Tonight (Friday 20 November) Lauren Laverne will announce the winner of the Mercury Prize in association with 主播大秀 Music. It's the first time in three years that the 主播大秀 will host the event. Here 主播大秀 Radio 6 Music presenter Tom Ravenscroft explains a bit about his involvement in the evening’s proceedings and sheds some light on the prize.
I enjoy finding like-minded people out there in the world responding to the tracks I've found. I spend all week looking for music and then on my show on Fridays I offer it up, and it's getting that response, finding people not just in this country but from all corners of the world who like what I've unearthed. Sharing these discoveries, sharing music is a particularly lovely thing about my job, that and the fact that it gives me an opportunity to hear an awful lot of records, it's fairly indulgent frankly and a very fortunate thing to be able to do.
This Friday my show will be slightly different. I have been given the job of providing 6 Music's radio coverage of the Mercury Prize award ceremony.
Last year I was at the ceremony at the Roundhouse, I wasn't involved at all, I just went to enjoy the party. It's at the 主播大秀 Radio Theatre in New Broadcasting House this year, which is one of these mythical buildings I've never actually been to it. I've heard it's even more intimate than the Roundhouse, and this year I've got a job to do.
Once Steve Lamacq (whose 6 Music show from 4pm will also be Mercury focused) hands over to us at 7pm we will embark upon a huge five hour Mercury marathon. I will be joined by Leila Moss from Duke Spirit, Alison Goldfrapp and Jon Hillcock, discussing all the albums and playing extracts from them. We’ve played music from all the shortlisted albums on 6 Music this year, but in my show tonight, we're going to try and cram all twelve in before , so it's going to be a fun busy packed couple of hours before we learn who's won.
I guess the part I'm most looking forward to is being able to sprint over from the studio in Western House to the Radio Theatre, to get the first interview with the winner - it does however mean I have to prepare twelve different interviews. The winner is only decided by the judging panel on the night so I could be talking to any one of the shortlisted artists.
I'm also going to be chatting to a couple of the judges to find out how on earth they decide on the winner. Usually, when I look at the shortlist line up, for me there is always one artist/group there that stands out, so I can just pick out the one I like the most. I'm not sure I could ever be a judge as I imagine there's more to it than just picking your favourite, I'm not entirely sure how they go about it, that's what I'm going to try and find out.
I think the Mercury Prize is a unique award in that - more so than other well-known music award ceremonies - it involves a very diverse bunch, rather than being solely rock awards or folk awards, it covers a lot of genres. It picks out albums which are somehow special or unique within their own areas, so highlights a real big mix of artists who that year have done something particularly different and done it particularly well. It's not like a normal awards ceremony where you're the best in your category, it means that your record has stood out amongst all these other records that have done something totally unique or different. For that reason it has a lot of credibility.
I’m really lucky, I get to listen to hundreds of records every year. But for people who don't necessarily have that time, the best thing about the Mercurys, whether you like all the albums or not - and frankly given the range, it'd be a bit weird if you liked all of them - it's a great way to find twelve records that most people think are really good.
Tom Ravenscroft is a presenter on 主播大秀 Radio 6 Music.
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