Weekend Plans Wins 2026 Newlin Music Prize
The Newlin Music Prize announced this morning that Weekend Plans has won the 2026 award for the album After Hours.
Released this past August, After Hours is a vibrant blend of funk, hip-hop, jazz, and soul that comes to life through layered grooves and irresistible melodies, stirring the senses with flowing energy. The album features Chet Frierson, Wynton Davis, Jordan Mason, Nate Clark, Forrest Link, Justin Ott, Chris Sclafani, Logos The Poetic, and Kayen Wilborn, and was recorded at Elephant Ear Studios and Go West Recording Studio with producer Ryan Gary. Since forming in 2016, Weekend Plans have built a reputation for their irresistible sound and impeccable talent, first evident on their 2019 album, State Of Nine. Drawing on the individual strengths and wide-ranging collaborations of its members, After Hours stands as a fully realized showcase of the band’s collective artistry and creative vision.
“We are honored to have been nominated alongside many of our musical peers, and even more humbled by winning this year’s Newlin Music Prize,” the band said in a press release. “This album was six years in the making; it’s dedicated to the ones who yearn to liberate their body through music. Thank you to our Richmond community and beyond for supporting our artistry over the past 10 years. This award further motivates us to keep pushing the musical envelope, and we’re going to do just that.”
Voted on by a jury of over 175 local musicians, journalists, artists, photographers, and activists (including members of The Auricular), the Newlin Music Prize seeks to recognize the very best from albums in the Richmond-Petersburg metropolitan area every year. Weekend Plans’ record was previously announced as part of the Newlin Music Prize’s short list alongside 19 other records from the Richmond area, ranging from electronic madcaps and hip-hop champions to punk vagrants and folk auteurs. In winning, Weekend Plans takes home a prize of $2,500, while each of the remaining artists receive $250.
The award was named after Dika Newlin, a musical prodigy who embodied the spirit of the Richmond music scene. In addition to being a cabaret performer, Elvis impersonator, and punk lothario, Newlin was also a respected and beloved professor with VCU in the music department as well as a renowned symphonic composer in her own right. Her career covers the totality of musical performance from lauded classical settings to dingy bar scenes, and the way she embraced both ends of the spectrum are why she was a deserving person to recognize when naming this award.
The Newlin Music Prize aims to raise awareness of the diverse music scene in Richmond, Virginia and to encourage more great musical works to come out of the area. After the short list was announced on February 16th, jury members began casting their ballots up until March 23rd. A fan vote was also open concurrently which asked people to choose their top 10 records from the batch of 20. The final fan vote served as one ballot in the final tally.
The 2026 Newlin Music Prize Short List was:
- Anna Leonard – Paint It Blue
- Belly Of The Heart – Subatomic Angel
- Brookhouse – American Sounds
- CJ The Profit – Virginia Autumn
- Flora & The Fauna – I Wanna
- Hotspit – (red wind)
- Human Worm – human worm
- IONNA – IONNAVERSE
- Laura Ann Singh – Mean Reds
- Mackenzie Roark And The Hotpants – Ghost Of Rock And Roll
- Madison Turner – Curtsy When You Land
- Palmyra – Restless
- Pyramid Mass – Gargling Rot
- Radio B – The Internet Is Fake
- Ronnie Luxe – HERMIT
- Shagg Carpet – Hurting Other People
- Shera Shi – KNEEDY
- Ty Sorrell x Profound79 – Return To Forever: A Profound Discovery
- Weekend Plans – After Hours
- Wrong Worshippers – Get Skooled!
Future prizes will be announced and awarded in the first quarter of each year and the Newlin Music Prize plans to partner with local charities in order to better help, support, and encourage the local music scene.
You can listen to Weekend Plans’ After Hours above, but we encourage you to check out each of the amazing records that made up the 2026 short list for the Newlin Music Prize.
