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Late Scottish artist’s album makes longlist for coveted award

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Cite

McDougall, R. (2026, September 24). Late Scottish artist’s album makes longlist for coveted award. Evening Standard. https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-news/scottish-tickets-b1298312.html

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Evening Standard · collected 2026-09-24 · by Ryan McDougall

Quick Summary

Late Scottish artist Beldina Odennya Onassis's album "Heir Of The Cursed" has been longlisted for the Scottish Album of the Year (Say) Awards in 2026, months after her death in 2021. Her sister Leah McAleer worked to release and promote the album as a tribute to Beldina’s artistic legacy. Among other nominated albums are works by well-known bands like Biffy Clyro. The Say Award longlist features 20 albums from various genres out of 303 submissions, with the winner receiving £20,000.
Written by AI on 2026-09-24, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Late Scottish artist Beldina Odenyo Onassis's posthumous album Heir Of The Cursed has been longlisted for the prestigious Scottish Album of the Year (Say) Awards. Her sister Leah McAleer, who has worked to release her music after Beldina's death in 2021, expressed delight at the nomination, fulfilling a promise made to her late sister to promote her work widely. The album is among 20 finalists out of an initial pool of 303 submissions, spanning various genres and featuring artists such as Biffy Clyro, Emma Pollock, Sonedo, and The Twilight Sad. The winner will receive a prize of £20,000. Robert Kilpatrick, chief executive and creative director of the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA), highlighted the award's 15th year milestone in 2026, noting over £425,000 distributed to Scottish artists since its inception.

Written for “Scottish Artist Album Award Nomination” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Scottish Artist Album Award Nomination
Entertainment · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

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How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
19
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 19 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
64/100
Evening Standard's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Entertainment
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-24 · how these are computed

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Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Evening Standard · 8526 article(s) · 73 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 73 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Ryan McDougall
29 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Also by Ryan McDougall
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 29 articles by Ryan McDougall →

Topics

Dundee Say Sonedo the Scottish Album of the Year (Say) Awards the Scottish Music Industry Association

Subjects

Beldina PERSON · 2× Dundee GPE · 2× Beldina Odenyo Onassis PERSON · 1× Biffy Clyro’s PERSON · 1× Emma Pollock’s PERSON · 1× Leah McAleer PERSON · 1× McAleer PERSON · 1× Onassis PERSON · 1× Say ORG · 1× Sonedo ORG · 1×

Narrative

Robert Kilpatrick, chief executive and creative director of the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) said: “It’s hard to believe that 2026 marks The Say Award’s 15th year, with over £425,000 in prize money distributed to Scottish artists to date – and soon to be more.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-24
🔮 Ms McAleer said: “On 8th November 2018 Beldina texted me and said she was going to make the best album, and then we would tour the world.
2026-09-24 · Evening Standard
Late Scottish artist’s album makes longlist for coveted award · assertive framing

Claims (19 extracted, 0 hedged)

Beldina Odenyo Onassis died in 2021, but her sister Leah McAleer has been working to ensure her music was released following her death. asserted
music → die → death
The album from Ms Onassis, Heir Of The Cursed, has now been longlisted in the Scottish Album of the Year (Say) Awards. asserted
album → longliste → Awards
Ms McAleer said: “On 8th November 2018 Beldina texted me and said she was going to make the best album, and then we would tour the world. asserted
we → say → world
“On 7th December 2021 I promised her that we would spread her songs as wide as words and music can travel. asserted
words → promise → songs
“Since then we have worked together to release her album Heir Of The Cursed, each of us committed to keeping those promises. asserted
each → work → promises
“It is heartbreaking and heartfilling to have this album on The Say Awards 2026 Longlist. asserted
It → have → Longlist
“I know wherever Beldina is she is dancing with delight, but her quote is probably unprintable.” asserted
quote → know → delight
Other albums featured in the Say longlist include Biffy Clyro’s Futique, Emma Pollock’s Begging The Night To Take Hold, Sonedo’s From Here On Out, and The Twilight Sad’s It’s the Long Goodbye. asserted
It → feature → Hold
The winner will receive a £20,000 prize and coveted title, with the 20 entrants spanning several genres. asserted
entrants → receive → genres
Some 303 albums were submitted, and feature artists from across the country. asserted
albums → submit → country
Robert Kilpatrick, chief executive and creative director of the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) said: “It’s hard to believe that 2026 marks The Say Award’s 15th year, with over £425,000 in prize money distributed to Scottish artists to date – and soon to be more. asserted
425,000 → say → date
“As ever, the 20-strong Longlist showcases a bold, intimate, powerful and ever-evolving recorded output from across our country – one that continues to inspire, captivate, challenge and connect. asserted
that → showcase → country
Read More “Music is at the heart of our cultural identity, and each year The Say Award Longlist gives us the opportunity to reflect on both who we are and who we’re becoming as a nation. asserted
we → read → nation
“I’m incredibly proud of the value we continue to place on music, and on the album as an artform. asserted
we → ’m → artform
“We look forward to celebrating their records, the soundtrack and stories of our lives, as we return to Dundee’s Caird Hall for this year’s Ceremony on Thursday 5 November.” asserted
we → look → Thursday
Alan Morrison, head of music at Creative Scotland, added: “The 20 works of human brilliance that make up this year’s Say Award Longlist are an antidote to the negative impacts of generative AI to the music industry. asserted
that → add → industry
“These heartfelt statements of artistic expression in album form will make you cry, sigh, dance and cheer – the full spectrum of emotions that only music can inspire. asserted
music → make → that
“With attention-grabbing debuts standing shoulder-to-shoulder alongside future classics by favourite bands, it’s clear that 2026 has shaped up to be a special vintage year. asserted
2026 → grab → bands
The Say Award ceremony will take place at Dundee’s Caird Hall on Thursday November 5. asserted
ceremony → take → Thursday
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