Scottish Album of the Year Award 2025: Dundee trophy is designed by artists from the city and made from recycled skateboards

The trophies are made from recycled skateboards and walnut from an old Dundee tree (Picture: Grant Anderson)

The Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award has unveiled its bespoke 2025 prizes – handcrafted in Dundee by local makers No Comply using repurposed skateboard decks and reclaimed hardwood.

With the ceremony taking place tomorrow, the announcement highlights Dundee’s creative spirit and its global recognition as the UK’s first and only UNESCO City of Design.

This year marks a first for the prestigious music award, with the event moving outside Scotland’s Central Belt to Dundee’s Caird Hall on Thursday 6th November.

The ceremony will celebrate the best in Scottish music, crowning the £20,000 winner while also honouring KT Tunstall with the Modern Scottish Classic Award for her debut album Eye to the Telescope.

No Comply’s founders, Cat Loots and Andy Donaldson, have transformed 45 donated skateboards into 12 stunning trophies that merge sustainability with local heritage.

Using walnut from a 300-year-old Dundee tree felled for safety reasons, they’ve created pieces that trace the city’s coastline, symbolising Dundee’s community, creativity, and resilience.

The prizes will be presented to the SAY Award winner, the nine shortlisted artists, and the winners of the Modern Scottish Classic and Sound of Young Scotland categories.

Dundee’s coastline-inspired designs mark the latest chapter in the award’s annual Design Commission, which funds local artists to create sustainable and meaningful trophies.

The SAY Award 2025 Shortlist includes Brooke Combe, Cloth, Hamish Hawk, Jacob Alon, Kai Reesu, Kathryn Joseph, Matt Carmichael, TAAHLIAH, The Joy Hotel, and Zoe Graham. The ceremony, hosted by Nicola Meighan and Vic Galloway, will feature live performances from previous winners including corto.alto, redolent, and Brooke Combe, alongside Sound of Young Scotland winner Dillon Barrie.

Tomorrow night, Dundee’s Caird Hall will bring together musicians, fans and industry figures to celebrate Scottish music past, present and future – and to crown the winner of one of the UK’s biggest music prizes.