - written by Jim Legxacy and Joe Stanley; performed by Jim Legxacy
• Euro Country - written and performed by CMAT
• The Art of Loving - written by Olivia Dean, Bastian Langebaek and Max Wolfgang; performed by Olivia Dean
• The Clearing - written by Joff Oddie and Ellie Rowsell; performed by Wolf Alice 
• West End Girl - written by Lily Allen, Chloe Angelides, Kito and Blue May; performed by Lily Allen

Best Contemporary Song

• Damascus - written by Damon Albarn, Yasiin Bey and Omar Souleyman; performed by Gorillaz (feat. Omar Souleyman and Yasiin Bey)
• Free - written by Alex Bonfanti, Miles Clinton James and Little Simz; performed by Little Simz 
• I Do and I Don’t Care - written by Johan Hugo and Self Esteem; performed by Self Esteem
• I Stand On The Line - written by Fraser T Smith and Kae Tempest; performed by Kae Tempest
• Know Yourself - written by Tom Rowlands, Fraser T Smith and Kae Tempest; performed by Kae Tempest

Best Song Musically and Lyrically

• Don’t Fall Asleep - written and performed by Jacob Alon
• Everybody Scream - written by Mark Bowen, Mitski and Florence Welch; performed by Florence + The Machine
• Focus Is Power - written by Johan Hugo, Self Esteem and Jacob Vetter; performed by Self Esteem
• The Sofa - written by Ellie Rowsell; performed by Wolf Alice 
• Weeds - written by Tove Burman, Anya Jones and Jon Shave; performed by Sugababes

PRS for Music Most Performed Work

• Man I Need - written by Olivia Dean, Tobias Jesso Jr. and Zach Nahome; performed by Olivia Dean 
• Messy - written and performed by Lola Young
• Stargazing - written by Peter Fenn, Jesse Fink and Myles Smith; performed by Myles Smith 
• The Days - written and performed by Chrystal
• Viva La Vida - written by Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion and Chris Martin; performed by Coldplay

Rising Star Award with Amazon Music

• Chloe Qisha
• Divorce (Tiger Cohen-Towell, Felix Mackenzie-Barrow, Adam Peter-Smith and Kasper Sandstrøm) 
• Jacob Alon
• Kwn
• Skye Newman

Best Original Film Score

• Bugonia - composed by Jerskin Fendrix
• Dragonfly - composed by Raffertie
• Nosferatu - composed by Robin Carolan
• Testimony - composed by Tom Hodg
• The Brutalist - composed by Daniel Blumberg

Best Television Soundtrack

• Adolescence - composed by Aaron May and David Ridley
• Lazarus - composed by Sarah Warne
• Summerwater - composed by Gazelle Twin
• The City Is Ours - composed by Rael Jones
• Trespasses - composed by David Holmes and Brian Irvine