RAYE, Charli XCX, Sault and Wet Leg win big at this year's Ivors

18 May 2023, 16:45 | Written by The Line of Best Fit

(News)

(RAYE) (Charli XCX) (Victoria Canal) (Harry Styles) (Sault) (Wet Leg) (Ivor Novello Awards)

Charli XCX, RAYE, Sault and Wet Leg were the major winners at this year's Ivor Novello awards, which honours excellence in British songwriting and screen composition.

The 68th edition of the awards, presented by 6 Music's Lauren Laverne, was run in partnership with Amazon Music for the first time and also featured performances by Raye, Matilda Mann and Sting, who was honoured with the Ivors Fellowship. Sting is the twenty-third fellow the academy has inducted in its 79-years and joins the likes of Paul McCartney, Kate Bush and Elton John.

The first major award of the night was for Best Contemporary Song and went to RAYE for "Escapism". The 25-year-old songwriter and singer took to the stage in shock - and tears - to pick up her award, and addressed all the "major label representives in the room", saying: "It's an insult that you be expected to go to work for free and it's an insult you expect songwriters to do the same."

Charli XCX was presented with the Ivor's Visionary Award by real-life boyfriend George Daniel. The iconic songwriter and performer paid tribute to her studio collaborators Noonie Bao, AG Cook and SOPHIE: "The three of them taught me so much," she said, "about conviction, and commitment to an idea no matter how ridiculous or stupid it seems - and also to be fearless and do whatever the fuck you think and feel."

"I got into music when I was younger because I felt like such a loser and I wanted to try and be cool in any way I could," she added. "I didnt have anyone around me who saw me for who I was and I got into music to find likeminded people who could see my point of view and even challenge it."

The Rising Star award saw German-born Spanish-American singer Victoria Canal triumph against Ines Dunn, Tendai, Venbee and Cat Burns. The 24-year-old paid tribite to Coldplay's Chris Martin - who helped vet her signed - and dedicated her win to "all the mentors and teachers."

The award for the Most Performed Work of the Year went - unsurprisingly - to Harry Styles' "As It Was" while SAULT took the Best Album award for 11, with the mysterious Inflo predictably absent to pickup the award. Also absent were Wet Leg, who picked up the event's most prestigious gong for Songwriter of the Year.

The full list of winners for the 2023 Ivor Novello Awards are below.

Best Album

11 – Sault (WINNER)
No Thank You – Little Simz
Skinty Fia – Fontaines D.C.
Some Nights I Dream Of Doors – Ogbongjayar
The Car – Arctic Monkeys

Best Contemporary Song

‘Cold Summer’ – Wesley Joseph
‘Escapism’ – Raye ft 070 Shake (WINNER)
‘Hide & Seek’ – Stormzy
‘Leon The Professional’ – Knucks
‘Payback’ – Kojey Radical feat. Knucks

Best Original Film Score

Avatar: The Way Of Water – Simon Franglen
Death On The Nile – Patrick Doyle
Don’t Worry Darling – John Powell (WINNER)
Mrs. Harris Goes To Paris – Rael Jones
The Electoral Life of Louis Wain – Arthur Sharpe

Best Original Video Game Score

Gotham Knights – The Flight
Horizon Forbidden West – Joris de Man, Oleksa Lozowchuk and The Flight
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope – Gareth Coker, Grant Kirkhope and Yoko Shimomura (WINNER)

Best Song Musically and Lyrically