Congratulations to UK Americana Award winners including UK Artist of the Year Yola. The groundbreaking Black British Country Soul singer taking Nashville by Storm, was also nominated for 4 awards last week at the Grammys.

Yola, whose debut album was produced by The Black Keys’ Dan Auberbach, was funded through the International Showcase Fund.

Other award winners include Ferris and Sylvester who won the Bob Harris Emerging Artist Award, Elles Bailey who won UK Song of the Year for ‘Little Piece of Heaven’ (co-written with Bobby Wood and Dan Auerbach) and Jade Bird who won Best Selling Americana Album for Jade Bird (by Jade Bird).

Yola, Ferris and Sylvester and Jade Bird have been supported by the International Showcase Fund.  Elles Bailey has been funded through the Momentum Fund.

The International Showcase Fund is run by PRS Foundation in partnership with Department for International Trade, PPL, British Underground, Arts Council England, the Musicians’ Union, Creative Scotland, Wales Arts International and Arts Council Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Invest NI. It offers support for artists to take their first steps into international territories by enabling them to perform at key showcasing festivals and conferences such as Canadian Music Week, SXSW, Reeperbahn, Zandari Festival, Womex, Eurosonic, Jazzahead and Mutek which attract thousands of people working in the music industry from every corner of the globe.

The Momentum Music Fund offers grants of £5k-£15k for UK based artists/bands to break through to the next level of their careers. Activities eligible for support include recording, touring and marketing.