Stormzy And Ed Sheeran Shortlisted For The Mercury Prize

Stormzy, Alt-J and Ed Sheeran are among the artists nominated for the 2017 Mercury Prize.

The Hyundai Mercury Prize, with its shortlist of 'Albums of the Year', is given to the best British record of the past twelve months, as chosen by a panel of British music critics and industry figures.

Ed Sheeran. Credit: PA

Former winners The xx are up for the award, alongside Sampha, Stormzy, Alt-J, J Hus, Kate Tempest and more.

The full list of nominees is as follows:

Alt-J - Relaxer
Blossoms - Blossoms
Dinosaur - Together, As One
Ed Sheeran - ÷
Glass Animals - How To Be A Human Being
J Hus - Common Sense
Kate Tempest - Let The Eat Chaos
Loyle Carner - Yesterday's Gone
Sampha - Process
Stormzy - Gang Signs & Prayer
The Big Moon - Love In The 4th Dimension
The xx - I See You

Kate Tempest. Credit: PA

The judges said "This year's Hyundai Mercury Prize shortlist celebrates the remarkable power of British music. What these artists have in common is an infectious pleasure in music making and an arresting sense of urgency about the music they make. They delight in exploring musical possibilities and refusing to be pinned down by genre conventions."

This year's ceremony takes place 14 September at the Hammersmith Apollo, and will feature performances from the nominated artists.

Skepta. Credit: PA

Last year's winner was grime artist Skepta, following the release of his critically acclaimed album Konnichiwa, while the prize has previously been collected by the likes of Pulp, Badly Drawn Boy, Miss Dynamite, Roni Size and PJ Harvey.

Pulp collect the prize at the 1996 awards. Credit: PA

The prize has been referred to by some as a 'poisoned chalice', with winners such as Speech Debelle failing to maintain their early success after winning the award. More recently, however, Alt-J and Elbow have been among the victorious artists, and continue to enjoy successful careers after Mercury recognition.