The Choice Music Prize (), known for sponsorship reasons as the RTÉ Choice Music Prize is an annual music prize awarded to music from a band or solo musician who is born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland or holds an Irish passport. For bands, the majority of members must have been born on the island of Ireland or hold an Irish passport.
After being broadcast on Today FM for nearly eleven years, in November 2016, it was announced that the Choice Music Prize would broadcast on RTÉ 2fm starting in 2017. The ceremony is held in Vicar Street, Dublin.
Since it first began in 2005, the main awards ceremony had been broadcast live on the Irish national radio station, Today FM, every March. It aired as a four-part special, beginning at 7pm and usually concluding at 11pm. Presenters of the main awards ceremony have included Michelle Doherty, Rigsy, and Today FM radio presenters Alison Curtis and Paul McLoone.
Since 2017, the Choice Music Prize has not had a sponsor. Before that, Samsung sponsored it in 2016, and Meteor sponsored it from 2011 to 2015.
Establishment The Choice Music Prize was established by journalist Jim Carroll and manager Dave Reid in 2005.
Aim of the awards
According to organisers, the aim of the Choice Music Prize, is to get more airplay for Irish acts both domestically and overseas.
"It was a strange thing" remembers Cormac Brady of Super Extra Bonus Party. "It's not something we ever expected to happen to us. Winning awards certainly wasn't what we got into music for, but it brought us a hell of a lot more recognition overnight and opened a lot of doors". Julie Feeney concurs. "It was probably the biggest achievement of my life" she says. "It meant a phenomenal amount to me. It was an enormous validation" as an alternative to the industry-dominated Meteor Music Awards. The Choice Music Prize is modelled after the Mercury Prize which is awarded each year to the best album from the United Kingdom or Ireland. It is a music award voted for by a panel of twelve judges based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The price includes a €10,000 cheque jointly funded by the Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) and the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA). There is no sponsorship.
Initially considered by co-founder Carroll as a "titchy little maverick event", the Choice Music Prize has gained a reputation for producing "unpredictable" winners. Winners thus far consist of one solo female performer, four bands and one solo male performer. Julie Feeney won the inaugural prize for Irish Album of the Year 2005. She was followed by The Divine Comedy, Super Extra Bonus Party and Jape, winners of Irish Album of the Year 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively. Adrian Crowley won Irish Album of the Year 2009, while Two Door Cinema Club won Irish Album of the Year 2010.
The ceremony to announce the winner takes place at Vicar Street, Dublin in February or March each year. Originally presented by Michelle Doherty and Rigsy, and also by Alison Curtis., Today FM radio presenter Paul McLoone presented the awards since 2012, having made his debut presiding over the 2011 Choice Music Prize ceremony and was the current host or M.C.- master of ceremonies for the prize giving ceremony with the show being broadcast live since its inception on the national and independent radio station Today FM as part of a four-hour special, airing between 7pm to 10pm. In November 2016, the Choice Music Prize announced that they had partnered with RTÉ and as such, the live ceremony will be broadcast on RTÉ 2FM from 2017 onwards. The nominated acts are invited to perform in front of a live audience at the ceremony. However, some nominated acts, such as The Chalets, Fionn Regan, Snow Patrol, Lisa Hannigan, Oppenheimer, Bell X1 and Laura Izibor, have not performed in the past due to other commitments. David Holmes (musician) and The Script also did not perform when nominated, though Holmes and Danny O'Donoghue attended the ceremony. The judging panel which is composed of various members of Irish media as such as music and broadcasting are all locked in an enclosed room during the performances on the night to debate over which act ought to win with Irish journalist Tony Clayton Lea who works for the Irish Times the Chairman of the Judging Panel with Clayton Lea also tasked with helping the panel come to a decision where they all select the one musician or band who will be announced as the winner of the Prize. A secret ballot was used to decide the winner of Irish Album of the Year 2008, Ritual.
Past winners and nominees have credited the Choice Music Prize with boosting their careers. Julie Feeney described winning Irish Album of the Year 2005 as "probably the biggest achievement of my life", adding "it meant a phenomenal amount to me. It was an enormous validation". Duke Special, nominated for the first two awards, said his nomination for the inaugural award had helped raise his profile in the Irish media. Cormac Brady stated Super Extra Bonus Party's Irish Album of the Year 2007 win "brought us a hell of a lot more recognition overnight and opened a lot of doors". Nominees have doubled or trebled sales after the award has been announced. Steve Jordan was influenced by the Choice Music Prize when he set up Canada's Polaris Music Prize. Culture Ireland invited figures from the international music industry to the event that decided the Irish Album of the Year 2010.
Broadcast From its inception, the awards show was broadcast live on Today FM and a live streamed on entertainment.ie. In 2017, the awards show moved to a live broadcast on RTÉ 2FM, and highlights will continue to be shown on RTÉ2.
The event was aired live each year on Today FM in a special awards ceremony that takes place at Vicar Street which was presented by Paul McLoone and a pre-recorded show is aired on RTÉ2 television since 2015 on hosted by Bláthnaid Treacy. The event used to be streamed live on entertainment.ie and Muzu.tv until 2015.
Sponsorship It was announced on Monday 10 October 2011 that Meteor had become the official sponsor of the award, having previously sponsored the Meteor Music Awards. In the run-up to the nominees (to be announced on 11 January 2012), both the award organisers and Meteor promised to present a number of live performances showcasing what they considered some of the best albums from 2011. Meteor Choice Music Prize Presents... began on 1 November 2011 with a live performance by Snow Patrol at Dublin's Button Factory, and was followed by a live performance from Lisa Hannigan and James Vincent McMorrow on 8 December 2011, also in Dublin's Button Factory.
In 2016, Samsung came on board to be the official partner of the awards show. However, from 2017 the awards show will be supported by RTÉ online, on radio and on television.
Categories The Choice Music Prize is awarded in five categories: Irish Album of the Year Irish Song of the Year Irish Artist of the Year Irish Breakthrough Artist of the Year Irish Classic Album of the Year
Winners and shortlisted nominees Irish Album of the Year
YearWinner Album Shortlisted nominees & albumsJudges 2005 Julie Feeney 13 Songs Bell X1 – Flock Cane 141 – Moonpool The Chalets – Check In Joe Chester – A Murder of Crows Duke Special – Adventures in Gramophone Hal – Hal Nick Kelly – Running Dog Emmett Tinley – Attic Faith Turn – Turn LP Brian Adams (Today FM) Kernan Andrews (Galway Advertiser) Stuart Bailie (BBC Radio Ulster) Eamonn Carr (Evening Herald) Tony Clayton-Lea (The Irish Times) Mick Heaney (Sunday Times) Jenny Huston (2FM) John Kelly (RTÉ Radio 1) John Meagher (Irish Independent) Colm O'Sullivan (Red FM) Meave Quigley (Sunday Mirror) John Walshe (Hot Press) 2006 The Divine Comedy Victory for the Comic Muse Director – We Thrive on Big Cities Duke Special – Songs from the Deep Forest The Immediate – In Towers and Clouds David Kitt – Not Fade Away Messiah J and the Expert – Now This I Have to Hear Fionn Regan – The End of History Republic of Loose – Aaagh! Si Schroeder – Coping Mechanisms Snow Patrol – Eyes Open John Caddell (Phantom FM) Stuart Clark (Hot Press) Alison Curtis (Today FM) Neil Dunphy (Sunday Tribune) Sinéad Gleeson (The Ticket) Rick O'Shea (RTÉ 2fm) Nick Kelly (Irish Independent) Mike Knightson (Limerick's Live 95fm) Padraic Kileen (Irish Examiner) Eamon Sweeney (Foggy Notions) Tanya Sweeney (Irish Daily Star) Jonny Tiernan (Alternative Ulster magazine) 2007 Super Extra Bonus Party Super Extra Bonus Party Adrian Crowley – Long Distance Swimmer Cathy Davey – Tales of Silversleeve Delorentos – In Love with Detail Dry County – Unexpected Falls The Flaws – Achieving Vagueness David Geraghty – Kill Your Darlings Kíla – Gamblers' Ballet Róisín Murphy – Overpowered Stanley Super 800 – Louder & Clearer Brian Boyd (The Irish Times) Michael Carr (Cork's 96FM and Cork Independent) Ronan Casey (Westmeath Examiner) Alan Corr (RTÉ Guide) Dan Hegarty (2FM) Anne Marie Kelly (Today FM) Sheena McGinley (entertainment.ie) Una Mullally (Sunday Tribune and the Una Rocks blog) Paul McClean (BBC Northern Ireland) Nadine O'Regan (The Sunday Business Post, Phantom 105.2 and blogger) Leagues O'Toole (Foggy Notions) Jon Richards (Galway Bay FM) 2008 Jape Ritual Fight Like Apes – Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion Mick Flannery – White Lies Halfset – Another Way of Being There Lisa Hannigan – Sea Sew David Holmes (musician) – The Holy Pictures Messiah J and the Expert – From the Word Go Oppenheimer – Take the Whole Midrange and Boost It R.S.A.G. – Organic Sampler The Script – The Script Niall Byrne (State/Nialler9 blog) Edel Coffey (Irish Independent) Ian Dempsey (Today FM) James Foley (Record of the Day) Andrew Hamilton (Clare People) Kieran Hurley (Cork Campus Radio) Paul Mallon (Irish Daily Star Sunday) Lauren Murphy (entertainment.ie) Sinead Ni Mhorda (Phantom FM) Ed Power (Freelance) Rigsy (BBC Northern Ireland¹s Across The Line/ATL TV) Ian Wilson (RTÉ 2fm) 2009 Adrian Crowley Season of the Sparks And So I Watch You from Afar – And So I Watch You From Afar Bell X1 – Blue Lights on the Runway Codes – Trees Dream in Algebra Dark Room Notes – We Love You Dark Matter The Duckworth Lewis Method – The Duckworth Lewis Method Julie Feeney – Pages Valerie Francis – Slow Dynamo Laura Izibor – Let the Truth Be Told The Swell Season – Strict Joy Martin Burns (News of the World) Josh Clarke (I102-104FM, Galway) Roisin Dwyer (Hot Press) Tony Fenton (Today FM) Cathal Funge (Phantom 105.2, Dublin) Padraic Halpin (Ragged Words) Sophie Gorman (Irish Independent) John McMahon (RTÉ 2fm) Rob O'Connor (Beat 102 103, Waterford) Eva Staic (Spin 1038, Dublin) Chris Wasser (Evening Herald) Aoife Woodlock (Other Voices) 2010 Two Door Cinema Club Tourist History Adebisi Shank – This Is the Second Album of a Band Called Adebisi Shank The Cast of Cheers – Chariot Cathy Davey – The Nameless Fight Like Apes – The Body of Christ and the Legs of Tina Turner Halves – It Goes, It Goes (Forever & Ever) Imelda May – Mayhem James Vincent McMorrow – Early in the Morning O Emperor – Hither Thither Villagers – Becoming a Jackal Aidan Cuffe (GoldenPlec) Ray D'Arcy (Today FM) Michelle Doherty (Phantom 105.2) Dave Fanning (RTÉ 2fm) Shane Hegarty (The Irish Times) Chris Jones (Alternative Ulster) Danny McElhinney (The Irish Mail on Sunday) John Meagher (Irish Independent) Jenny Mulligan (entertainment.ie) Celina Murphy (Hot Press) Phil Udell (State.ie) Tony Clayton-Lea (Chairman of Judging Panel) 2011 Held on Thursday 8 March 2012 Paul McLoone's debut as M.C. Broadcast live on Today FM Jape Ocean of Frequency And So I Watch You From Afar – Gangs Bell X1 – Bloodless Coup Cashier No. 9 – To the Death of Fun Lisa Hannigan – Passenger The Japanese Popstars – Controlling Your Allegiance