- SAY Award Design Commission now oen for creatives in UNESCO City of Design
- Plus 2024 winners rEDOLENT set to perform at ceremony
- Early-bird tickets on sale via www.sayaward.com
Scotland’s national music prize, the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award, has unveiled a new host city for the next three years, with the award ceremony moving to Dundee in November 2025, celebrating the cultural impact and contribution of outstanding Scottish albums and marking the first time the Ceremony will be held outwith the Central Belt. To celebrate the new partnership with the city, The SAY Award has also opened expressions of interest for its Design Commission, calling on local creators to design prizes for this year’s nominees and winners.
Photo credit: Grant Anderson.
With only one week to go until eligible album submissions open for 2025’s award (1 July), the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) revealed The SAY Award’s new location as the Caird Hall in the heart of Dundee. This year’s Ceremony will take place on 6 November 2025, where the winner will receive a £20,000 first prize, along with the coveted title of Scottish Album of the Year. Additionally, the winner of the Modern Scottish Classic Award will be celebrated, and 2025’s Sound of Young Scotland Award winner will be exclusively revealed.
The Caird Hall will host The SAY Award from 2025 - 2027, as part of a new collaboration between the city and Scotland’s national music prize, previously held in Stirling from 2022 to 2024. An iconic venue which has hosted music’s biggest names, from The Beatles to Bjork, the Caird Hall celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2023. Now, set to host artists from all genres of music across Scotland, the Ceremony at the Caird Hall will feature live music performances as well as celebrations of this year’s Shortlist and the ultimate unveiling of the SAY Award winner. There has never been a better time to visit Dundee, a city steeped in culture, creativity and innovation and named ‘the coolest little city in the UK’ by GQ Magazine. Early bird tickets for the Ceremony at Caird Hall are on sale now.
As the UK’s first, and only, UNESCO City of Design, Dundee will celebrate its status as a cultural powerhouse in partnership with The SAY Award, with this year’s prizes set to be created by a local Dundee designer. Highlighting the enduring links between music, art and design, The SAY Award Design Commission invites local Dundee makers to create bespoke prizes for the winning artists at this year’s Ceremony. Submit an expression of interest via www.sayaward.com/designcommission.
The SAY Design Commission offers a fee of £3,000 for the design and manufacture of the awards, with a key focus on sustainability. Previous awards have included sand-cast glass sculptures, jesmonite arches and low-carbon concrete totems, with local designers encouraged to consider a zero-waste approach and take inspiration from the city of Dundee for their submissions.
Now in its fourteenth year, The SAY Award’s new three year partnership with Leisure & Culture Dundee, V&A Dundee, Dundee City Council and UNESCO Dundee City of Design means music fans in the north east of Scotland can be part of the country’s national music prize as Scotland’s music industry gathers in November to celebrate Scottish music; past, present and future. 2024’s winners rEDOLENT will also perform at The SAY Award Ceremony as the Caird Hall welcomes over 1,500 fans and industry alike on the night.
Artists, music fans, record labels and more will be encouraged to submit eligible albums for free, from 1st July, to be in with the chance of winning The SAY Award. To be considered for 2025’s award, eligible albums must have been released between 1st June 2024 and 31st May 2025 and meet The SAY Award’s eligibility criteria.
Music fans, artists and labels can submit eligible albums for free via www.sayaward.com - submissions open 00.01am 1 July 2025 and close 11.59pm 31 July 2025.
Previous winners include rEDOLENT, Young Fathers, Kathryn Joseph, Mogwai, Anna Meredith, Fergus McCreadie and more, with The SAY Award having distributed over £390,000 in prize money to Scottish artists since its inception in 2012. Albums released in the past twelve months, which can be submitted for consideration this year, include records from Primal Scream, Franz Ferdinand, TAAHLIAH, Nina Nesbitt, Erland Cooper, Be Charlotte, Twin Atlantic, corto.alto, Tide Lines, Sacred Paws and many more.
The SAY Award winner will receive a £20,000 prize and the coveted title of Scottish Album of the Year, whilst nine runners up will each receive £1,000, as well as bespoke prizes created by a Dundee-based artist through The SAY Award Design Commission. Accompanying the main album of the year prize, the Modern Scottish Classic Award will recognise an iconic album from Scotland’s past that still inspires Scottish musicians today, and the Sound of Young Scotland Award – supported by Help Musicians, the Scottish Government’s Youth Music Initiative through Creative Scotland and Youth Music – will provide a young and emerging artist with a funding package to support the creation of their debut album, including manufacturing support from Seabass Vinyl; Scotland’s first vinyl pressing plant. 2024’s Modern Scottish Classic winner was Martyn Bennet’s Grit, with Dillon Barrie collecting The Sound of Young Scotland Award.
Robert Kilpatrick, CEO and Creative Director of the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) said, “Following three incredible years hosting Scotland’s national music prize at Stirling’s Albert Halls, the SMIA is both delighted and proud to be calling Dundee’s iconic Caird Hall the new home of The SAY Award.
“Established in 2012 and originally hosted in Glasgow, we introduced our Host City model in 2016 to broaden The SAY Award’s reach, deepen place-based impact and ensure nation-wide cultural benefit. “Since then, we’ve worked in three-year cycles to move the Ceremony across the country; supporting regional industry development, establishing local partnerships and celebrating the strength and diversity of Scotland’s ever-evolving recorded output in a range of cultural contexts.
“Dundee has long been a city we’ve aspired to bring SAY to, and now feels like the perfect time to do so. From iconic artists and grassroots music venues to major cultural institutions and a proud DIY spirit, it’s a place where creativity, innovation and collaboration are deeply embedded, and we’re honoured to be adding to its rich musical heritage.
“Through our partnership with Leisure & Culture Dundee, V&A Dundee, Dundee City Council and UNESCO Dundee City of Design, we’re excited to amplify the city’s creative identity and welcome over 1,500 guests from across Scotland, the wider UK and beyond to our 2025 Ceremony on Thursday 6 November.
“Early bird tickets are on sale now, with 2024’s SAY Award winners rEDOLENT set to open this year’s show; passing the baton to 2025’s Scottish Album of the Year Award winner. And with eligible album submissions opening next week, we’re just getting started on what promises to be a landmark year for Scottish music.
“I hope that many of you can join us as we begin an exciting new chapter, with Dundee at the heart of celebrating, promoting and rewarding outstanding Scottish music.”
Anna Day, Head of Libraries and Culture at Leisure & Culture Dundee said, “We couldn’t be happier that The SAY Award is coming to the Caird Hall and Dundee for the next three years. As the musical heart of the city for generations, Caird Hall is ready for a bold new chapter. Partnering on The SAY Award marks a major step in our broader ambition to re-energise what the Caird Hall offers to audiences, artists and partners. We now can’t wait to welcome the Scottish music community through its doors and onto its stage.”
Leonie Bell, Director of V&A Dundee said, “We are all thrilled to be supporting this new three-year partnership with The SAY Award, bringing Scotland’s prestigious music industry awards to Dundee, a creative city recognised as the UK’s first and only UNESCO City of Design. Celebrating today’s announcement is the launch of The 2025 SAY Award Design Commission, highlighting the enduring links between music, art and design, and we are delighted this unique opportunity to design and make the awards for the winning artists is now open to Dundee’s skilled and talented creative community, with their work being profiled at this year’s SAY Award Ceremony at Caird Hall in November.”
Cllr Lynne Short, Dundee City Council's spokesperson for culture, sport and history said, "Music of all kinds provides the soundtrack to our city, whether it's the vibrant busking culture we have in the city centre, open-air gigs by established acts at Slessor Gardens or up and coming grass-roots bands in many of our small pubs and clubs.
"We have always been a city with a passion for music, and I am delighted that the Scottish Music Industry Association has chosen to make Dundee the home of The SAY Award for the next three years in a way that recognises this."
Once all eligible albums have been collated for The SAY Award, 100 impartial ‘Nominators’, chosen from sectors including journalism, music retail and music venues across Scotland, nominate and rank their five favourite albums in order of preference. The SMIA assigns a score to each title in a Nominator’s Top 5, before announcing the 20 highest scoring albums as The SAY Award Longlist.
The Longlist will then be whittled down to a Shortlist of 10 albums, one of which will be chosen by music fans via a 72-hour online public vote. The remaining nine albums will be chosen by The SAY Award judging panel, before judges then choose the winning album, exclusively announced at 2025’s ceremony.
The SAY Award is a Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) production. The SAY Award 2025 is delivered in partnership with Creative Scotland, Leisure & Culture Dundee, V&A Dundee, Dundee City Council, UNESCO Dundee City of Design, Seabass Vinyl, PPL, HMV, FOPP, Help Musicians, the Scottish Government’s Youth Music Initiative, Youth Music, 71 Brewing, Bon Accord, Apex Hotels, Malmaison and Music Declares Emergency.
Now in its fourteenth year, previous winners of The SAY Award include; rEDOLENT dinny greet (2024), Young Fathers Heavy Heavy (2023), Fergus McCreadie Forest Floor (2022), Mogwai As The Love Continues (2021), Nova Re-Up (2020), Auntie Flo Radio Highlife (2019), Young Fathers Cocoa Sugar (2018), Sacred Paws Strike A Match (2017), Anna Meredith Varmints (2016), Kathryn Joseph Bones You Have Thrown Me And Blood I’ve Spilled (2015), Young Fathers Tape Two (2014), RM Hubbert Thirteen Lost & Found (2013) and the inaugural winner Bill Wells and Aidan Moffat Everything’s Getting Older (2012).
Early-bird SAY Award Ceremony tickets on sale now via www.sayaward.com.
Background
SCOTTISH MUSIC INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION (SMIA)
The Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) is a not-for-profit trade body and membership organisation which exists to strengthen, empower and unite Scotland’s music industry.
We work to create and nurture an inclusive membership community which reflects the full spectrum of Scotland’s music industry. We give voice to our membership when speaking to Government, Parliament and development organisations, and we both produce and support projects and programmes that stimulate sustainability, domestic and international growth, development and innovation in Scotland’s music sector. Our services, projects and events are designed to strengthen and increase the value of Scotland’s music industry on the world stage; economically, socially and culturally.
The SMIA receives Multi-Year Funding from Creative Scotland, the public body that supports the arts, screen and creative industries across all parts of Scotland on behalf of everyone who lives, works or visits here.
For further information on the SMIA and its services, projects and events please visit www.smia.org.uk.
CREATIVE SCOTLAND
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports culture and creativity across all parts of Scotland, distributing funding provided by the Scottish Government and The National Lottery, which, now in its 30th year, has supported over 14,600 projects with more than £501.9 million in funding through Creative Scotland and its predecessor, the Scottish Arts Council. Further information at creativescotland.com. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Learn more about the value of art and creativity in Scotland and join in at www.ourcreativevoice.scot.
CAIRD HALL
Caird Hall is Dundee’s premier concert and events venue, located at the heart of the city. Operated by Leisure & Culture Dundee, the venue is renowned for its grand architecture, excellent acoustics and versatile space.
Caird Hall hosts a diverse range of performances and events, from classical concerts and gigs of all genres to conferences and graduations.
With a seating capacity of up to 2,300 and a stunning setting overlooking City Square, the hall continues to attract world-class artists and touring productions.
Easily accessible by road, rail, and bus, Caird Hall offers modern facilities while preserving its historic charm, making it a distinctive venue for audiences and performers alike.
For more information, visit https://www.leisureandculturedundee.com/culture/caird-hall
LEISURE & CULTURE DUNDEE
Leisure & Culture Dundee is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) dedicated to enriching lives by delivering high-quality leisure, sport, cultural, and library services across Dundee. Established to serve the people of Dundee and its visitors, we operate a diverse portfolio of venues and programmes that inspire participation, promote wellbeing, and celebrate the city’s rich cultural heritage.
We are proud to be at the heart of Dundee’s community life, managing libraries, museums, galleries, sports centres, and performance venues that are accessible, inclusive, and welcoming to all. Our work supports health and well-being, lifelong learning, social inclusion and economic development.
For more information, visit https://www.leisureandculturedundee.com/
V&A DUNDEE
V&A Dundee is Scotland’s design museum. Designed for everyone – firing imaginations and sparking curiosity in design in Scotland and around the world, from the heart of Dundee’s reimagined waterfront.
Conceived as a 21st century museum and designed by Kengo Kuma, V&A Dundee is a place of activity and energy, presenting spectacular exhibitions and a range of vibrant design experiences across our building, plaza and city. V&A Dundee brings design from all over the world to Scotland and gives a new voice and platform to Scottish design and designers.
V&A Dundee is part of the V&A family of museums, supported by the Scottish Government and our founding partnership of V&A, Dundee City Council, the University of Dundee, Abertay University and Scottish Enterprise.
Dundee City Council
Dundee City Council is the local authority for Dundee, a modern, vibrant city which is continuing to transform culturally. Its priorities include delivering inclusive economic growth, tackling climate change, reducing inequalities and child poverty and empowering communities. The Council delivers services aimed at providing a better quality of life for the people of Dundee, ensuring the city remains a great place to live, work, study, and visit.
UNESCO City of Design Dundee
Dundee is the UK's first and only UNESCO City of Design. Highlighting Dundee's commitment to sustainable development through creativity , the global designation as a Creative City acknowledges Dundee’s rich design heritage, its thriving contemporary design sector and a city committed to using design to solve problems making Dundee a better place to live. The UNESCO City of Design projects and programmes celebrate and demonstrate the impact of design, embrace co-design and promote Dundee's design talent.
SEABASS VINYL
Seabass Vinyl is Scotland’s first vinyl pressing plant. We are an independent, family-owned business, manufacturing records from our factory in East Lothian, with an emphasis on quality and sustainability. We offer fair prices, short production runs and optimised production lead times. We’re the first vinyl record pressing plant in the UK to become carbon-neutral certified (with Carbon Neutral Britain). Our ambition is to become a valuable partner to the Scottish music industry and our local community.
PPL
PPL is the UK music industry’s collective management organisation (CMO) for performers and recording rightsholders. We help ensure that our members’ talent and investment is fairly rewarded.
We license recorded music in the UK when it is broadcast (TV and radio) or played in public places (retail, hospitality, workplaces, gyms, etc). When our members’ music is played around the world, they can appoint us to collect royalties through our network of more than 110 agreements with other CMOs.
Our members include both independent and major record companies, together with performers ranging from emerging grassroots artists through to established session musicians and global superstars.
In 2024, PPL’s revenue was over £300 million, the highest in the company’s 90-year history and we paid over 172,000 performers and recording rightsholders. In the last five years alone, PPL has distributed over £1.25 billion to performers and recording rightsholders.
HELP MUSICIANS
Help Musicians is a charity that loves music and for over 100 years has been working hard to make a meaningful difference to the lives of musicians across the UK. It offers a broad range of help to support music creators in times of crisis and opportunity - ensuring musicians across the UK can achieve their creative potential and sustain a career in music.
HMV
HMV, for the fans since 1921. A leading specialist retailer of music, film, pop culture and technology products, with over 100 stores around the UK & Ireland offering a wide selection of new release and catalogue titles
FOPP
YOUTH MUSIC INITIATIVE
The Youth Music Initiative is a music education programme with a vision to put music at the heart of young people’s lives and learning funded by the Scottish Government through Creative Scotland. Since its establishment in 2007 the programme has distributed over £159 million, transforming music learning facilities for children and young people across the country. You can find out more about the programme on the Creative Scotland website.
YOUTH MUSIC
Youth Music is a national charity. We help marginalised young people to make and monetise music.
Every year, we raise £10 million to fund inspirational grassroots music projects and support aspiring young creatives up and down the UK.
We’re campaigning to break down barriers for young people facing inequity, exclusion and discrimination.
Together with our partners, we’re helping the next generation to transform their lives through music.
MUSIC DECLARES EMERGENCY
Formed by a group of UK based artists and music industry professionals in London in 2019, Music Declares Emergency has now expanded to four continents and works with over 8000 declarers from all sectors and areas of the global music industry, placing music at the heart of conversation and action in relation to the climate emergency.
Our work engages fans with the facts, develops messaging that cuts through the noise, works with artists to use their platforms, and encourages new business practice.
Our ‘No Music On A Dead Planet’ message has been seen by millions and frames a community of music lovers dedicated to working with us and the movement to campaign for systemic change to deliver real action on climate.
APEX HOTELS
Apex Hotels, a family-owned hospitality business founded by Norman Springford, owns 12 hotels across a UK wide portfolio, including vibrant city centre hotels and rural resorts. Norman opened his first property in 1996, Apex Grassmarket Hotel, in the heart of Edinburgh’s Old Town. Since then, Apex Hotels has grown into one of the UK’s leading independent hotel groups, attracting tourists and corporate guests from across the globe.
The company has acquired a range of new hotels in recent months as it continues to grow and diversify its portfolio. These include The Vineyard Hotel and Spa, a stunning five-star country house hotel and spa in the heart of Berkshire, just an hour from London, Pine Trees country house hotel in Pitlochry, acquired in July 2023, and Meldrum House Country Hotel & Golf Course in Aberdeenshire, which the group bought in April 2024.
In November 2024, Apex Hotels purchased the hotel trading as DoubleTree by Hilton Dunblane Hydro, representing the first property in the portfolio operating as a non-Apex hotel. The Hilton brand aligns with the company’s passion for offering consistently high standards of service to both business and leisure guests.
As well as offering consistently high standards for business and leisure guests, Apex Hotels has a committed approach to environmental and sustainable tourism practices and is one of the few independent hotel groups to hold the Gold Green Tourism Award for all its Apex branded hotels.
Media contact
Colette Baptie | [email protected]