Singer-songwriter Michael Kiwanuka has won the 2020 Mercury Prize for his soul-searching third record, ‘KIWANUKA’. A lush, immersive album of politicised soul, it sees the star exploring themes of self-doubt, faith and civil rights. Released last November, Kiwanuka beat best-sellers like Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia and Stormzy’s Heavy Is The Head to win the £25,000 prize. “It’s blown my mind,” said the singer. “Music is all I’ve ever wanted to do, so I’m over the moon.”
Kiwanuka won on his third attempt, having been nominated for each of his previous albums: 2012’s Home Again and 2016’s Love & Hate. “I was kind of resigned to the fact [that] if I don’t win one this year, probably I’ll never win one,” he told BBC 6 Music.
Kiwanuka is the fifth black male solo artist to win the award in the past six years.
