Ecca Vandal won the 22nd annual Australian Music Prize for her sophomore album, Looking for People to Unfollow, released via Loma Vista Recordings. This article covers the award, the album’s place on the shortlist and the artist’s recent career milestones.

Sponsored by SoundMerch, the Australian Music Prize recognizes outstanding Australian albums for artistic merit, not commercial sales. The winner receives a A$50,000 grand prize.

Looking for People to Unfollow was announced as the 2026 Australian Music Prize winner on Thursday (Nov. 11), beating a nine-album shortlist that included releases by Genesis Owusu, Grace Cummings, Julia Jacklin and Karnivool. A panel from the music industry selected the winner.

Based in Melbourne, Australia, and born in South Africa to a family of Sri Lankan heritage, Ecca Vandal released her self-titled debut album in 2017. Her long-awaited follow-up, Looking for People to Unfollow, drew praise from Zane Lowe and Spotify’s international editorial team, which named her one of its Artists to Watch 2026. Australian radio station Triple J selected the album as its feature album of the week.

The Australian Music Prize capped a breakout year for the genre-bending artist. During that year, Ecca Vandal performed at Coachella, making her debut at a major U.S. festival, made her U.S. television debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live and received seven nominations for the 2026 ARIA Awards, which were scheduled to be presented later that month in Sydney.

Ecca Vandal was on the final leg of her tour supporting Looking for People to Unfollow, with sold-out dates scheduled in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

In an interview with Billboard about what audiences could expect from a live Ecca Vandal performance, she said: “Aside from the flashing lights, I’d say come as you are and be prepared to lose yourself for a little while. I’ll be bringing all my energy so bring yours too. I love when a show feels like a little world that only exists for us for that hour, with everyone just collectively losing it.”

Modeled on the U.K.’s Mercury Prize, the Australian Music Prize launched in 2005 to “discover, reward and promote new Australian music of excellence.” The award recognizes albums and is regarded as a leading national prize for the album format.

Previous Australian Music Prize winners include The Avalanches, Sampa the Great (twice), Gurrumul, A.B. Original, Courtney Barnett and the previous year’s recipient, Ninajirachi, for I Love My Computer.

You can stream Looking for People to Unfollow below.