Mercury Prize favourite Nadine Shah has said she she is glad her political album Holiday Destination has been shortlisted as she believes not enough artists are making music that reflect current times.
South Tyneside singer Shah’s record contains songs that discuss the refugee crisis and the failure of politicians in the north of England.
It is one of 12 records that are up for the prestigious prize, which celebrates the best of UK music and recognises artistic achievement across an eclectic range of contemporary genres.
IT'S TODAY 🏆The 2018 Hyundai Mercury Prize winner will be revealed this evening! Who do you think should win?#HyundaiMercuryPrize@ArcticMonkeys@E_E_@loppylugsOG@flo_tweet@KingKruleST@lilyallen@JorjaSmith@nadineshah@NoelGallagher@Novelist@SonsOfKemet@wolfalicemusic pic.twitter.com/R6sFPU1lqG
— Mercury Prize (@MercuryPrize) September 20, 2018
This year’s winner will be announced at a ceremony in London’s Hammersmith Apollo, which will be hosted by Radio One DJ Annie Mac.
Speaking on the red carpet, Shah said:”The thing that I find shocking is there are not enough musicians making political music.
“If there was a political album that won an award it might inspire more artists to make political music.
“We have artists that do the rest of it, but we really need ones that document the times that we live in, and right now we need it more than ever.”
Bloody hell. It’s the @MercuryPrize Awards today 😱 The excitement is real. Watch/Listen on @bbcfour and @bbc6music ✌🏻❤️ pic.twitter.com/7iVFuDDf4o
— Nadine Shah (@nadineshah) September 20, 2018
Arctic Monkeys, Lily Allen and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds are also in the running for the prestigious award.
Shah admitted she felt cursed being labelled as the bookmakers’ favourite to win.
Shah said: “I keep saying this, it’s the kiss of death. I don’t want it, it’s like the Black Spot!”