Izzy Bizu has been announced as the winner of the BBC Music Introducing Artist of the Year Award.
Nick Grimshaw and Izzy Bizu with her prize
The 'White Tiger' hitmaker will pick up her trophy at the 2016 BBC Music Awards which takes place at the ExCeL in London on Monday 12 December and she is absolutely thrilled to have been picked to receive the prestigious accolade.
Speaking of her win, she said: "It's an amazing honour to have won BBC Music Introducing Artist of the Year. The BBC has been hugely supportive of my music ever since my independently released 'Coolbeanz' EP and it's a real honour to follow in the footsteps of acts like Jack Garratt and Catfish and the Bottlemen."
BBC introducing - the BBC's scheme for emerging musical talent - aims to showcase undiscovered and unsigned artists and has helped kick-start the careers of artists such as James Bay, Jake Bugg, Florence + the Machine and George Ezra since its launch in 2007.
Izzy started her journey with BBC Introducing back in 2013 when she uploaded her EP 'Coolbeanz' to the talent scheme's website. Picked up by her local BBC Introducing show on BBC Radio London, the unsigned singer-songwriter gained exposure on the Radio 1 and 1Xtra BBC Introducing playlist slots, garnering support from the likes of Jamie Cullum who played her on his Radio 2 show before being chosen to perform at the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury in 2014.
She has previously been nominated for Best Newcomer at the 2016 MOBO Awards and was shortlisted for the 2016 Brit Critics' Choice Award.
Discussing why she has been chosen to win, Jason Carter - Head of BBC Introducing - said: "Izzy is a huge talent that I'm certain will be a huge success story both at home and abroad. I'm proud of the part that BBC Introducing has played in launching her career and look forward to her live performance at the BBC Music Awards, and supporting her in the years to come."
As well as being rewarded with the gong, the star is also set to take the stage on the night alongside Kaiser Chiefs, Craig David, Lukas Graham, Zara Larsson, John Legend, Emeli Sandé, Robbie Williams and The 1975.
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