Sam Fender has won the 2025 Mercury Prize for his third album, People Watching — a heartfelt, cinematic record that captures the grit and warmth of life in northern towns and cements him as one of the most distinctive songwriters of his generation.
The 31-year-old musician from North Shields was visibly emotional when his name was announced at this year’s Mercury Prize ceremony in Newcastle, where the event was held outside London for the first time. “I didn’t think that was going to happen at all,” he told the BBC moments later. “I’ve spent the last 10 minutes crying.”
The crowd roared as Fender performed the title track from People Watching, his voice breaking with emotion as he sang the chorus that many already see as one of his defining songs. The performance came at the end of a remarkable year for the artist, who played three sold-out nights at St James’ Park, performing to around 150,000 fans across one weekend.
Released in February, People Watching shot straight to number one, selling 107,000 copies in its first week — the fastest-selling British album since 2022. The Mercury judging panel praised it as “melody-rich and expansive, marrying heartland rock with the realities of everyday life and the importance of community.”
Radio presenter Sian Eleri said the panel’s decision was unanimous: “It felt like a classic.”
Fender dedicated the win to his late mentor Annie Orwin, who he described as “a surrogate mother in a lot of ways.” He told the audience, “I was honoured and lucky enough to be with her in the last week of her life, and the title track was about her and about grief. Then the rest of the album is very much local stories, little pictures of Shields, and the people I’ve grown up with. So, very much like every other album I’ve done, but I think we got it right this time.”
The record’s mix of working-class storytelling, emotional honesty and anthemic guitar work has drawn comparisons to Bruce Springsteen — an influence Fender has often embraced. “He’s a British rock ’n’ roll artist who’s the best rock ’n’ roll artist there is,” Elton John once said of him.
But Fender has always shied away from the idea of being a generational spokesman. “People bandy about those terms all the time, and it’s ridiculous,” he said earlier this year. “Saying that somebody’s the voice of a generation — I’m not, honestly. I’m an idiot. I’m just writing about my experiences and the experiences of people I know, and people attach such weight to it.”
Backstage, his bandmates joked that he would celebrate his £25,000 prize money with “a pyjama party.” Fender laughed, saying he’d be keeping it simple: “I’m gonna have a beer.”
Among the other nominees was Irish artist CMAT, whose record Euro-Country had been tipped by bookmakers as the frontrunner. Her witty, self-aware take on pop-country, blending humour with sharp commentary on body image and modern womanhood, made her one of this year’s most talked-about contenders. She joked beforehand that she would “flip over a table” if she lost.
Also shortlisted were Pulp, Wolf Alice, PinkPantheress, Martin Carthy, Jacob Alon, and Joe Webb, whose albums reflected the Mercury’s tradition of rewarding creativity over commercialism.
The prize, established in 1992, celebrates the best album of the year from artists across Britain and Ireland, and has a long history of highlighting boundary-pushing records rather than mainstream hits.
This year’s decision to hold the ceremony in Newcastle was seen as a nod to the thriving regional music scenes that have shaped much of today’s most exciting new work. As Jo Twist, chief executive of the BPI, put it: “Talent is everywhere but opportunity isn’t. So it’s only right that we bring these large-scale shows outside London to show there are opportunities within the music industry without having to move city.”
For Fender, winning at home made the night even more personal. “Newcastle has always been in an isolated bubble from the music industry. So for it to be recognised is really important. Hopefully it can be the beginning of many other wonderful things.”
