Applications are open from Friday 1 August – midnight on Friday 22 August.
Supported by Help Musicians, the Scottish Government’s Youth Music Initiative through Creative Scotland and Youth Music, the Sound of Young Scotland Award exists to drive Scottish music of the future by giving an annual award to a young and emerging artist to facilitate the creation of their debut album.
With its name giving a nod to the iconic Scottish record label Postcard Records, the Sound of Young Scotland Award was designed to provide financial support to enable the continued creation of outstanding Scottish albums.
The winner of the Sound of Young Scotland Award will receive a funding package worth up to £10,000 to support the recording and production of their debut album, as well as a bespoke art prize from The SAY Award Design Commission.
2025’s funding package includes:
- Cash grants totaling £6,000 to go towards activities such as studio hire costs, session musician fees, equipment rentals and more
- A performance slot at 2026’s SAY Award ceremony, one of the biggest nights in Scotland’s musical calendar, in front of industry professionals, journalists and music fans
- A bespoke art prize from The SAY Award Design Commission
- 6 hours of one-to-one business advice from industry experts arranged via Help Musicians
- Online meet-ups with other Help Musicians’ awardees and industry guests, arranged via Help Musicians
- Invites to online peer drop-in spaces with other musicians, arranged via Help Musicians (optional)
- Access to a healthy practice session delivered by BAPAM, arranged via Help Musicians (optional)
- A run of up to 250 vinyl pressings of the album created via the prize; provided in-kind by Seabass Vinyl, Scotland’s first vinyl pressing plant
- A recording session with KNDRD (Scotty Anderson & Jack Cochrane)
The cash grants provided via the Sound of Young Scotland Award include support directly from:
- Help Musicians’ Next Level Award, designed to support musicians ready to pursue a career-changing opportunity.
- Youth Music’s NextGen Fund; designed to support early-stage musicians and wider music adjacent creatives to invest in their own projects and make their ideas happen.
The Process
Following the application period, the SMIA team will review all applications received to confirm completeness and eligibility. A cross-genre judging panel of 11 previous SAY Award nominees will then be tasked with reviewing the applications and whittling them down to 5 Sound of Young Scotland Award nominees.
The 5 Sound of Young Scotland Award nominees will be announced on Thursday 16 October, in conjunction with The SAY Award Shortlist.
The Sound of Young Scotland Award judging panel will then re-convene to decide on this year’s winner, who will be announced and recognised at The SAY Award Ceremony on Thursday 6 November at Dundee’s Caird Hall. The winner will be invited back to perform an exclusive showcase performance at the 2026 Ceremony.
Prize Fund Conditions
Recording must take place within 12 months following confirmation of winning.
The cash grants of £6,000 should be spent on Scotland-based suppliers and services related to the recording of the album (i.e. on a Scotland-based producer, in a Scotland-based studio or using a Scotland-based equipment rental company).
In-kind vinyl pressings of the winning record via Seabass Vinyl is based on up to 250 units on Black 180gm, with full colour label, inner and outer sleeve, with a 5mm spine.
The winner of the Sound of Young Scotland Award must create an album under the following definition: Albums must consist of previously unreleased material. Re-issues, multi-artist compilations, ‘Best Of’ collections and live albums (largely featuring previously released material) are ineligible. Albums must contain 6 or more tracks and/or be over 30 minutes in length.
The master recordings will be owned in full by the artist/band who wins the Sound of Young Scotland Award. The winner can, should they wish to, licence the recordings for exploitation through a qualifying recording contract.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for the Sound of Young Scotland Award, an artist/band must:
- Be aged 18 – 25. For bands, the primary songwriter(s) must be aged 25 or under, and all members should be under 30 years old
- Be a ‘Scottish Artist’, in that: the artist was born in Scotland; at least 50% of the band’s core members were born in Scotland (session musicians will not be considered); an artist or band, irrespective of nationality, has made their creative base in Scotland for the past 2 years. NB. In some cases e.g. classical artists, composers as well as performers may satisfy the conditions for eligibility. In light of challenges presented both during and following the pandemic, this requirement is subject to waiver pending examination on a case-by-case basis.
- Not have previously released an album under the Sound of Young Scotland’s album definition.
- Not have significant backing from a record label, publisher or private investor.
- Have control over one or more aspects of your career (e.g. self-managing, self-publishing, self-releasing or self-producing).
- Have an active career (established for at least 1 year) and be able to clearly demonstrate work to date.
- Be able to provide contact details for an industry professional who has supported you in your career to date and could provide a reference on your behalf should it be requested (this could be a promoter, radio presenter, tutor, journalist or other industry professional).