The 15 album-strong shortlist for the 15th Welsh Music Prize 2025 has been announced.
With £10,000 prize money and a wide range of genres, the award is more prestigious year on year and awarded to an album released by a Welsh artist in the past 12 months. To qualify, the artist must have been born in Wales; at least 50% of the band’s core members were born in Wales; or an artist or band, irrespective of nationality, has made their creative base in Wales for the past three years.
Shortlisted albums in the Welsh language, or featuring Welsh language tracks, include Adwaith for double album Solas, Cardiff-based producer Don Leisure’s deep-dive into Welsh indie folk label archives Tyrchu Sain, The Gentle Good‘s Elan a tribute to the partially flooded Welsh valley; rap artist Sage Todz with Stopia Cwyno, alt-rockers Breichiau Hir nominated with their distinctive rock album Y Dwylo Uwchben and Gwenno with Utopia.
The shortlist drawn up by jurors across the Welsh music scene has a strong selection of debut records,; Tai Haf Heb Drigolyn with Ein Albwm Cyntaf Ni, solo singer-songwriter Buddug with Rhwng Gwyll a Gwawr, Cardiff electro pop artists Siula with their cinematic debut, Night Falls on the World and psych-rock group Melin Melyn with Mill on The Hill, and Panic Shack’s self-titled debut, which reached the number 1 spot on the Official Rock & Metal Album Chart.
KEYS get a well deserved nod for Acid Communism, their eighth album.
2021 winner Kelly Lee Owens gets a nomination for Dreamstate. Cotton Crown from The Tubs is on the list as is harpist and composer Cerys Hafana for her instrumental work Difrisg.
The winner of the 2025 Welsh Music Prize will be announced at a ceremony held at the Wales Millennium Centre on Monday October 6 hosted by Radio 1’s Sian Eleri. The event will be broadcast live on BBC Radio Wales and BBC Radio Cymru alongside a new TV highlights special for BBC One Wales, showcasing the best of the ceremony.
BBC Cymru Wales has commissioned the special highlights programme of the 2025 event which will also explore the prize’s impact on the Welsh music scene over the past 15 years. The programme will air after this year’s ceremony on BBC One Wales and BBC iPlayer.
Last year’s Welsh Music Prize winner was L E M F R E C K with his ambitious, deeply atmospheric three-part 2023 album Blood, Sweat & Fears. During his acceptance speech, the Newport-raised alt R&B and rap artist spoke about recognition from the Welsh Music Prize saying: “I’d like to talk about how important representation is. It’s not a box tick when artists like myself win awards like this – it’s a confirmation of art.”
The Welsh Music prize shortlist in alphabetical order is as follows:
Adwaith – Solas
Buddug – Rhwng Gwyll a Gwawr
Breichiau Hir – Y Dwylo Uwchben
Cerys Hafana – Difrisg
Don Leisure – Tyrchu Sain
Gwenno – Utopia
Kelly Lee Owens – Dreamstate
KEYS – Acid Communism
Melin Melyn – Mill on the Hill
Panic Shack – Panic Shack
Sage Todz – Stopia Cwyno
Siula – Night Falls on the World
Tai Haf Heb Drigolyn – Ein Albwm Cyntaf Ni
The Gentle Good – Elan
The Tubs – Cotton Crown
Welsh Music Prize co-founder, Huw Stephens said: “For the 15th year running the Welsh Music Prize will celebrate these great albums in a special night. We’re very happy that everyone will get to see the night on BBC One Wales and Iplayer this year too. The longlist and subsequent shortlist of albums is a yearly reminder of the great music and albums from Wales.”
Culture Minister, Jack Sargeant, said: “This year’s shortlist is a real reflection of the diversity in genres and the huge music talent coming out of Wales. It’s great to see everything from an all-female punk quartet, to electronica, psychedelic pop and Welsh language rap getting shortlisted by the judges, and I don’t envy the task of picking an overall winner. It’s going to be a fantastic night where the industry and fans can join together and celebrate Welsh music. Llongyfarchiadau mawr!”
Cardiff Council Cabinet Member for Culture, Parks and Events, Cllr Jennifer Burke, said: “The Welsh Music Prize is such an important showcase for Wales’s music scene – it’s a great way for fans to discover the best new music coming out of Wales, and for Wales’s talented artists and musicians to broaden their audience – and has been for the last 15 years. That’s why we continue to support it, and why we’re so pleased that it will once again be part of the Cardiff Music City festival this autumn.”
This year’s judges are:
- Sofia Ilyas, Chief Community Officer at Beatport Gallery.
- Roisin O’Connor, music editor for The Independent and host of the Good Vibrations podcast.
- DJ and BBC Radio Wales presenter, Molly Palmer,
- BBC 6 Music presenter, DJ and writer, Zakia Sewell,
- Natalia Quiros Edmunds, music journalist and artist manager at Arctic Monkeys and Fontaines DC management company, Wildlife Entertainment
- The Guardian music critic and author, Jude Rogers.
- Davie Morgan, writer and marketing manager at Welsh culture and music magazine, Radar.
- Tim Jonze, associate editor, culture at the Guardian.
- Caroline Cullen – Series Producer- Later…with Jools Holland / BBC Studios
Adwaith @ CWRW February 2025 Photo credit: Aled Llywelyn
