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Sep 14, 2017 Blossoms By Christopher Roberts

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British singer Sampha Sisay (or just Sampha) was previously best known for his vocal and production contributions to the likes of SBTRKT (where many listeners likely first discovered him), Kanye West, Drake, and Solange. But back in February he finally released Process, his debut solo album, via Young Turks. And now his profile is going to get even higher, as he has just won the 2017 Mercury Prize, a prestigious award given each year to the best British album of the year. Process beat albums by alt-J, The xx, Glass Animals, Sampha, The Big Moon, Kate Tempest, Ed Sheeran, and others. Idris Elba presented the award. Watch his acceptance speech and performance at the show below. Also below are performances from the award show by all the nominees, including alt-J, The xx, and Glass Animals.

Since 1992 the Mercury Prize has been awarded to the best British album of the year, meaning an album created by a citizen of the U.K. and Ireland. It’s become one of the biggest honors a British musician can receive and can also boost an album’s sales in the U.K., especially if it wins. Both alt-J and The xx have won before, for their debut albums.

Last year Skepta won and the year before it was Benjamin Clementine. The Mercury Prize started out strong with Primal Scream’s Screamadelica winning in 1992 and Suede’s self-titled debut winning in 1993. There have been lots of great artists who have also won since, including PJ Harvey (the only artist to win it twice), Pulp, Elbow, Portishead, Franz Ferdinand, and others. Although they don’t always get it right and there have been some forgettable winners as well.

Below also is the video for Sampha’s “(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano.”

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