Raye wins the Mercury Prize with This Music May Contain Hope
Raye is the 35th winner of the Mercury Prize, which was established to recognise albums that push the boundaries of music
Raye has won the 2026 Mercury Prize for her show-stopping second album This Music May Contain Hope.
A pop record sprinkled with golden age Hollywood glamour, it beat the likes of Sir Paul McCartney, Olivia Dean and Jade to scoop the £25,000 prize.
“I couldn’t tell you how grateful I am to be holding this,” said Raye, clutching her trophy at Newcastle’s Utilita Arena. “I’m shaking, I’m jet-lagged, I’m tired. It’s all blurry.”
It is the first time a pop album has won the coveted prize – which recognises the best British or Irish album of the last 12 months – since M People’s Elegant Slumming in 1994.
Speaking to the BBC afterwards, Raye said she’d “poured everything I had” into the record, which features the global hit song Where Is My Husband?
“I made this album not focusing on commercial [success], not focusing on making things cookie-cutter,” said the 28-year-old.
“Some of these songs are seven minutes. They’re indulgent. They’re maximalist.”
Across 17 tracks and 73 minutes, the record tells a cinematic story about a relationship that ends in tears on the rainy streets of Paris, then follows our plucky heroine as she dusts off the debris and emerges stronger and more resilient.
Established in 1992, the Mercury Prize was envisaged as an antidote to the commercially focused Brit Awards, recognising albums that moved music forwards, without recourse to fashion or trends.
Of the last 35 winners, 20 have been debut albums – from artists including Arctic Monkeys, Suede and Franz Ferdinand.
Olivia Dean had been the bookmakers’ favourite for her second album, The Art of Loving.
Other nominees included the rapper Kojey Radical, Geordie jazz act Knats, and former Little Mix star Jade – who was the first ever X Factor winner to receive a Mercury nomination.
The shortlist also included the charity compilation album Help (2), recorded in aid of Warchild, which featured new music and cover versions by artists such as Olivia Rodrigo, Damon Albarn, Depeche Mode and The Last Dinner Party.
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