London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Aug 10, 2025

Dave crowned songwriter of the year at Ivor Novello awards

Dave crowned songwriter of the year at Ivor Novello awards

Rapper wins fourth Ivor in five years after album We’re All Alone in This Together topped UK charts

Dave has been crowned songwriter of the year and Sam Fender has picked up his first prize at this year’s Ivor Novello awards, which celebrate Britain’s best songwriters and composers.

Winning his fourth Ivor in five years, Dave was commended for his second album We’re All Alone in This Together, which topped UK charts and spawned three simultaneous top 10 singles – Clash (featuring Stormzy), Verdansk and In the Fire.

As part of his continuing collaboration with Fredo, the rapper also co-wrote the hugely successful tracks Back to Basics and Money Talks, the Ivors Academy said. Following a Brit award win for best hip-hop/grime/rap act earlier this year, Dave dedicated his award to “the rappers that have suffered for years and years, and broken down so many barriers in this industry that I’m in right now”.

Fender took home his first Ivor after winning best song musically and lyrically for the track Seventeen Going Under, which chronicles his life at the age of 17 and the challenges he and his mother faced. The North Shields singer-songwriter recently sold out his “biggest gig to date” at Finsbury Park in London, following in the footsteps of Arctic Monkeys, Queens of the Stone Age, Pulp and Liam Gallagher.

Ed Sheeran, Fred Again and Johnny McDaid won in the most performed work category for their collaboration on the UK’s biggest song of 2021, Bad Habits. It is Sheeran’s fifth Ivor, after he won in the same category in 2019 alongside McDaid for Shape of You.

With a catalogue of more than 140 songs and more than 80m record sales, a special international award celebrated the global impact and songwriting achievements of the Colombian superstar Shakira.

The award for best contemporary song went to Dean “Inflo” Josiah Cover and Little Simz for I Love You, I Hate you, a powerful address to Little Simz’s father from the album Sometimes I Might Be Introvert. Inflo was nominated for four awards this year, more than any other person.

In total, 21 songwriters and composers collected Ivor Novello awards across 14 categories at a ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House on Thursday.

Laura Mvula won the award for best album for Pink Noise, which she wrote with Dann Hume. “Sometimes it was hard to imagine getting to the finish line, so to know that it has made some impact in such strange times is really exciting for me,” Mvula has told the Guardian.

Breakout talent Naomi Kimpenu became the third consecutive female songwriter to win the rising star award for her debut EP Prelude. The four-track collection was described as “the ideal calling card, serving notice of what her perfectly poised vocals and sincere songwriting can do”.

Meanwhile, the “icon” award recognised “two of rock’s most inspiring, influential, and identifiable songwriters”: the Cure’s Robert Smith and Simon Gallup.

Peter Gabriel received the fellowship of the Ivors Academy in recognition of his outstanding contributions as a musician, innovator, humanitarian and songwriter.

Daniel Blumberg won the award for best original film score for his work on The World to Come, Arthur Sharpe won best television soundtrack for his work on Sky Atlantic’s Landscapers, and Richard Jacques won best original video game score for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy.

Paul Heaton was awarded outstanding song collection, while the songwriters Elizabeth Fraser, Robin Guthrie and Simon Raymonde won the visionary award for their band Cocteau Twins.

Shaznay Lewis, Ivor award winner and chair of the Ivors awards committee, said she was “absolutely thrilled” for this year’s winners. “It is a privilege to experience such an immensely powerful, emotive and eclectic range of music. Huge congratulations to everyone who took home awards, and every single songwriter and composer nominated,” she said.

The Ivors Academy recently launched TheWRD, a pre-degree diploma in creative entrepreneurship designed to help open access to the creative industries. It was also announced that Lauren Laverne would take over as host from Paul Gambaccini, who retires after hosting the ceremony since 1988.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Street justice isn’t pretty but how else do you deal with this kind of insanity? Sometimes someone needs to standup and say something
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign U.S.-brokered accord at White House outlining transit link via southern Armenia
Barcelona Resolves Captaincy Issue with Marc-André ter Stegen
US Justice Department Seeks Release of Epstein and Maxwell Grand Jury Exhibits Amid Legal and Victim Challenges
Trump Urges Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Resign Over Alleged Chinese Business Ties
Scotland’s First Minister Meets Trump Amid Visit Highlighting Whisky Tariffs, Gaza Crisis and Heritage Links
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Karol Nawrocki Inaugurated as Poland’s President, Setting Stage for Clash with Tusk Government
Trump Signals JD Vance as ‘Most Likely’ MAGA Successor for 2028
US Charges Two Chinese Nationals for Illegal Nvidia AI Chip Exports
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
U.S. Tariff Policy Triggers Market Volatility Amid Growing Global Trade Tensions
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
Representative Greene Urges H-1B Visa Cuts Amid U.S.-India Trade Tensions
U.S. House Committee Subpoenas Clintons and Senior Officials in Epstein Investigation
Sydney Sweeney Registered as Republican as Controversial American Eagle Ad Sparks Debate
Trump Accuses Major Banks of Politically Motivated Account Denials and Prepares Executive Order
TikTok Removes Huda Kattan Video Over Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
Trump Threatens Tariffs on India Over Russian Oil Imports
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
U.S. Proposes Visa Bond of Up to $15,000 for Some Applicants
U.S. Farmers Increase Lobbying Amid Immigration Crackdown
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
×