35 artists have the chance to win in eight different categories, including the new category “Rising Star Award with Apple Music”. Out of the 35 songwriters, only four are nominated in two categories. Rapper Kate Tempest and producer Dan Carey are nominated in the Best Album category for “The Book Of Traps And Lessons”, as well as Best Contemporary Song for “Firesmoke”. Jimmy Napes is nominated for his songwriting skills on Stormzy’s “Crown” and Sam Smith’s “Dancing With A Stranger”. Songwriter Jamie Hartman is also nominated for his contribution to two songs: Lewis Capaldi’s “Hold Me While You Wait” and the Calvin Harris and Rag’n’Bone collaboration “Giant”.

Stormzy himself is also nominated for his songwriting credits on “Crown”, whereas rap-colleague Little Simz is up for Best Album with her record “Grey Area”. Newcomer and fan-favourite Sam Fender has got a shot at Best Song Musically And Lyrically with his song “Dead Boys”.

YES!! @LittleSimz Absolute killer album, my fave of last year! The accolade that means the most, one for the craft of songwriting. #TheIvors https://t.co/GSLYHOp4PW

— Carl English (@carl_english) July 20, 2020

“I think it’s a good line-up,” Ivors Academy CEO Graham Davies has told Music Week. “We’ve got a good number of first-time nominees. What probably sticks out the most is the importance of the lyric, as spoken word and rap continues on from last year [in being represented]. The Ivors is at the forefront of recognising trends, and that’s an important one.”

The 65th Ivor Novello ceremony won’t be able to go ahead due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, instead the winners will be announced on the Apple Music Beats 1 Radio show by Matt Wilkinson, starting at 11am on September 2.

The date in question had been the 2nd of September, and whilst the physical ceremony itself will not be taking place, the academy confirmed that recipients of this year’s awards would still be announced on that date. Nominees will be made public on the 20th of July, with further information regarding the award day arriving “in due course”. Refunds for ticket-holders are readily available, tickets for September’s cancelled event will remain valid for May 2021’s award ceremony, which will also be hosted at Grosvenor House. 

Announcement on #TheIvors 2020:

The winners of Ivor Novello Awards will still be announced on 2 September, however the planned Grosvenor House London ceremony will no longer take place.

Find out more >> https://t.co/AFsmND65wK

— The Ivors Academy (@IvorsAcademy) June 29, 2020

CEO Graham Davies and Chair of The Ivors Academy Crispin Hunt had this to say: “As a community of music creators, The Ivors Academy has presented awards continuously for 64 years and 2020 will be no different. Lockdown proved how important music is to our lives and how fragile the live music industry is. Now, more than ever, songwriting and composing should be championed and celebrated to keep music alive. Our heartfelt thanks to Apple Music, PRS for Music and Grosvenor House London for their continued support.”

Since 1956, The Ivor Novello Awards has aimed to recognise and reward the work of British and Irish songwriters, and remains the only award ceremony in the musical calendar that is not influenced by publishers and record companies, but judged and presented by the writing community. The Ivor Novello’s sister ceremony The Ivors Composer Awards similarly merits creative excellence in classical music, jazz, and sound art. At time of writing, The Ivors Composer Awards are still set to take place on the 1st of December at the British Museum.