Nova makes history as Re-Up takes crown at Say Awards 2020

The rapper-producer-DJ, whose real name is Shaheeda Sinckler, is the inaugural grime performer to earn the annual prize.

And at 24-year-old, she is also the youngest ever winner of the award.

Her album, Re-Up, was crowned at a ceremony recently. However, Nova was unable to attend herself, after receiving a positive test for Covid-19.

Nevertheless, her shock was caught live on camera as part of the event night.

Re-Up was described as "utilising compelling and introspective storytelling" to take her listeners on a journey through afterparties, the struggles of young people and Nova's unfiltered truth.

After receiving the prize, she said, "It is such an incredible feeling to have won the 2020 Scottish Album of the Year Award, just a couple of weeks shy of my 25th birthday.

"It is so affirming – any doubts that I might have had previously are now out of the window and I'm seriously so excited for the future.

"I'm excited to keep on this upwards trajectory, thrilled to encounter new experiences and take my professionalism to the next level.

"To think that my manager and I had no idea where we would end up when we started working together and now to have made it here is just fantastic."

She added: "It hasn't always been easy – there have been a lot of late nights, night buses and moments of uncertainty, to name a few challenges, but winning this award has solidified my belief that hard work and determination bring results.

"So, don't call me lucky, because I worked my butt off to move forward – and you can too.

"There is so much possibility in the air and I feel so free, nurturing old bonds and making new ones is what I can see on the horizon.

"I've already begun working on my next project and I cannot wait to see how that is received. I'm sending much love and blessings to everyone who made this possible."

A record-breaking year all round for Scotland's national music prize, The SAY Award received 362 eligible album submissions in 2020.

This year's Shortlist also contained the most ever debuts with an incredible eight debuts out of ten, and now, the youngest ever winner of the coveted title.

Robert Kilpatrick, general manager of the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA), said: "Nova's SAY Award win for Re-Up sends a powerful message of hope and ambition to Scotland's music scene at a time it's never been needed more.

"Re-Up is Nova's debut body of work. Poignant social commentary and unfiltered truth is set against the backdrop of bassy trap, lo-fi hip hop and heavy grime, resulting in a record which is well crafted, authentic and necessary.

"The fact it was delivered with the support of a range of local producers from across Scotland only goes to show the passion, strength and innovation of Scotland's growing hip-hop/rap/grime scene, which I'm delighted that The SAY Award is shining a bright and well-deserved spotlight on through Nova's win.

"At 18 minutes long and containing six tracks, Re-Up was the shortest album on this year's 10-strong Shortlist. With many acts from across the hip-hop/rap/grime scene traditionally creating and releasing shorter form bodies of work compared to their counterparts in other genres (and the reasons for doing so not simply being just due to style), it's encouraging to see an award like SAY be able to encapsulate and celebrate music of all kinds and genres from across Scotland, and reflect the changing ways in which music is recorded, released and ultimately consumed in 2020.

"Accessibility is absolutely key for this project, and this is reflected at every stage of The SAY Award process. From no submission fee to enter, to a progressive idea of what defines a Scottish Artist (anyone who's made Scotland their creative base for at least three years is eligible), to our definition of an album (a body of work containing at least six tracks and/or being over 30 minutes in length), The SAY Award continually strives to be by and for, and representative of, Scotland and Scotland's music industry.

"Nova's win challenges the idea of what an album actually is in 2020, as whilst Re-Up may be short in length, its impact and resonance as a body of work is nothing short of powerful. In an age where streaming dominates music consumption, artists and labels are met with new pressures around what they should release and how they should release it.

"These external factors are continually moving, and they vary from genre to genre, where consumer tastes and behaviour have developed in different ways."

He added: "Music is about so much more than just money, but money is absolutely essential to keep the artists we love and the industry which supports them afloat.

"Music's about us connecting; understanding both ourselves and each other better, and ultimately discovering more about the world around us. It's fitting that Re-Up explores tales of a young artist in modern day Scotland struggling to keep financially afloat.

"These challenges poignantly mirror challenges that many of us in music face today, and in the articulation of these challenges through the creation of Re-Up, Nova now finds herself in a position where the future presents opportunity, recognition and ultimately hope. This is something that can and should inspire us all."

Alan Morrison, head of music at Creative Scotland, said: "The impact and importance of an album isn't defined by its running time – it's the artist's creative vision, captured in a self-contained statement, that really matters.

"Re-Up is a timely winner of The SAY Award and Nova is an attention-grabbing new voice on the Scottish music scene, in a year when debuts dominated the Shortlist.

"It's important that this voice comes from what used to be considered the musical margins of an established industry. The SAY Award is ahead of the curve when it comes to defining an album in the locked-down, stream-obsessed, socially-conscious world of 2020.

"Unlike so many other awards, its guidelines inspire new ways of thinking about music and encourage the kind of inclusivity that make modern Scotland such a diverse and creative country."

John Williamson, chairing the Judging Panel this year, added: "Choosing one album over others to award a prize is, at the best of times, something of a fool's errand.

"This year the judges had a not inconsiderable task – trying to compare the lavishly-produced and orchestrated against more homespun, DIY creations spanning a range of styles, backgrounds and outlooks.

"Nova's Re-Up is, regardless, a worthy winner: brilliant, idiosyncratic and poetic: its brevity even challenges what we consider an album in the first place."

With this year's SAY Award campaign going digital for the first time ever, due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, this year's final award ceremony was broadcasted online via YouTube Premiere, giving fans around the world the chance to be front row at what is normally an industry-only exclusive event.

Traditionally providing a showcasing opportunity for some of Scotland's most exciting emerging artists – with 2018 showcase acts Declan Welsh & the Decadent West and Erland Cooper included in this year's Shortlist – tonight's ceremony line-up included performances from: Happy Spendy, Kapil Seshasayee, VLURE and Zoe Graham.

Presented by co-hosts Nicola Meighan and Vic Galloway from Edinburgh's magnificent Summerhall, the digital ceremony saw each artist collect their Shortlist prize in-person, giving powerful acceptance speeches to an empty venue with only crew present.

Re-watch the The SAY Award Ceremony via SAY's YouTube channel.

All images from the award ceremony by Rory Barnes.