Today, we announce the nominations for The Ivors 2023 with Amazon Music, recognising and celebrating outstanding songwriters and composers across nine categories – including Songwriter of the Year with Amazon Music, Best Album, Best Original Film Score, Best Contemporary Song, PRS for Music Most Performed Work and the Rising Star Award with Amazon Music.
Recognised as the pinnacle of creative musical achievement since they were first presented in 1956, winning an Ivor Novello holds a special place in music as they are judged by award-winning songwriters and composers from The Ivors Academy, with winners joining a roll call of greats that includes Adele, Cathy Dennis, Annie Lennox, Dave, Amy Winehouse, Paul McCartney and John Lennon.
This year, 72 individual songwriters and composers have received Ivor Novello nominations, with 54% of these receiving a nomination for the very first time. Harry Styles and Kid Harpoon are up for three Ivors, as are Cleopatra Nikolic and Dean “Inflo” Josiah Cover, making them this year’s most nominated songwriters.
The prestigious Songwriter of the Year with Amazon Music recognises British or Irish songwriters or songwriting partnerships for outstanding bodies of commercially successful songs released in 2022. This year’s nominees are all heavyweights of the music industry responsible for countless UK #1 releases combined: Florence Welch (Florence + the Machine), Harry Styles and Kid Harpoon, Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers (Wet Leg), George Daniel and Matty Healy (The 1975) and Central Cee and Young Chencs.
Celebrating albums released in the UK in 2022 that exhibit creative consistency and exceptional songwriting, this year’s nominees for Best Album include Arctic Monkey’s The Car (written by Alex Turner), Obongjayar’s Some Nights I Dream of Doors (written by Barney Lister and Obongjayar) and Fontaines D.C.’s Skinty Fia (written by Grian Chatten, Thomas Coll, Conor Curley, Conor Deegan and Carlos O’Connell). Cleopatra Nikolic and Dean “Inflo” Josiah Cover are both nominated twice in this category, for their work on Little Simz’s No Thank You and SAULT’s 11 alongside co-writers Jamar McNaughton and Jack Peñate.
Knucks receives two nominations for Best Contemporary Song, one for his track ‘Leon the Professional’ with co-writers Venna and Toshifumi Hinata and one for his feature on Kojey Radical’s ‘Payback’ that also credits Swindle – who is responsible for composing the new theme music for the Ivor Novello ceremonies. The other nominations are Wesley Joseph and Leon Vynehall for ‘Cold Summer’, 070 Shake, RAYE and Mike Sabath for ‘Escapism’ and Owen Cutts, P2J, PRGRSHN and Stormzy for ‘Hide & Seek’.
In the PRS for Music Most Performed Work category, Ed Sheeran makes history as ‘Bad Habits’ is once again nominated after winning the award last year. He is the first ever artist to achieve the feat in this category, with his track ‘Shivers’ also nominated. After a major surge of popularity following hit TV series Stranger Things, Kate Bush’s ‘Running Up That Hill’ is nominated 37 years after the track was originally among the nominees for Best Contemporary Song. Also nominated is Harry Styles ‘As It Was’ and Glass Animals ‘Heat Waves’.
Since its inception in 2020, the Rising Star Award with Amazon Music has championed Britain and Ireland’s most promising songwriting talents, and previous winners are Mysie, Willow Kayne and Naomi Kimpenu. Hoping to claim the prize this year are Cat Burns, Ines Dunn, tendai, venbee and Victoria Canal – with each artist receiving their first Ivor Novello nomination.
Best Song Musically and Lyrically is awarded to those who demonstrated an excellence in songwriting craft in 2022. Nominated this year is Harry Styles’ ‘As It Was’, Tom Odell’s ‘Best Day of My Life’, Katie Gregson-Macleod’s ‘complex’, SAULT’s ‘Stronger’ and Florence + the Machine’s ‘King’ – which also credits esteemed US songwriter and producer Jack Antonoff, who has worked on many of the last decade’s most successful and influential pop songs.
The Ivors also recognises Britain and Ireland’s finest composers across film, TV and video games. Nominees for Best Original Film Score include John Powell for the music of Don’t Worry Darling, starring fellow nominee Harry Styles, and the record-breaking blockbuster Avatar: The Way of Water, composed by Simon Franglen. Also nominated are Patrick Doyle for Death on the Nile, Rael Jones for Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris and Arthur Sharpe for The Electrical Life of Louis Wain.
The Best Original Video Game Score category sees British musical duo The Flight receive two nominations. Firstly, for their musical contributions on the Batman-inspired Gotham Knights, and secondly on the critically acclaimed Horizon Forbidden West, also composed by Joris de Man and Oleksa Lozowchuk. Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is the final nomination, composed by Gareth Coker, Grant Kirkhope and Yoko Shimomura.
Best Television Soundtrack has been presented at The Ivors since 1962, recognising the integral and invaluable role music plays in television. Making up the nominees this year are PJ Harvey and Tim Phillips for Bad Sisters, David Schweitzer for Elizabeth: The Unseen Queen, Harry Escott and Ben Pearson for The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe, Hannah Peel for The Midwich Cuckoos, and Matthew Herbert, who was nominated in the same category in 2021, for The Responder.
Tom Gray, Chair of The Ivors Academy, said, “The music nominated for an Ivor Novello this year is testament to the power and range of British and Irish songwriting and screen composing. It’s a superlative list and on behalf of The Ivors Academy I’m delighted to congratulate every writer nominated for their craft and achievements.”
The official playlist for The Ivors 2023, released today on Amazon Music, showcases the songs and songwriters nominated for a 2023 award. Listen here.
The winners will be revealed at The Ivors with Amazon Music at Grosvenor House in London on Thursday 18th May 2023. As previously announced, Sting will become a Fellow of The Ivors Academy, the highest honour the Academy bestows. Ivor Novello Awards will also be presented for the Outstanding Song Collection, Special International Award, Visionary Award with Amazon Music and PRS for Music Icon Award.
The Ivors 2023 nominations are:
BEST ALBUM
11
written by Dean “Inflo” Josiah Cover, Jamar McNaughton, Cleopatra Nikolic and Jack Peñate
performed by SAULT
NO THANK YOU
written by Dean “Inflo” Josiah Cover, Little Simz and Cleopatra Nikolic
performed by Little Simz
SKINTY FIA
written by Grian Chatten, Thomas Coll, Conor Curley, Conor Deegan and Carlos O’Connell
performed by Fontaines D.C.
SOME NIGHTS I DREAM OF DOORS
written by Barney Lister and Obongjayar
performed by Obongjayar
THE CAR
written by Alex Turner
performed by Arctic Monkeys
BEST CONTEMPORARY SONG
COLD SUMMER
written by Wesley Joseph and Leon Vynehall
performed by Wesley Joseph
ESCAPISM
written by 070 Shake, RAYE and Mike Sabath
performed by RAYE & 070 Shake
HIDE & SEEK
written by Owen Cutts, P2J, PRGRSHN and Stormzy
performed by Stormzy
LEON THE PROFESSIONAL
written by Knucks, Venna and Toshifumi Hinata
performed by Knucks
PAYBACK
written by Knucks, Kojey Radical and Swindle
performed by Kojey Radical feat. Knucks
BEST ORIGINAL FILM SCORE
AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER
composed by Simon Franglen
DEATH ON THE NILE
composed by Patrick Doyle
DON’T WORRY DARLING
composed by John Powell
MRS. HARRIS GOES TO PARIS
composed by Rael Jones
THE ELECTRICAL LIFE OF LOUIS WAIN
composed by Arthur Sharpe
BEST ORIGINAL VIDEO GAME SCORE
GOTHAM KNIGHTS
composed by The Flight
HORIZON FORBIDDEN WEST
composed by Joris de Man, Oleksa Lozowchuk and The Flight
MARIO + RABBIDS SPARKS OF HOPE
composed by Gareth Coker, Grant Kirkhope and Yoko Shimomura
BEST SONG MUSICALLY AND LYRICALLY
AS IT WAS
written by Kid Harpoon, Tyler Johnson and Harry Styles
performed by Harry Styles
BEST DAY OF MY LIFE
written by Laurie Blundell and Tom Odell
performed by Tom Odell
COMPLEX
written by Katie Gregson-Macleod
performed by Katie Gregson-Macleod
KING
written by Jack Antonoff and Florence Welch
performed by Florence + The Machine
STRONGER
written by Dean “Inflo” Josiah Cover and Cleopatra Nikolic
performed by SAULT
BEST TELEVISION SOUNDTRACK
BAD SISTERS
composed by PJ Harvey and Tim Phillips
ELIZABETH: THE UNSEEN QUEEN
composed by David Schweitzer
THE MIDWICH CUCKOOS
composed by Hannah Peel
THE RESPONDER
composed by Matthew Herbert
THE THIEF, HIS WIFE AND THE CANOE
composed by Harry Escott and Ben Pearson
PRS FOR MUSIC MOST PERFORMED WORK
AS IT WAS
written by Kid Harpoon, Tyler Johnson and Harry Styles
performed by Harry Styles
BAD HABITS
written by FRED, Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran
performed by Ed Sheeran
HEAT WAVES
written by Dave Bayley
performed by Glass Animals
RUNNING UP THAT HILL
written by Kate Bush
performed by Kate Bush
SHIVERS
written by Johnny McDaid, Kal Lavelle, Steve Mac and Ed Sheeran
performed by Ed Sheeran
RISING STAR AWARD WITH AMAZON MUSIC
Cat Burns
Ines Dunn
tendai
venbee
Victoria Canal
SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR WITH AMAZON MUSIC
Central Cee and Young Chencs
Florence Welch
George Daniel and Matty Healy
Harry Styles and Kid Harpoon
Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers
