It’s the news you’ve all been waiting for (and asking about): entries are now officially open here for the Music Week Awards 2026!
This is your opportunity to highlight your achievements in the past 12 months in front of the entire UK music industry. The hugely popular ceremony will return on May 7, 2026 at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House London.
Table bookings are also now open here – please remember the Music Week Awards has a track record of selling out well in advance of the event itself.
The Music Week Awards are the UK’s only music awards that recognise the whole range of our incredible industry, from labels, publishing and live to A&R, radio, marketing and PR. From groundbreaking campaigns to superlative talent, the Music Week Awards celebrate the very best in the business. Firmly established as the unrivalled badge of excellence for the UK music business, these awards were launched to raise standards across the industry by showcasing top class performance and innovation.
Each year these hugely respected – and highly coveted – awards are peer-voted and judged by an independent panel of specialist judges. To maintain the highest standards of integrity and impartiality, our judges are both reviewed and refreshed annually, ensuring a diverse range of perspectives and sustained relevance.
The deadline for entries will be 6pm on Wednesday, January 21, 2026.
You can look back at the finalists for the 2025 awards here to see who made the grade.
KEY DATES
Entries open: Monday, December 8, 2025
Tables & tickets on sale: Monday, December 8, 2025
Entries deadline: 6pm on Wednesday, January 21, 2026
Shortlist announced: February 2026
Ceremony: The winners will be announced onstage at the Music Week Awards, Thursday, May 7, 2026
Submit your entry now to be in with a chance – it’s your opportunity to let the industry see what you and your team have achieved in 2025. Just visit our awards website, review the categories, and submit your best work.
NEW FOR 2026
There are two big changes this year.
After successive years of demand, for the latest edition of the Music Week Awards we’re incredibly excited to announce the re-introduction of the Venue Of The Year category in recognition of the UK’s thriving live music scene. This category – making its return for the first time since 2014 – complements our existing category Grassroots Venue: Spirit Of The Scene in partnership with the Music Venue Trust.
The new Venue Of The Year category is open to any non-grassroots venue up to capacity of 24,000, located in the UK. The award will look to celebrate the venues’ achievements across a broad set of criteria, including programming, innovation, and wider its impact on the British music industry.
In addition, for 2026 we have updated the Promotions Team category to Promotions Campaign. As before, this award is open to any music campaign conducted by a UK-based promotions team but will now be limited – in line with artist maketing and catalogue marketing – on one specific campaign.
To read the full category criteria and entry guide click here.
The list of categories for 2026:
A&R Award
Artist Marketing Campaign
Catalogue Marketing Campaign
Festival Of The Year
Grassroots Venue: Spirit Of The Scene
Independent Publisher Of The Year
Independent Record Company
International Marketing Team
Label/Artist Services Company
Live Music Agency (Company)
Live Music Promoter (Company)
Manager Of The Year
Music & Brand Partnership
Music Consumer Innovation
PR Campaign
Promotions Campaign (Updated for 2026)
Publisher Of The Year
Radio Show
Radio Station
Record Company
Sales Team
Sync Team Of The Year
Ticketing Company
The Strat
Venue Of The Year (New for 2026)
Not that any reminder is needed, but this year’s sold-out Music Week Awards culminated with a rousing reception for The Strat winner, Wildlife Entertainment CEO Ian McAndrew, who was presented with the trophy by Arctic Monkeys frontman and longtime management client Alex Turner. The Strat is our special award in recognition of a truly outstanding contribution to the music business.
There was also a big double win for Island EMI (Record Company, A&R), along with victories for Sony Music Publishing (Publisher Of The Year), Atlantic (Artist Marketing Campaign – Charli XCX) and Sony Music (International Marketing Team Of The Year).
Charli XCX’s Brat was again in the spotlight at the ceremony with a win in the Manager Of The Year category for Twiggy Rowley & Sam Pringle, Project Gold, who flew in to the awards from the US.
Big Brother Recordings took the Catalogue Marketing Campaign title for Oasis, XL Recordings was named Independent Record Company Of The Year, and Universal Music Group UK’s Globe emerged victorious in the Sync Team Of The Year category.
To revisit the 2025 ceremony in full click here.
TABLES & SPONSORSHIP
Tables and tickets are now on sale. Book early here to secure your spot in the room to ensure you’re part of this spectacular evening celebrating the industry’s finest.
For entry and table booking queries, please contact Kate Smith: kate.smith@futurenet.com
If you’d like to find out about sponsorship packages for the Music Week Awards 2026, please get in touch with Lawrence Cooke: lawrence.cooke@futurenet.com
For more stories like this, and to keep up to date with all our market leading news, features and analysis, sign up to receive our daily Morning Briefing newsletter