RAYE has won the 2026 Mercury Prize for her second studio album, THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE., taking home the prestigious British music award at a ceremony held on October 22 at Newcastle’s Utilita Arena. The victory marks a major milestone for the South London singer-songwriter, whose ambitious 17-track record earned widespread critical acclaim and became her first album to top the UK charts.
Announced at the sold-out ceremony hosted by Lauren Laverne, the win comes three years after RAYE’s debut album, My 21st Century Blues, was shortlisted for the 2023 prize. Established in 1992, the Mercury Prize recognizes outstanding albums released by artists from the UK and Ireland, with artistic merit taking precedence over commercial performance. RAYE receives the trophy and a £25,000 prize, joining a list of previous winners that includes Adele, Arctic Monkeys, PJ Harvey, Little Simz and last year’s recipient, Sam Fender.
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RAYE prevailed over 11 other shortlisted albums, including Olivia Dean’s The Art of Loving, Florence + the Machine’s Everybody Scream, JADE’s THAT’S SHOWBIZ BABY!, Dave’s The Boy Who Played the Harp and Paul McCartney’s The Boys of Dungeon Lane. Ten of the 12 shortlisted acts performed during the ceremony, with short films representing Dave and McCartney.
Released independently through Human Re Sources on March 27, 2026, THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE. features 17 tracks, exploring hope, resilience, liberation and emotional complexity through a structure loosely inspired by the four seasons. The album expands on the jazz-pop foundations of My 21st Century Blues, incorporating big-band arrangements, soul, blues, R&B and cinematic orchestration.
Commercially, it also represented a breakthrough: the album debuted at No. 1 on the UK Official Albums Chart with 46,976 equivalent album units. It subsequently earned BPI Gold certification for more than 100,000 units and reached No. 11 on the Billboard 200, marking RAYE’s highest position on the US chart.
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