Youth Music Awards 2026

The Youth Music Awards is the biggest night in grassroots music.

For the past six years, we’ve celebrated in London.

But 86% of our funding goes outside the capital, supporting thousands of young people across the UK.

So in 2026, the Youth Music Awards are heading to Liverpool. We’re excited to join our community in the North West to celebrate projects and young people from across the region and beyond, in one of the world’s most loved music cities.

Wingstop will be the headline sponsor of the Youth Music Awards for the next three years, as part of its long term relationship with Youth Music and commitment to improve music access for young people.

Big Names Join The Judging Panel

Every year, the Youth Music Awards bring together music's biggest names to judge the UK's most inspiring young creatives, entrepreneurs, leaders and grassroots projects.

This year's panel of 60+ artists and industry experts is led by BRIT Award winner Myles Smith, alongside Youth Music alumni ALT BLK ERA, Emily Makis and lockdownT, and representatives from Apple, Meta, Sony Music, Spotify, Universal Music Group, YouTube and more.

This year's categories...

Inspirational Music Leader Award: A music leader who has a lasting impact on their project participants, whether that's through their unique approach, unwavering commitment or deep compassion.

Outstanding Project Award: A project doing exceptional work to equalise access to music for young people.

Rising Star Award (Industry): A young person who’s making their mark behind-the-scenes of the music industries.

Rising Star Award (Artist): A group or solo artist making waves in the music industry.

Social Action Award: Changemakers who have made an outstanding impact on their local community, or to social justice issues (individuals, collectives or projects).

Young Leader Award: A young person who is developing exceptional leadership skills as a project participant.

Lyricist Award: An artist or group showcasing originality, emotion, and storytelling through their lyrics in an original track.

Music Producer Award: A young producer raising the bar in music production, engineering, mixing and/or mastering.

Music Video Award: An outstanding music video by an artist or group.

Original Track Award (Group): An outstanding original track written and recorded by a group (two or more people).

Original Track Award (Solo): An outstanding original track written and recorded by a solo artist.