London (AFP)

Twenty-one-year-old rapper Dave won the prestigious Mercury Prize on Thursday night in London with his album "Psychodrama", which explores black identity and denounces institutionalized racism.

"I do not know what to say, I want to first invite my mother to go on stage," said the London-based singer, wearing a tracksuit, after having played his moving title "Psycho" on the famous stage of Eventim Apollo Hammersmith concert hall.

"I want to thank my brother Christopher (imprisoned in 2013, Ed) who inspired this album, it's your story here," he added.

Created in 1992, the Mercury Prize is the best British or Irish album of the last twelve months. It comes with a reward of 25,000 pounds (28,000 euros) and generally propels sales of the distinguished album.

"It's a big compliment, it's probably the best day of my mom's life," joked Dave at a news conference. "All this is much bigger than me, all these months of work, all these people behind the scenes," he said.

"Psychodrama" is a dive into the heavy legacy of the black community, but also a celebration of its identity. "Black is much deeper than being African-American (...) we had real queens," sings Dave in his title "Black". "The darker the berry, the more sweet the juice, the more a child dies, the darker the killer, the more sweet the news," he continues.

"Psychodrama" is an album "of courage and honesty, just exceptional", greeted the DJ and jury member Annie Mac, at the time of awarding the prize.

- Climate, BoJo and enraged saltos -

Dave was not the only rebellious artist to have taken the microphone for this Mercury Prize.

The ceremony opened with the English rock band Foals and their album "Everything not saved will be lost - Part 1", presented by the host of the evening, Lauren Laverne, as "a soundtrack to the drama of change climate ".

Followed on stage the English Anna Calvi. His album "Hunter" explores the notions of genre to "free oneself from patriarchy". The guitarist, with his powerful voice and black-eyed eyes, finished his song "Do not beat the girl out of my boy" on his knees, to the applause of the audience.

But the room really got excited with the rising phenomenon of English rap Slowthai, 24, and his album "Nothing Great about Britain". "There is nothing big in Britain," repeated the artist as a creed with a pungent, critical and jaded flow. This English native of the Midlands, also took the opportunity to insult British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, brandishing a mask with his effigy.

It is therefore in front of a public heated to block that the punk group Idles defended his album "Joy as an Act of Resistance", the toxic masculinity, that which force the men to "drink", to "not to cry".

His main singer, Joe Talbot, 34, with pink dyed hair, punctuated his performance by angrily stomping his foot. "I was one of those guys when I was younger, (stuck) in a fucking fishbowl, who wanted to escape," said this former alcoholic in an interview with the Guardian in 2018. With the music , "It's important to try to educate".

We also note the amazing show of Black Midi for their title "bmbmbm" (Schlagenheim): guitar jets, salto missed, all on rock music almost psychedelic, to the delight of the public.

Also on stage: the Irish punks Fountains DC ("Dogrel") denouncing the gentrification of Dublin, Little Simz ("Gray Area") who criticizes the cloistered world of male rap, but also Cate Le Bon ("Reward") , Nao ("Saturn") and SEED Ensemble ("Driftglass"). The 1975 group ("A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships"), however, was absent.

© 2019 AFP