The 17th annual Taite Music Prize, along with four other New Zealand music industry awards, will be presented on 29 April 2026 at a public ceremony in Auckland, organised by Independent Music New Zealand (IMNZ).
The ceremony and its main award share the "Taite Music Prize" name. Sometimes called the Taite Main, this award recognises New Zealand's best album of the previous year (2025). The winner will be selected by a panel of judges who are not publicly named until after their decision has been announced. Criteria for the award include artistic merit, creativity, innovation and excellence. The winner receives $12,500 from Recorded Music NZ.
An open call for nominations closed on 30 January. A total of 83 albums were entered, with all IMNZ members eligible to cast up to ten votes for their preferred finalists.
The ten finalists were announced on 2 March. They included two previous winners, Reb Fountain (2021) and Tom Scott (2019). Scott (Home Brew, @Peace, Avantdale Bowling Club) is in a record eighth final. Four of the ten albums were released by Flying Nun Records.
Crazy? Yes! Dumb? No! by The Mint Chicks, first released in 2006 on Flying Nun Records, was announced as 2026's winner of the IMNZ Classic Album award on 24 March. The winner was selected by "a panel of music journalists, radio staff, and industry experts" with no public nomination process or vote. The Mint Chicks' two leading members, brothers Ruban and Kody Nielson, had both already won main Taite Music Prizes, in 2012 and 2016 respectively.
Like the Taite Main, an open nomination round for the Best Independent Debut Award was held in early 2026. A total of 19 records were submitted to a vote of IMNZ's membership. Three finalists were announced on 24 March. Pikipiki by Geneva AM, also in the running for the Taite Main, is a double finalist.
Three finalists for this award, which recognises excellence in music storytelling, were announced ahead of the award ceremony on 24 March. Newzician Magazine was also a finalist in 2025, and Chris Cudby became a three-time finalist after 2022 and 2023.
Unlike the other awards, there will be no pre-announced finalists or winner of the Independent Spirit award. It will go to an individual or group that has had "a lasting impact on the independent music community".
The Taite Music Prize award ceremony will be held in 29 April 2026. Host Sarah Thomson will return. For the first time, the venue will be the New Zealand International Convention Centre. In another first, tickets are being offered to the public. It's expected to be the largest ever Taite Music Prize event.