Young Fathers made history with a hat-trick of wins of the Scottish Album of the Year Award with an LP which one judge said "cements their world-class status".
Heavy Heavy was announced as the SAY Award winner in prestigious ceremony in Stirling’s Albert Halls.
Young Fathers claimed the title ahead of a Shortlist including Paolo Nutini, Becky Sikasa, Joesef and more, taking home £20,000 and becoming the first act to take the coveted title for the third time.
Their two previous wins came in 2014 with Tape Two and 2018 with Cocoa Sugar. Young Fathers won the overall final prize from a record-breaking eligible album list of 437, whittled down to a Longlist of 20 and then a Shortlist of 10.
The award crowns a magnificent year for the Edinburgh trio which reached the UK Top Ten Album Chart for the first time.
READ MORE: Top 100 Tunes from Scotland in 2022 Part 4 (25-1)
Robert Kilpatrick, interim chief executive and creative director of the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) which organises the awards said: "As the band continued on a metoric rise; defying definitions with their sound and bringing a level of energy and power that’s uniquely theirs, tonight sees them claim Scotland’s national music prize for the third time with their strongest and most mesmerising body of work to date.
"Their win signifies the importance of recognising and investing in outstanding Scottish talent, and through the support of The SAY Award (and many other well-deserved accolades), Young Fathers continue to capture the magic and bring it into the lives of music fans worldwide.
"Tonight’s win further cements their world-class status, and through doing so, Scotland’s global reputation as a country overflowing with outstanding and idiosyncratic creative talent.
"They’re a band we can be proud of, a band we can be inspired by and a band who, quite simply, keep astounding, delighting and enthralling us."
Paolo Nutini’s debut record These Streets was awarded the Modern Scottish Classic Award, with the Paisley singer-songwriter’s manager and sister Francesca taking to the stage to accept the award on the singer's behalf as he is currently in the USA.
No Windows was named The Sound of Young Scotland, winning a £10,000 funding package to create their debut album. Since its inception in 2012, The SAY Award has now distributed over £350,000 in prize money, recognised 240 Longlisted albums and championed Scottish music from legends of the scene to new and emerging artists.
The video for I Saw, one of the killer tracks on the SAY award-winning Young Fathers album
Described by the organisers as "the biggest night in Scotland's music calendar, the ceremony saw the country’s top stars celebrate the very best of Scottish music - past, present and future.
It opened with 2022 SAY Award winner Fergus McCreadie who returned to the venue for the first time since winning, and closed with a live set from acclaimed electronic DJ and producer TAAHLIAH.
A special set celebrating the Modern Scottish Classic Award winner, Paolo Nutini featured vocalists Becky Sikasa, and Brownbear and the SAY Award house band, led by former SAY nominee Joe Rattray of Admiral Fallow, to perform hits including Jenny Don’t Be Hasty, These Streets, Last Request and New Shoes.
Winners of each prize, The SAY Award, Modern Scottish Classic Award and Sound of Young Scotland Award, took home beautifully unique concrete and terrazzo bowls.
Mr Kilpatrick added: "The SMIA is proud of its ongoing commitment to strengthen, empower and unite Scotland’s music industry, and The SAY Award once again highlights the cultural impact and contribution of outstanding Scottish music.”
Now in its twelfth year, previous winners of The SAY Award include Fergus McCreadie's Forest Floor (2022); Mogwai's - As The Love Continues (2021); Nova's Re-Up (2020); Auntie Flo's - Radio Highlife (2019); Young Fathers' Cocoa Sugar (2018); Sacred Paws' Strike A Match (2017); Anna Meredith's Varmints (2016); Kathryn Joseph's Bones You Have Thrown Me And Blood I’ve Spilled (2015); Young Fathers' Tape Two (2014); RM Hubbert's Thirteen Lost & Found (2013) and the inaugural winner Bill Wells and Aidan Moffat's Everything’s Getting Older’ (2012).
The judging panel for the SAY Award is headed by the chairman and culture journalist Arusa Qureshi who was recently announced as Summerhall’s new Music Programme Manager.
This year’s panel also includes Adem Holness, head of contemporary music at the Southbank Centre in London; Scots screenwriter and actress Andrea Gibb; Ariel Cohen, strategic partner manager for artist development at YouTube Music; Becci Scotcher, senior grants and programmes manager with new music funders PRS Foundation; Glaswegian fashion designer Charles Jeffrey; Edinburgh-born broadcaster Gordon Smart; John Rostron, chief executive of the Association of Independent Festivals; writer and editor Katie Goh; entertainment reporter and presenter Laura Boyd; Pete Sparkes, artistic director of Drake Music Scotland and Titania Altius, head of member services with UK's music licensing company PPL.
The SAY Award Shortlist for 2023 in alphabetical order was:
Andrew Wasylyk - Hearing The Water Before Seeing the Falls
Becky Sikasa - Twelve Wooden Boxes
Bemz Nova’s Dad
Brìghde Chaimbeul - Carry Them With Us
Brooke Combe - Black Is the New Gold
Cloth - Secret Measure
Hamish Hawk -Angel Numbers
Joesef - Permanent Damage
Paolo Nutini - Last Night In The Bittersweet
Young Fathers - Heavy Heavy
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