An Indie biased selection...

Sway is the sole black music artist in this years Mercury Prize nominations. He is unlikely to repeat the success of past winners Dizzee Rascal and Ms Dynamite as the trend of having Hip-Hop representation has slowly crept away. With the likes of Arctic Monkeys and Thom Yorke on a heavy weighted Indie presence the inclusion of Sway is a great pat on the back for the years of hard graft. Thinking of what other acts could have made it though sees me coming up short. Corinne Bailey Rae is more Radio 2 soul and Plan B's hate it or love it brand of grime may be too hardcore than innovative to win. Apart from that there isn't a lot I can think of. With albums from Yungun and Klashnekoff coming out in the next year it would be good to hear, but I feel someone like genre mashing Bugz In The Attic will fare better with their first long player.