WITHOUT targeted support, Scotland’s music sector “faces a severe and catastrophic loss of jobs and skills” which would do “long-term damage” to “culture for decades to come,” the general manager of the Scottish Music Industry Association has warned.
Robert Kilpatrick’s plea for help came as he unveiled this year’s shortlist for the Scottish Album of the Year award.
It’s been a strong year for debuts, with eight of the ten albums on the list coming from first-timers.
There was, however, no space for Lewis Capaldi, whose record-breaking Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent failed to win over the judging panel.
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They instead chose nine albums, including Blanck Mass’s Animated Violence Mild, Erland Cooper’s Sule Skerry, and SHHE’s eponymous debut, with a tenth, Callum Easter’s Here Or Nowhere, picked by music fans in a 72-hour public vote.
Kilpatrick praised the “strength, ambition and confidence” of the shortlisted albums.
He said the judges’ picks presented “a strong sense of Scotland’s diverse cultural identity”.
He added: “This year’s Shortlist poignantly showcases a future vision of Scottish music – of Scotland’s music industry – one which urgently needs targeted, sector-specific Government support to wave the continued storms of the Covid-19 crisis and to allow a vital industry on its knees to survive.
“Music adds key economic, social and cultural benefits to our society and to each of our lives.
"It plays a fundamental role in driving tourism through our events and festivals, having generated £494 million for Scotland’s economy in 2018. But most importantly, our musical output helps us connect with both ourselves and each other.
"It provides us with emotional and mental well-being, and it often reflects the stories of our lives and the stories of our communities.
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“All of this is currently at risk, and while the Scottish Government through Creative Scotland have provided some emergency funding for venues and hardship funding for artists, without further targeted support, our sector faces a severe and catastrophic loss of jobs and skills which would do long-term damage to music and culture for decades to come.”
This winner of the £20000 prize will be announced on Thursday, October 29.
Each shortlisted album has already won a guaranteed minimum prize of £1000 and will receive an exclusively designed art prize created by The SAY Award Design Commission winner Rekha Barry.
Previous winners include Young Fathers and Anna Meredith.
The SAY Award Shortlist 2020:
Blanck Mass, for Animated Violence Mild
Bossy Love, for Me + U
Callum Easter, for Here Or Nowhere
Cloth, for Cloth
Comfort, for Not Passing
Declan Welsh & The Decadent West, for Cheaply Bought, Expensively Sold
Erland Cooper, for Sule Skerry
The Ninth Wave, for Infancy
NOVA, for RE-UP
SHHE, for SHHE
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