Raye has added the 2026 Mercury Prize to her growing collection of honors, taking the UK and Ireland’s album-of-the-year award for This Music May Contain Hope. The win was announced on Thursday, October 22, at Newcastle’s Utilita Arena, where broadcaster Lauren Laverne hosted the ceremony and DJ Sian Eleri handed over the trophy on behalf of the judges.
The prize comes with £25,000 and is decided by a panel of musicians, broadcasters, journalists and industry figures. This year’s judges, chaired by Jeff Smith, included Jamie Cullum, MistaJam, Afrodeutsche and Sian Eleri, among others. In their citation, they singled out the record’s range and imagination, saying it showed what an album can be beyond the limits of any single genre.
A sprawling, high-concept record
This Music May Contain Hope is Raye’s second studio album, released in March 2026 on Human Re Sources. It runs 73 minutes across 17 tracks split into four sections, moving between big-band jazz, soul, R&B, funk and orchestral writing. It entered the UK albums chart at No. 1, and its singles include “Where Is My Husband!”, which reached No. 1 in the UK and No. 6 in the US, as well as “Nightingale Lane,” “I Know You’re Hurting” and “Click Clack Symphony,” a collaboration with Hans Zimmer. Raye marked the win by performing “I Hate The Way I Look Today” from the album.
The victory carries extra weight given her history. The 28-year-old singer, born Rachel Keen in west London, publicly clashed with her former record label in 2021 over not being allowed to release a studio album. After leaving that deal, she broke through with My 21st Century Blues, which earned her six Brit Awards in one night, still the record for a single ceremony. In her acceptance remarks she reflected on coming from a singles-driven environment and said she was grateful to see a full album recognized.
A heavyweight shortlist
Raye beat a field that included Paul McCartney, nominated for the first time for The Boys of Dungeon Lane; Suede, previous winners in 1993, with Antidepressants; 2019 winner Dave; Olivia Dean’s long-running chart success The Art of Loving; Newcastle jazz outfit Knats; and Florence + the Machine, who now share with Radiohead the unwanted distinction of five nominations without a win. Pulp performed on behalf of the War Child charity compilation Help.
The ceremony is in its second year in Newcastle after the prize lost its sponsor in 2024 and relocated from London in 2025. The shift has come with a more commercial-looking shortlist: six of this year’s nominated albums reached No. 1, and all but two were released by or with one of the three major labels, a point some observers say blurs the line between the Mercury and the Brits.
Source: The Guardian; additional details from the Mercury Prize.
Photo: Raye accepts the 2026 Mercury Prize. JM Enternational/Getty Images, via The Guardian.