This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/entertainment/8245265.stm
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Speech Debelle wins Mercury Prize | Speech Debelle wins Mercury Prize |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| Rapper Speech Debelle is the surprise winner of the Mercury Prize for the best British album of the past year. | Rapper Speech Debelle is the surprise winner of the Mercury Prize for the best British album of the past year. |
| Her debut Speech Therapy, released last month, has not appeared in the UK album chart but sales are expected to get a huge boost from her win. | |
| The 25-year-old, from south London, performed single The Key at the ceremony for the 18th Mercury Prize. | The 25-year-old, from south London, performed single The Key at the ceremony for the 18th Mercury Prize. |
| She said afterwards that her win proved "if you believe in something and you think you can do it, you can". | |
| She added: "I feel so good, it feels better than I imagined. | |
| "My family's here, my friends are here. I'm from south London, I don't get emotional - I'm emotional." | |
| Speech Therapy was released on the Big Dada record label which is also home to rapper Roots Manuva who contributed to the album. | |
| Reviewers have picked up on the contrast between her "honeyed" delivery and the gritty subject matter of the songs on the album which includes living in hostels and absent fathers and gangsters. | |
| Singer 'unwell' | |
| For the first time in the history of the award, all 12 acts were due to perform at the ceremony at the Grosvenor House hotel and indie band Kasabian - the biggest sellers on the list - kicked off proceedings with Fire from album West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum. | |
| Glasgow four-piece Glasvegas, however, did not play on the night because of the absence of singer James Allen who bandmates said was "not well". | |
| The performance of Friendly Fires was also in doubt after band member Jack Savidge was admitted to hospital on Monday suffering from a rash. | |
| But the drummer managed to recover in time to perform with the band on Tuesday night. | |
| The Mercury Prize panel - made up of musicians, producers, presenters and music journalists - retired for final deliberations after all the acts had performed. | |
| They had been told that they must not let the performances influence their decision. | |
| Florence and the Machine had been the 5/2 favourite with bookmakers for her number two album Lungs ahead of the ceremony. | |
| Other acts fancied by bookmakers at the start of the night included The Horrors with Primary Colours and singer-songwriter Bat For Lashes - whose nomination for Two Suns marks her second time as a Mercury contender. | |
| Lisa Hannigan, Led Bib, Sweet Billy Pilgrim and The Invisible were also nominated. | |
| The 12 albums were shortlisted based solely on musical merit without reference to record sales, organisers said. | |
| Albums released between July 2008 and July 2009 and made by British or Irish artists were eligible for the prize. | |
| Previous winners of the prize have included Elbow, Klaxons, Arctic Monkeys, Antony and the Johnsons, and Dizzee Rascal. |