21 years since the release of their debut album Leisure, the band was announced Thursday as the 2012 winner of the Outstanding Contribution to Music award.

Formed in the late 1980s, Blur were hailed as leading lights of the 1990s Britpop scene, and released seven studio albums.

Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree reunited for a number of concerts in 2009, including a headline performance at .

Previous winners of the award include Paul McCartney, U2, Paul Weller, Oasis, Sting, The Who, Fleetwood Mac, Van Morrison and Queen.

The 2012 BRIT Awards will be held on Feb. 21, 2012.