A NORTHERN Ireland musician has been given the nod by the MOBO Awards, one of the UK’s more prestigious music institutions and is the first Irish artist to be shortlisted in its 20-year history.
David Lyttle
David Lyttle, 31, from Waringstown in Co. Down is one of five nominees in the Best Jazz Act category and will go up against Polar Bear, Courtney Pine, Julia Biel, and Binker and Moses at the award ceremony on November 4 in Leeds.
The annual MOBO Awards has become one of the most televised music shows in the world and showcases the best UK and international urban music talent. Previous winners have included Rihanna, John Legend and Sam Smith.
Starting out as a prodigious jazz drummer in his early career, Lyttle has gone on to be described by Irish music magazine Hot Press as a ‘one-man industry’ for his work as a performer, songwriter, producer and record label owner.
His diverse collaborations range from hip hop visionary Talib Kweli to jazz icon Joe Lovano to Irish recording artist Duke Special, who all feature on his third album Faces recently described by Rolling Stone as “one of the best, robust listening experiences you’re likely to have all year’, and praising his genre hopping, sophisticated approach to music making.
David said: “Music of black origin has shaped popular music for the past 100 years and popular music today is still heavily indebted to the contribution of black artists. I have a deep love and respect for black music and I’m deeply honoured to have been nominated for a MOBO Award.”
Lyttle is also currently Musician-in-Residence at the Nerve Centre in Derry~Londonderry where he has been collaborating with a range of musicians, songwriters, bands and producers from across the city and local area to create and perform pieces of original music.
Martin McGill, Music Programme Manager at Nerve Centre congratulated the artist on the nomination, “David is an outstanding artist and we’re delighted that he has been recognised by the MOBO awards. Since April, David has been working tirelessly with over 30 local musicians, songwriters and producers, from breakthrough talent to more established local acts, to produce a completely original work due for release and showcasing at the end of 2015.
“He has also delivered a host of interactive music masterclasses and talks to over 1,000 young people across the Derry and Strabane areas already this year – a feat in itself. We’re encouraging everyone to vote for him so he can bring his MOBO award back to the Nerve Centre.”
David is no stranger to the MOBO Awards having had an artist signed to his own label Lyte Records receive a nomination at last year’s awards. Jason Rebello received a nomination also in the jazz category for his album Anything But Look, which went on to garner widespread success.
This year’s MOBO Awards are taking place on Wednesday 4 November and will be broadcast live at 8pm on ITV2 and repeated in full on ITV1 at 10:40pm.
Last year’s winners included Sam Smith (Best Male, Best Song, Best Album), Jessie J (Best Female), Beyoncé (Best International Artist) and Zara McFarlane (Best Jazz).
Voting is now open at mobo.com and closes at noon on November 1.
Log onto davidlyttle.com for upcoming live dates and news.