Walsall's Jorja Smith nominated for 2018 Mercury Prize
The meteoric rise of Walsall's Jorja Smith continues as the singer has seen her debut album Lost & Found nominated for the Mercury Prize.
One of the most prestigious accolades in music, Jorja will go up against the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Lily Allen, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds and Wolf Alice for the title of album of the year.
Lost & Found was released at the beginning of last month and received favourable reviews across the board. It reached No3 in the UK chart and topped the R&B charts, her collaborations with the likes of Stormzy, Drake and Kendrick Lamar earning her plaudits from all corners.
The star tweeted her excitement at being nominated, saying: "Wow! Honoured to be short listed for this year's @MercuryPrize. Thank you to everyone who has supported me on this journey! ♥️Much love x #MercuryPrize"
Fans such as BBC Radio1 XTRA host DJTarget were quick to reply, tweeting: "Amazing. What a journey so far."
A fan called @PopGiants added: "Congratulations and good luck!!!! I've got everything crossed for you."
And @kayakittten said: "It’s what she deserves."
The competition will be stiff for Jorja. The list of nominees in full reads: Lily Allen - No Shame; Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino; Everything Everything - A Fever Dream; Everything Is Recorded - Everything Is Recorded; Florence + the Machine - High as Hope; Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - Who Built the Moon?; King Krule - The Ooz; Novelist - Novelist Guy; Nadine Shah - Holiday Destination; Sons of Kemet - Your Queen is a Reptile; and Wolf Alice - Visions of a Life.
The winner will be announced in a ceremony at London’s Eventim Apollo on September 20.
Previous winners include Primal Scream, Pulp, PJ Harvey (twice), Dizzee Rascal, Franz Ferdinand, The xx and Arctic Monkeys for their 2006 debut Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not.
