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Nia Archives‘ ‘Silence is Loud’ has made history as the first jungle album to be nominated for the Mercury Prize in 26 years.
The Bradford-born singer recieved the nomination yesterday (26 July), the first jungle artist to do so since Roni Size took home the prize in 1997 for ‘New Forms’.
The nomination marks a monumental achievement for both Nia and dance music as a whole, joining a number handful of other electronic artsits who have made the prestigious shortlist — including Burial, Jon Hopkins and Shygirl, as well as fellow 2024 nominee Barry Can’t Swim.
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‘Silence is Loud’ has received glowing reviews since its April release, acclaimed for Nia’s daring approach to blending Brit-pop and alt-rock influences with classic ‘90s jungle breaks — with the artist herself describing the project as “more song-focussed” than her other work.
The shortlist for 2024 also includes Charli XCX with her club-pop masterpiece ‘BRAT’, Ghetts with his introspective fourth studio album ‘On Purpose, With Purpose’, and Berwyn’s emotionally mature ‘Who Am I’.
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The list of nominees was decided by a panel of industry experts, which this year includes BBC 6 Music’s Jamz Supernova, music critic for The Times Will Hodgkinson, BBC Radio 2’s Jeff Smith, and Capital Dance’s Mistajam.
Check out the full list of nominations below:
Barry Can’t Swim – ‘When Will We Land?’
BERWYN – ‘Who Am I’
Beth Gibbons – ‘Lives Outgrown’
Cat Burns – ‘early twenties’
Charli XCX – ‘BRAT’
CMAT – ‘Crazymad, for Me’
Corinne Bailey Rae – ‘Black Rainbows’
corto.alto – ‘Bad with Names’
English Teacher – ‘This Could Be Texas’
Ghetts – ‘On Purpose, With Purpose’
Nia Archives – ‘Silence Is Loud’
The Last Dinner Party – ‘Prelude to Ecstasy’
Jamaal Johnson is Mixmag’s Digital Intern, follow him on Instagram