The highest achievers from the worlds of jazz, blues, soul and beyond have been honoured at the third annual Jazz FM Awards, which took place last night at a star-studded ceremony at the Bloomsbury Ballroom in London.
Hosted by writer, actor and broadcaster Hardeep Singh Kohli, the ceremony featured performances from some of the hottest acts across the genre and was attended by a host of well-known faces including Jon Snow, Cerys Matthews, Nitin Sahwney, Soweto Kinch, The Brand New Heavies and others.
Highlights this year included awards for Gregory Porter (pictured) and Quincy Jones. Multi-platinum-selling Porter was the winner of the Impact Award, presented to a jazz artist who’s made an outstanding impression on the wider global music scene.
“Jazz FM got my name out there, and my sound, even to the point where Howard and Guy from Disclosure heard one of my songs on Jazz FM, and that's how they decided to call me and do the song that we did, which ended up being a No1 dance song around the world," said Porter. "So I have you to thank for many reasons, for advancing my jazz career and doing special things like that. I'm thankful for Jazz FM's approach, and for embracing me and my sound.”
The full list of winners is as follows:
Instrumentalist of the Year
Winner: Mark Lockheart
Soul Artist of the Year (Sponsored by RCS)
Winner: Jill Scott
Breakthrough Act of the Year
Winner: Binker & Moses
Blues Artist of the Year
Winner: Gary Clark Jr.
Vocalist of the Year
Winner: Lauren Kinsella
International Artist Of The Year (Sponsored by Yamaha)
Winner: Kamasi Washington
Album Of The Year – Public Vote (Sponsored by Arqiva)
Winner: Hiatus Kaiyote
UK Jazz Act of the Year (Sponsored by Grange Hotels)
Winner: Binker & Moses
Digital Initiative of the Year (sponsored by 7digital)
Winner: Jacob Collier
Jazz Innovation of the Year (sponsored by Mishcon de Reya)
Winner: Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah
Live Experience of the Year – Pubic Vote
Winner: Ice-T and Ron McCurdy – The Langston Hughes Project at the Barbican
Impact Award
Winner: Gregory Porter
PPL Lifetime Achievement Award
Winner: Quincy Jones
