2026 Winners and Shortlist
Listen to the shortlisted songs and find out more about the artists below.
WINNER
Will Pearce,
aka Beetlemania
Ecology is amazing and bugs are really cool. My goal is to communicate this through odd but accessible music.
Highly Commended
Shivani Sen
Shivani has trained in Hindustani Classical music for twenty years and currently focuses on vilambit khyal, a deep and meditative form of classical music that evokes peace and reflection through melodic improvisations. Her music weaves together genres, cultural identities, and emotions.
Shortlist
Billie Maree
Billie Maree is a songwriter and producer from Devon who draws inspiration from the landscapes surrounding them, often incorporating field recordings into their work. Their music creates space for listeners to feel deeply and remember their connection to nature.
Daisy Grace Durrant
I am a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Everything I write is an echo of something I have listened to, read or experienced. My playing is influenced by many genres of music, with a deep love for folk music, nature and stories.
Ellie Moulang Lewis
Ellie Moulang Lewis is a cellist, folk singer, and songwriter, inspired by the natural world. Based in Leeds, she performs her original and arranged material in her duo Elm, and plays with local bands Heart Shaped Logic and Her Orange Coat.
Haila Widis
Haila Widis, meaning Holy Forest in Pre-Germanic, is the sonic project of Eloïse Jenninger, a Breton-French-German musician, ecologist, and animation director in Bristol. Inspired by Brittany and the Jura, it merges folk, jazz harmony, electronics, and field recordings.
Freddie Graham
Freddie Graham is a producer, composer, multi-instrumentalist, DJ, singer, songwriter, and poet crafting multidimensional soundscapes. Raised in the English countryside, nature shapes his work through organic textures, lyrics, and genre-fluid fusion. He founded ‘sonogrove', uniting sound, nature, and technology through immersive, sustainable events.
HUSHWING + Mackenzie Belson
HUSHWING is a Somerset-born band shaped by love for the outdoors, travel, and each other. Focusing on melodic warmth and intimate production, HUSHWING crafts a blend of folk and indie-pop, creating an honest invitation into love, self-discovery, and everyday beauty.
J SHIELDS
J SHIELDS: vocalist and producer from Belfast. Using field recordings woven together with melodic synth loops and experimental vocals, J writes songs through the lens of the natural world, showing how human experiences are reflected in subtle nuances around us.
Lauren Finch
Lauren Finch is a composer for film, TV, theatre, and exhibitions. Her music has been performed by orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, and she is a Will Smith Emerging Artist, Composer Spotlight Award winner, and Music+Sound Awards Finalist.
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REA
Brighton-based REA creates alternative folk music in quiet outdoor spaces. Raised between open fields and farmlands of rural Staffordshire, her music is deeply rooted in the natural world.
photo by Ciara Delaney
Robin Torbitt
Robin Torbitt is a 24 year old alternative folk artist based in Suffolk. His thoughtful songs are grounded in a love for the folk songwriters of the 1970s whilst blending in contemporary flavours of alternative rock and evocative music production.