TOUGH CHOICE... BUT CHAILA TOPS LIST

The Choice Music Prize for the Irish Album of 2020 will be announced on March 4.

This year’s recipient and that of the Irish Song of 2020 award will be announced on Tracy Clifford’s RTÉ 2fm show which goes live at noon on the day. There will be performances from the nominated acts which you can watch live on the RTÉ Player. Some have questioned the prize’s relevance but if not a guaranteed foreteller of continued success, the Choice award is a still a feather in the cap and the €10,000 cheque would be a bank-balance booster that any artist would welcome, particularly at this time.

Last year Lankum won for The Lifelong Day – not the widely tipped Dogrel, the instantly classic album by Fontaines D.C. The Dublin-based quintet are nominated this year again for A Hero’s Death, a worthy, admirable album but less easy to love than their debut.

They also get a nod for the Song of the Year for Televised Mind.

Denise Chaila and Pillow Queens are nominated in both categories too. Niall Horan, Dermot Kennedy, Gavin James and Picture This also feature on the best song list which is decided by the public and voting closes tonight at midnight. Niall Horan’s No Judgment headed the betting there when last I looked while Denise Chaila’s Go Bravely and Pillow Queens’ In Waiting are rated as favourites for the Album of the Year. The Limerick artist

(left) delivers a hip-hop mixtape of spoken word and sung pieces in collaboration with Murli and God Knows of 2016 Choice winners The Russangano Family. It will be no surprise if she wins. Neither should it be if Pillow Queens win for In Waiting. Their fine indie-pop debut comes after years of hard work and persistence. For what it’s worth, I think Pillow Queens deserve to win but Chaila’s will win.