Waxahatchee, MJ Lenderman and Jessica Pratt lead the nominees for the 2025 Libera Awards, presented by Merlin and announced today by the Foundation for Independent Music and the American Association of Independent Music. This 14th annual awards ceremony, which features 28 categories honoring the best in independent music, will take place on Monday, June 9 at Gotham Hall in New York City. Tickets on sale here.
Other top nominees include Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Mavis Staples, Common, Adrianne Lenker, Kim Gordon, Mk.Gee and more — see the full list of nominees below.
“Huge congratulations to all the incredibly talented nominees for the 14th annual Libera Awards!,” said Richard James Burgess, president and CEO of A2IM. “As the world’s largest awards show dedicated to the diverse and vibrant world of independent music, the Libera Awards honor both the artists and the industry that champion them. This year’s event promises to be our biggest and best yet, as A2IM proudly celebrates its 20th anniversary.”
Popular on Variety
Related Stories
The Libera Awards Presented By Merlin will kick off the Indie Week conference, which will begin the following morning, Tuesday, June 10 through Thursday, June 12 at the InterContinental New York Times Square. Learn more.
2025 Libera Awards Presented By Merlin Nominees:
RECORD OF THE YEAR
● Jessica Pratt – Here in the Pitch (Mexican Summer)
● Kim Gordon – The Collective (Matador Records)
● MJ Lenderman – Manning Fireworks (ANTI-)
● Mk.gee – ”Rockman” (R&R Digital)
● Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood (ANTI-)
LABEL OF THE YEAR (15+ employees)
● ANTI- Records
● Dead Oceans
● Mom+Pop
● Ninja Tune
● Partisan Records
● Stones Throw Records
● Sub Pop Records
● Warp Records
LABEL OF THE YEAR (6-14 employees)
● Captured Tracks
● City Slang
● Fat Possum
● Light in the Attic
● Mexican Summer
● Secret City Records
LABEL OF THE YEAR (5 or fewer employees)
● Bayonet Records
● Daptone Records
● Oh Boy Records
● Psychic Hotline
● Topshelf Records
● True Panther
ALTERNATIVE ROCK RECORD
● Being Dead – EELS (Bayonet Records)
● Kim Deal – Nobody Loves You More (4AD)
● Kim Gordon – The Collective (Matador Records)
● Nada Surf – Moon Mirror (New West Records)
● Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Wild God (Play It Again Sam)
AMERICAN ROOTS RECORD
● Dave Alvin + Jimmie Dale Gilmore – TexiCali (Yep Roc Records)
● Fantastic Negrito – Son of a Broken Man (Storefront Records)
● Gillian Welch & David Rawlings – Woodland (Acony Records)
● Joe Ely – Driven to Drive (Rack ’Em Records)
● MJ Lenderman – Manning Fireworks (ANTI-)
● Swamp Dogg – Blackgrass (Oh Boy Records)
BLUES RECORD
● Cedric Burnside – Hill Country Love (Provogue Records)
● Little Feat – Sam’s Place (Hot Tomato Records)
● Ruthie Foster – Mileage (Sun Records)
● Shemekia Copeland – Blame It On Eve (Alligator Records)
● The Taj Mahal Sextet – Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa (Lightning Rod Records)
CLASSICAL RECORD
● Ensemble Pygmalion, Raphaël Pichon – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Requiem (harmonia mundi)
● II Divo – XX: 20th Anniversary Album (Il Divo Music)
● Isabelle Faust – Britten: Violin Concerto and Chamber Works (harmonia mundi)
● Ju-Ping Song – Monad (Starkland)
● Kelly Moran – Moves in the Field (Warp Records)
● Marc-André Hamelin, Nathalie Forget, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Gustavo Gimeno – Olivier Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie (harmonia mundi)
● Michael Torke – Bloom (Ecstatic Records)
COUNTRY RECORD
● Corb Lund – El Viejo (New West Records)
● Fancy Hagood – American Spirit (Fancy Hagood Enterprises)
● Johnny Blue Skies – Passage du Desir (High Top Mountain Records)
● Shaboozey – Where I’ve Been, Isn’t Where I’m Going (American Dogwood/EMPIRE)
● Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood (ANTI-)
● Zach Top – Cold Beer & Country Music (Leo33)
DANCE RECORD
● A.G. Cook – ”Britpop” (New Alias)
● Fcukers – Baggy$$ (Technicolour / Ninja Tune)
● Peggy Gou – I Hear You (XL Recordings)
● Shygirl – Club Shy (Because Music)
● SOPHIE – SOPHIE (Future Classic)
ELECTRONIC RECORD
● Caribou – Honey (Merge Records)
● Floating Points – Cascade (Ninja Tune)
● Flying Lotus – Spirit Box (Warp Records)
● Jamie xx – In Waves (Young)
● Justice – Hyperdrama (Because Music)
● Photay – Windswept (Mexican Summer)
FOLK RECORD
● Adrianne Lenker – Bright Future (4AD)
● Aoife O’Donovan – All My Friends (Yep Roc Records)
● Bonny Light Horseman – Keep Me on Your Mind/See You Free (Jagjaguwar)
● Jessica Pratt – Here in the Pitch (Mexican Summer)
● Madi Diaz – Weird Faith (ANTI-)
GLOBAL RECORD
● Altin Gun – ”Vallahi Yok” (ATO Records)
● Asake – Lungu Boy (YBNL Nation/EMPIRE)
● BALTHVS – Harvest (Mixto Records)
● Glass Beams – Mahal (Ninja Tune)
● Hermanos Gutiérrez – Sonido Cósmico (Easy Eye Sound)
● Manu Chao – Viva Tu (Because Music)
● Mdou Moctar – Funeral for Justice (Matador Records)
HEAVY RECORD
● Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She (Loma Vista Recordings)
● High On Fire – Cometh The Storm (MNRK Music Group)
● METZ – Up On Gravity Hill (Sub Pop Records)
● Scene Queen – Hot Singles In Your Area (Hopeless Records)
● Speed – ”Only One Mode” (FLATSPOT)
HIP-HOP/RAP RECORD
● BigXthaPlug – Take Care (UnitedMasters)
● Cash Cobain – PLAY CASH COBAIN (Giant Music)
● Common & Pete Rock – The Auditorium Vol.1 (Loma Vista Recordings)
● Denzel Curry – King Of The Mischievous South (Loma Vista Recordings)
● E L U C I D – REVELATOR (Fat Possum Records)
● Shygirl – ”Immaculate (feat. Saweetie)” (Because Music)
JAZZ RECORD
● BADBADNOTGOOD – Mid Spiral (XL Recordings)
● Ezra Collective – Dance, No One’s Watching (Partisan Records)
● Kamasi Washington – Fearless Movement (Young)
● Lakecia Benjamin – Phoenix Reimagined (Live) (Ropeadope Records)
● Morgan Guerin – Tales Of The Facade (Candid Records)
● Nala Sinephro – Endlessness (Warp Records)
● Nubya Garcia – Odyssey (Concord Jazz)
LATIN RECORD
● Angélica Garcia – Gemelo (Partisan Records)
● Buscabulla – “11:11” (Domino Recording Company)
● Chicano Batman – “Era Primavera” (ATO Records)
● Dayme Arocena – Alkemi (Brownswood Recordings)
● Gaby Moreno and La Lom – “Alma Florecida” (Cosmica Artists)
● Girl Ultra – blush (Big Dada/Ninja Tune)
● Reyna Tropical – Malegría (Psychic Hotline)
OUTLIER RECORD
● Chanel Beads – Your Day Will Come (Jagjaguwar)
● Dawn Richard & Spencer Zahn – Quiet in a World Full of Noise (Merge Records)
● Hakushi Hasegawa – Mahōgakkō (Brainfeeder)
● Helado Negro – PHASOR (4AD)
● Khruangbin – A LA SALA (Dead Oceans)
● Moor Mother – The Great Bailout (ANTI-)
● SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE – YOU’LL HAVE TO LOSE SOMETHING (Saddle Creek)
● urika’s bedroom – Big Smile, Black Mire (True Panther)
POP RECORD
● Kate Nash – 9 Sad Symphonies (Kill Rock Stars)
● Kesha – ”Joyride” (Kesha Records)
● Magdalena Bay – Imaginal Disk (Mom+Pop)
● Sofie Royer – Young-Girl Forever (Stones Throw Records)
● SOPHIE – SOPHIE (Future Classic)
● Suki Waterhouse – Memoir of a Sparklemuffin (Sub Pop Records)
PUNK RECORD
● A Place To Bury Strangers – Synthesizer (Dedstrange)
● Chubby And The Gang – And Then There Was… (FLATSPOT)
● Ekko Astral – pink balloons (Topshelf Records)
● Laura Jane Grace – Hole In My Head (Polyvinyl Record Co.)
● Pissed Jeans – Half Divorced (Sub Pop Records)
● SPRINTS – Letter To Self (City Slang)
R&B RECORD
● Erika de Casier – Still (4AD)
● Fana Hues – Moth (Bright Antenna Records)
● Mavis Staples – ”Worthy” (ANTI-)
● NxWorries (Anderson .Paak & Knxwledge) – Why Lawd? (Stones Throw Records)
● serpentwithfeet – GRIP (Secretly Canadian)
● Yaya Bey – Ten Fold (Big Dada/Ninja Tune)
REISSUE
● Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force – Planet Rock: The Album (Tommy Boy Records)
● American Football – American Football LP1 (25th Anniversary Edition) (Polyvinyl Record Co.)
● Cocteau Twins & Harold Budd – The Moon And The Melodies (4AD)
● John Cale – Paris 1919 (Deluxe Edition) (Domino Recording Company)
● MF DOOM – MM..FOOD (20th Anniversary Edition) (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
● Ray Charles – Crying Time (Tangerine Records)
● Sylvan Esso – Sylvan Esso (10 Year Anniversary Edition) (Psychic Hotline)
REMIX
● Fcukers – ”Bon Bon (Confidence Man Remix)” (Technicolour/Ninja Tune)
● Kelela – RAVE:N, The Remixes (Warp Records)
● MF DOOM – ”One Beer (Madlib Remix)” (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
● Shygirl – ”mr useless – MK remix” (Because Music)
● Slowdive – ”kisses (grouper remix)” (Dead Oceans)
ROCK RECORD
● Fontaines D.C. – Romance (XL Recordings)
● IDLES – TANGK (Partisan Records)
● Jack White – No Name (Third Man Records)
● Mannequin Pussy – I Got Heaven (Epitaph)
● The Lemon Twigs – A Dream Is All We Know (Captured Tracks)
● The Linda Lindas – No Obligation (Epitaph)
SINGER SONGWRITER RECORD
● Adrianne Lenker – Bright Future (4AD)
● Christian Lee Hutson – Paradise Pop. 10 (ANTI-)
● Faye Webster – Underdressed at the Symphony (Secretly Canadian)
● Jessica Pratt – Here in the Pitch (Mexican Summer)
● Katie Gavin – ”As Good As It Gets” (Saddest Factory Records)
● Laura Marling – Patterns In Repeat (Partisan Records/Chrysalis Records)
SOUL/FUNK RECORD
● Angela Muñoz – Descanso (Stones Throw Records)
● Neal Francis – ”Back It Up” (ATO Records)
● The Dip – Love Direction (Dualtone)
● Thee Sacred Souls – Got a Story to Tell (Daptone Records)
● Thee Sinseers – Sinseerly Yours (Colemine Records)
SPIRITUAL RECORD
● Brother John – Brother John & The GFT Collective (The Blues Preachers/The Orchard)
● Flock – Flock II (Strut)
● Lauren Daigle – ”Then I Will (from Boenhoffer)” (Centricity Music)
● Lecrae – ”Die For The Party” (Reach Records)
● The Harlem Gospel Travelers – Rhapsody (Colemine Records)
● The Nelons – Loving You (Daywind Records)
SYNC RECORD
● Cigarettes After Sex – “Nothing’s Gonna Hurt You Baby” (It Ends With Us) (Partisan Records)
● De La Soul – ”Say No Go” (Civil War) (A.O.I./Chrysalis/Reservoir)
● Jamie xx & The Avalanches – “All You Children” (Apple) (Young)
● Spoon – ”The Way We Get By” (’A Real Pain’ Trailer) (Matador Records)
● Waxahatchee feat. MJ Lenderman – “Right Back to It” (Tracker S1 E6) (ANTI-)
BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST
● Jessica Pratt (Mexican Summer)
● Magdalena Bay (Mom+Pop)
● Mannequin Pussy (Epitaph)
● MJ Lenderman (ANTI-)
● Mk.gee (R&R Digital)
● Shaboozey (American Dogwood/EMPIRE)
CREATIVE PACKAGING
● Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works Volume II (Expanded Edition) (Warp Records)
● Khruangbin – A LA SALA (Dead Oceans)
● Mac DeMarco – Salad Days 10 Year Anniversary Edition (Captured Tracks)
● MF DOOM – MM..FOOD (20 Year Anniversary Edition) (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
● The Go Betweens – G Stands For Go-Betweens: Volume 3 (Domino Recording Company)
● Various Artists – Sub Pop Singles Club Vol. 8 (Sub Pop Records)
DISTRIBUTOR OF THE YEAR
● FUGA
● IDOL
● Redeye
● Secretly Distribution
● Symphonic Distribution
● The Orchard
INDEPENDENT CHAMPION
● Bandcamp
● Infinite Catalog
● Marauder
● Qobuz
● The Bloom Effect
MARKETING GENIUS
● IDLES – TANGK (Partisan Records)
● Khruangbin – A LA SALA (Dead Oceans)
● MF DOOM – MM..FOOD (20 Year Anniversary Edition) (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
● MJ Lenderman – Manning Fireworks (ANTI-)
● Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood (ANTI-)
MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR
● Caravan Palace – ”Mirrors” (Le Plan Recordings)
● Fontaines D.C. – ”Starburster” (XL Recordings)
● Justice – ”Neverender (starring Tame Impala)” (Because Music)
● Porter Robinson – ”Cheerleader” (Mom+Pop)
● Waxahatchee feat. MJ Lenderman – “Right Back to It” (ANTI-)
● Yaeji – ”booboo” (XL Recordings)
PUBLISHER OF THE YEAR
● Beggars Music
● Downtown Music Publishing
● Reservoir
● Secret City Publishing
● Warp Publishing
SELF RELEASED RECORD OF THE YEAR
● Cheekface – It’s Sorted (Cheekface)
● Fancy Hagood – American Spirit (Fancy Hagood Enterprises)
● Los Campesinos! – All Hell (Heart Swells)
● Orla Gartland – Everybody Needs a Hero (New Friends Music)
● RAYE – “Genesis.” (Human Re Sources)
● TV Girl & George Clanton – Fauxllennium (Blissful Serenity Industries, LLC)
