BRITS
Nearly three years ago, RAYE tweeted that her label situation left her not “wanting to get out of bed and feeling so alone.” Polydor, to which she signed in 2014, had blocked her from releasing any music unless her singles reached a certain level of commercial success. Last week (Mar. 2), the “Escapism” singer woke up, got out of bed, and took home six of her seven record-breaking nominations at the 2024 Brit Awards – and she did it all independently.
It’s now the Monday after the Brit Awards and RAYE is “recovering from a two-day hangover,” she tells Billboard over Google Meet. The acclaimed singer-songwriter understandably spent the weekend celebrating her six wins, including best new artist, best R&B act, songwriter of the year, song of the year (“Escapism,” with 070 Shake), artist of the year, and album of the year (My 21st Century Blues), which she cites as the victory that meant the most to her. “I was sobbing like a child!” she recounts.
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J. Erving, founder of Human Re Sources, the distribution company that helped usher RAYE into her current era of global pop stardom, lounges on a giant teddy bear chair behind her. It’s quite the picturesque scene for a Google Meets window. That teddy bear – and it truly is giant – was a gift from DJ Cuppy, a Nigerian DJ and producer, who sent it to RAYE following her split from Polydor. “When we were finishing vocals and stuff [for the album], I was on that teddy bear!” says RAYE.
The album in question is, of course, My 21st Century Blues, an evocative tour de force of fearless songwriting and bombastic vocal performances. Over an expansive sonic palette that includes big band jazz, boom bap, gospel, dance and R&B, RAYE works her way through the trauma of sexual assault, body dysmorphia, drug abuse, her faith journey and general existentialism. It’s a truly kaleidoscopic record that stands as the stark antithesis to the messaging RAYE received from her old label – and to other labels that tried to strip her of her idiosyncratic artistic vision.
After splitting with Polydor in July 2021, RAYE signed with Human Re Sources, a subsidiary of The Orchard, a music and entertainment company with a focus on distribution. From there she and “the most supportive, beautiful team” properly launched a campaign for her debut LP that took her all the way to her historic night at the Brits. At the ceremony, RAYE performed a show-stealing medley of songs, including an orchestral rendition of “Prada” (a viral Cassö-produced rework of her 2021 D-Block Europe collaboration “Ferrari Horses”), U.K. chart-topper “Escapism” and the harrowing “Ice Cream Man,” a track that details her sexual assault at the hands of a music producer.
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A triumphant full-circle moment, that medley was something of a nirvana moment for RAYE — despite a truncated rehearsal period, given that she had just wrapped a tour just days before the ceremony. “As soon as I sat on that piano, the was the first time the whole night I was actually at peace,” she says. “I’m so at home onstage… I just feel like this is where I’m meant to be.”
To feel at home on the Brit Awards stage, however, RAYE first had to find a home in a new partner on her journey as a newly independent artist. “RAYE’s been the captain of the ship,” explains Erving. “The first time I heard this album was exactly the album that was put out. Our job was to get out of RAYE’s way and just be as supportive as we could. We can be very nimble and move quickly when something catches a spark, but there is no blueprint for what RAYE’s doing right now.”
This artist-forward approach to building not just a successful album era, but also a devoted fan base and solidified career, is what allowed RAYE to sustain the momentum of “Escapism” for an entire calendar year. After gaining traction on TikTok in late 2022, “Escapism” became the first U.K. No. 1 song for both her and 070 Shake by the following January. My 21st Century Blues arrived in its totality the next month (Feb. 3, 2023), reaching No. 2 on the U.K. albums chart. It’s fitting that “Escapism” was the impetus behind RAYE’s incredible growth over the past few years; the nocturnal electro-pop/hip-hop hybrid thrilled audiences with its unflinching look at escaping reality and heartbreak through meaningless sex, partying and drugs – exactly the kind of RAYE record that traditional record labels were wary of.
“Literally not one other place that we went to and played the music were okay with the songs as they were,” explains RAYE. “The running consensus was, ‘Oh, we like RAYE, but she would need to go again.’ There was all this talk of, ‘We want to decide, we want to control, we want to A&R,’ and I’ve now got to a place where I’m finally independent and don’t have to hand it all away again. That’s not happening.”
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At Human Re Sources, Erving helped assemble a team and strategy for RAYE and My 21st Century Blues that was as reactive as it was laissez-faire. “This is soul food: It takes a little bit longer to cook and it’s way more satisfying than microwave food,” posits Erving. “[These are] revelations that continue to happen every day, where people are understanding that RAYE is bigger than any one particular song. The amount of shows and support shows and intimate rooms she’s done, building a real audience and a real fanbase. All that matters is [drawing in] people who listen and listen properly.”
Instead of trying to plan or predict what songs would be the right ones to throw their full promotional strength behind, RAYE and her team simply let the music connect with listeners and responded to what they were responding to. For example, after performing “Prada” on piano while playing some shows in the U.S., RAYE released an official acoustic version of the song on streaming platforms, which, in turn, spawned its own TikTok trend. “Prada” eventually peaked at No. 2 in the U.K. and at No. 5 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.
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Other key promotional moves to maintain RAYE’s momentum included a near-constant flow of eye-popping music videos and rousing live performance clips, and a year packed with shows, including a headlining trek in support of Blues and opening slots on tours from SZA, Kali Uchis and Lewis Capaldi. Most recently, RAYE launched My 21st Century Symphony (Sept. 26, 2023), a live concert filmed at London’s Royal Albert Hall alongside the Heritage Orchestra and the Flames Collective (which aired on BBC and spawned an accompanying live album).
“The only thing that we were able to plan or have any control over was the art,” says RAYE of her approach to promotion. “We are in a weird, beautiful time in which you can’t plan [what’s] going to be ‘the big one.’ I’ve been doing shows, doing support gigs, doing promo, doing the social stuff. At the end of the day, give the art as best as a chance as possible at reaching the most ears.”
At Human Re Sources, RAYE found a partner with the same outlook in Erving. Having founded a company that helped launch the carers of marquee independent artists like Brent Faiyaz and Pink Sweat$, Erving was able to foster something more than just a distribution company.
“When we met with J, the one thing that was different to everyone else was that he actually liked the music. He said ‘I believe in you,’” recalls RAYE. “[Human Re Sources] is the only option that makes sense. This is the only place where I don’t have to worry about someone else trying to lead me or steer me or tell me what to do.”
In addition to feeling heard and respected as a person, artist, and visionary at Human Re Sources, RAYE also secured herself a deal from which she could see legitimate financial returns from hit records – something that has unfairly been a privilege for most artists instead of a right. With an increasing number of artists deciding to sell the rights to their music, RAYE’s success with her Human Re Sources partnership signals a different path forward for artists. According to Erving, RAYE now has a catalog that she will own and continue to make money from in perpetuity. It’s a material addition to the legacy she showcased at the Brits when she brought her grandmother, Agatha Dawson-Amoah, onstage with her to accept her awards.
“Making actual money from your records! Do you know how nice that is?” RAYE exclaims. “We’re making money from our songs, not just the publishing or the writing side, actual hard sales. That’s been such a rewarding thing to see because that’s how it should be.”
With six Brits to her name now, RAYE has her sights set on the next phase of her career as a globe-conquering independent artist. She’s taken the next two weeks off to “take some time to process all that we’ve worked hard for” and to prepare to start writing again and “get in [her] producer bag.” She has a few performances coming up, including Saturday Night Live (Apr. 6), Coachella (Apr. 13 and 20) and Leeds Festival (Aug. 25), so she’s “just gonna keep going” because, after all, it’s all about momentum.
But if there’s any legacy RAYE hopes her historic Brit Awards night leaves, it’s that she – and all artists – should put being proud of their art over any outside achievements.
“I’m an artist who is obsessed with her music and her art,” she says. “If I’d been fortunate enough to have a night like I did at the Brits but not feel the way I did about my art, then what am I doing it for? Whether I had a night like that at the Brits and the two years that we did or we didn’t, I’d still feel the same about my Music. That’s what matters.”
Dua Lipa is set to open the 2024 Brit Awards, which will be held at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday (March 2). The pop star also opened the 2024 Grammy Awards on Feb. 4 in Los Angeles, performing “Training Day” and “Houdini.” Kylie Minogue is set to close the Brits.
The show will be broadcast live in the U.K. from 8:30 p.m. local time on ITV1, STV, ITVX and STV Player. Fans outside the U.K. can easily watch the show, just a half-hour delayed, via an exclusive YouTube livestream. The international stream will start at 9 p.m. GMT, which translates to 4 p.m. ET and 1 p.m. PT.
Clara Amfo, Maya Jama and Roman Kemp are set to co-host The Brit Awards 2024 with Mastercard – the show’s official name. Yinka Bokinni and Jack Saunders will present The Brits’ Red Carpet for ITV2 and The Brits’ Aftershow for ITVX. On the red carpet show, St. Vincent will present The Last Dinner Party with their Rising Star award. St Vincent is in London promoting her new album, All Born Screaming, ahead of its April release.
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The 2024 Red Carpet Live Stream, hosted by actor Layton Williams and KISS FM presenter Harriet Rose, will broadcast from 5:30 p.m. local time on The Brits’ Instagram and Facebook. Harriet will also speak to winners backstage on the night.
The Brits have already announced the winners of four awards. As noted above, The Last Dinner Party are the winners of the Brits Rising Star award. RAYE won Songwriter of the Year, while Chase & Status took Producer of the Year. Minogue will be presented with the Brits’ Global Icon award, an award won by Taylor Swift three years ago.
Here are the performers and presenters on the 2024 Brit Awards.
Performers
Becky Hill with Chase & Status
Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding
Dua Lipa
Jungle
Kylie Minogue
RAYE
Rema
Tate McRae
Presenters
AitchAshley WaltersCharli XCXGreen DayJaime WinstoneJoe Keery (Stranger Things)Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton)Kingsley Ben-Adir (Bob Marley: One Love)Luke EvansMarisa Abela (upcoming Amy Winehouse biopic, Back to Black)St. Vincent
RAYE — who set a new record last month for the most Brit Awards nominations by an artist in any one year — is this year’s recipient of the Brit Award for songwriter of the year. The Brits will be held Saturday at 8.30 p.m. local time at The O2 arena in London. The show will broadcast on ITV1 and ITVX in the U.K. and will stream globally on YouTube.
The winner of the songwriter of the year award, which was introduced in 2022, is determined by a panel of expert judges. The two previous winners are Ed Sheeran and Kid Harpoon, which makes RAYE the first woman to receive the honor. The Brits added this category one year before the Grammys added songwriter of the year, non-classical. To date, no woman has won in that Grammy category.
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RAYE’s “Escapism” (featuring 070 Shake) reached No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 2023 and logged 23 weeks on the chart.
RAYE is set to also perform on this year’s Brits, along with Becky Hill together with Chase & Status, Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding, Dua Lipa, Jungle, Kylie Minogue, Rema and Tate McRae. Lipa opened this year’s Grammys on Feb. 4 with a performance of “Training Season” and “Houdini.” The Brits will be hosted by Clara Amfo, Maya Jama and Roman Kemp.
RAYE is the fourth Brits winner to be announced ahead of the show.
Chase & Status are this year’s producer of the year winners. The electronic music duo, consisting of Saul Milton (Chase) and Will Kennard (Status), is also nominated for group of the year. They have produced not only their own releases, but the works of such other acts as Becky Hill, Paloma Faith, Rihanna, Rita Ora and Tinie Tempah. Chase & Status are the fourth multi-person production team to win producer of the year, following Stock Aitken Waterman (1988); Chris Potter, The Verve & Youth (1998); and Alan Moulder & Flood (2014).
Minogue will be presented with the Brits’ Global Icon award. Taylor Swift won that award three years ago.
The Last Dinner Party are the winners of the Brits Rising Star award.
The Brit Awards 2024 with Mastercard – the show’s official name – will take place Saturday, March 2, broadcast live from 8:30 p.m. local time on ITV1, STV, ITVX and STV Player.
Yinka Bokinni and Jack Saunders will present The Brits’ Red Carpet for ITV2 and The Brits’ Aftershow for ITVX.
Kylie Minogue will be presented with the Brits Global Icon award at this year’s ceremony on Saturday, March 2. Minogue, who is also nominated for international artist of the year, is confirmed to perform on the night, joining the already-announced Dua Lipa and RAYE.
The Brits Global Icon Award is described as the highest accolade given by the Brit Awards. Taylor Swift received the honor three years ago. The award was previously called the Icon Award. Recent recipients were Elton John (2014), David Bowie (2016) and Robbie Williams (2017).
“I am beyond thrilled to be honoured with the Global Icon Award and to be joining a roll call of such incredible artists,” Minogue said in a statement. “The U.K. has always been a home from home, so the Brits have a very special place in my heart. I have some amazing memories from the awards over the years and I can’t wait to be back on the Brits stage. See you at the O2!”
Minogue and Swift are competing for international artist of the year. The other nominees in that category are Asake, Burna Boy, Caroline Polachek, CMAT, Lana Del Rey, Miley Cyrus, Olivia Rodrigo and SZA.
Minogue is also performing on the People’s Choice Awards, which will be presented at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, Calif., on Sunday, Feb. 18. Lainey Wilson and Lenny Kravitz are also set to perform on that show.
On Feb. 4, Minogue won her first Grammy Award in 20 years – best pop dance recording for “Padam Padam.” That song reached No. 7 on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs in June, Minogue’s highest ranking ever on that chart.
RAYE leads this year’s nominations for the Brits with seven nods, which established a new record for the most nominations in a single year. British rappers Central Cee and J Hus tied for second place in the nominations tally with four each.
The winners of the genre awards will be determined by a public vote exclusively through Instagram, which opened midday Feb. 1 and closes Thursday (Feb. 15) at 6 p.m. GMT. To vote, fans can either head to the Brits page on Instagram (@BRITs), and comment on the category Reel of their choice using an artist specific hashtag, or by creating a Reel and using the @BRITs tag, and the artist specific hashtag in the caption. Fans can perform each of these actions once for each artist, per category, per day, with a comment counting for one vote, creating a Reel will count for five votes.
More information on voting can be found on the BRITs website.
The BRIT Awards 2024 with Mastercard, which is the full name of the show, will be broadcast live on ITV1, STV, ITVX and STV Player from The O2 arena in London.
01/24/2024
Here’s every artist who has earned at least five BRIT Awards nominations in a single year.
01/24/2024
LONDON — The 2023 Brit Awards drew its biggest television audience in three years with 3.9 million viewers watching the show on Saturday Feb. 11, a rise of more than 1 million on the previous year, according to U.K. broadcaster ITV.
The 43rd edition of the Brits, the U.K.’s biggest music awards show, featured live performances from Harry Styles, Stormzy and Sam Smith & Kim Petras, among others, and was staged on a Saturday night for the first time in the Brits’ history.
The move from the Brits’ traditional mid-week slot to the weekend had the positive impact organizers were hoping for with the show — hosted by Mo Gilligan and broadcast live from London’s The O2 arena — drawing an average audience of 3.3 million viewers over its two-hour running time, peaking at 3.9 million. ITV says another 780,000 people watched the show via its on-demand streaming app ITVx.
In comparison, last year’s ceremony was watched by 2.7 million television viewers in the U.K., down from 2.9 million in 2021 — the Brits’ lowest-ever TV audience, according to industry publication Broadcast.
Despite this year’s ratings upturn, Saturday’s show is still the Brits’ third-smallest TV audience, failing to surpass the 4.4 million viewers that watched in 2020, and some distance behind the ceremony’s peak popularity at the turn of the millennium when around 9 million people would regularly tune in.
There are, nevertheless, positives that labels trade body BPI, which organizes the Brits, can take away from this year’s event. Saturday’s broadcast – where Styles enjoyed a clean sweep, winning all four awards for which he was nominated – attracted a 53% audience share of 16-34 year-olds, up from last year’s 33% share, according to ITV.
Music performances and show highlights streamed on the Brit Awards 2023 official YouTube channel have additionally generated around 3 million views in total in the 24 hours after the event, according to Billboard’s calculations.
The Brit Awards’ other digital partners include Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube Kids, Vevo and fan engagement platform Filmily, while Saturday’s show was live-streamed internationally on YouTube. BPI is due to release its digital audience figures later this week.
Harry Styles, Lizzo and Sam Smith & Kim Petras, who all performed on the Grammy telecast on Feb. 5 (and also all walked off with awards), are scheduled to perform again on Saturday Feb. 11 at the Brit Awards, which will be held at the O2 arena in London.
They’ll barely have time to get over their jet lag before they’re in front of another arena filled with screaming fans (in the cheap seats) and more reserved industry types (closer to the stage).
Wet Leg, which won two Grammys in the alternative music field, but did not snag a performance slot on Sunday’s telecast, will perform on the Brits.
The Brits have not revealed which songs these stars will sing. Styles performed his megahit “As It Was” on the Grammys. Lizzo sang “About Damn Time” and “Special.” Smith and Petras performed “Unholy.” Smith and Petras are expected to perform that smash again. David Guetta, Becky Hill and Ella Henderson are expected to perform “Crazy What Love Can Do.”
The final performer announced for the Brits was Lewis Capaldi – who last performed at the Brits in 2020, when he sang his breakthrough smash “Someone You Loved.” Capaldi was characteristically self-effacing in a statement: “Last time I played The BRIT Awards I was so scared that I had a panic attack before I went on, and then got hammered afterwards. Looking forward to more of the same this year x.”
Comedian Mo Gilligan will host the BRIT Awards 2023 with Mastercard – the show’s official name – for the second year in a row.
For American fans accustomed to Grammy and Oscar telecasts that often drag on past 3-1/2 hours, the Brit Awards, which stick pretty close to their two-hour scheduled runtime, may seem positively fast-paced. (It’s worth noting that the Grammys were a two-hour show until the 25th anniversary edition on Feb. 23, 1983 when it expanded to three hours for the first time. It never went back.)
Styles and Wet Leg are the leading nominees for the 2023 Brit Awards, with four nods each. Other artists vying for multiple awards include Aitch, Arctic Monkeys, Beyoncé, Cat Burns, Dave, Ed Sheeran, Eliza Rose, Lizzo, Nova Twins, Sam Smith, Stormzy and Taylor Swift.
R&B girl group FLO have already been announced as winners of the 2023 Rising Star award.
This marks the first time the Brits have aired on a Saturday. The show will be broadcast exclusively on ITV1 and ITVX from 8.30pm GMT. Outside of the U.K., it’s available globally at youtube.com/BRITs
Clara Amfo, Maya Jama and Roman Kemp will return to host the BRIT Awards 2023: Red Carpet show on ITV2 and ITVX, which begins at 7.30pm GMT.
2023 will mark 30 years of ITV as the Brits’ broadcast partner, 25 years of Mastercard as headline sponsor and 13 years with the show at The O2.
Here’s the full list of performers for the 2023 Brit Awards:
Cat BurnsDavid Guetta & Becky Hill & Ella HendersonHarry StylesLewis CapaldiLizzoSam Smith & Kim PetrasStormzyWet Leg
Kojey Radical, Mimi Webb, Rina Sawayama, Sam Ryder and Wet Leg got the thrill of a lifetime on Thursday when they received 2023 Brit Awards nominations for best new artist.
Several of the nominees expressed their joy on hearing the news. Wet Leg exclaimed, “Somebody hold our horses while we get to grips with this wild news, being nominated for a BRIT award is too hard to comprehend, we never could have expected for our wee band to achieve this.”
Webb gave a shout-out to a previous winner in the category. “I remember seeing Dua Lipa win Best New Artist in 2018 and being in awe of her – that moment really inspired me to work hard and be the artist I am today.”
Ryder expressed his joy in a most vivid way: “I’m buzzing! I feel like a Golden Retriever that’s won a medal.”
Wet Leg, the female indie rock duo that tied Harry Styles for the most nominations by any artist this year (four), is the clear front-runner here, but the other four acts should not lose heart. Many future superstars have lost this award and gone on to do very well. The gifted singer whose photo accompanies this story is one of them.
It’s not that the Brits don’t know a talented new artist when they see one. The roster of winners in this category includes such heavyweights as Oasis, Arctic Monkeys, Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith, Dua Lipa and Lewis Capaldi. It’s just that it’s not always easy to envision how an artist will develop and grow based on just their first year – and sometimes, less than a year – of success.
Note: The category has undergone several name changes over the years. When the Brits originated in 1977, they presented separate awards for British female newcomer and British male newcomer. When the show resumed in 1982 following a four-year hiatus, the Brits made the category gender-neutral and called it the Brit Award for British newcomer. In 2003, they changed it to the Brit Award for British breakthrough act. In 2020, they changed it again to the Brit Award for best new artist – mirroring the language the Grammys had used since they introduced the award in 1959.
Here are 10 artists who lost the award for best new artist, but (thankfully) didn’t let that stop them.
Harry Styles and Wet Leg tied as the most-nominated artists for the 2023 Brit Awards, with four nods each. Styles is nominated for artist of the year, Mastercard album of the year, song of the year and pop/R&B act.
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Wet Leg is nominated for Mastercard album of the year, group of the year, best new artist and alternative/rock act. The duo will perform at the Feb. 11 Brit Awards ceremony, as will Sam Smith & Kim Petras, whose “Unholy” is up for song of the year.
In a statement, Wet Leg said, “Somebody hold our horses while we get to grips with this wild news, being nominated for a BRIT award is too hard to comprehend, we never could have expected for our wee band to achieve this.”
Styles will face off against Central Cee, Fred again…, George Ezra and Stormzy for artist of the year — which was won by Adele last year in its inaugural year.
The nominees for Mastercard album of the year are The 1975’s Being Funny in a Foreign Language, Wet Leg’s Wet Leg, Styles’ Harry’s House, Stormzy’s This Is What I Mean and Fred again…’s Actual Life 3 (January 1- September 9 2022). The 1975 won in that category four years ago for A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships. Stormzy won five years ago for Gang Signs & Prayer.
Styles’ “As It Was” and Lewis Capaldi’s “Forget Me” are among the 10 nominees for song of the year. Styles won in that category two years ago for “Watermelon Sugar” (and, with One Direction, 11 years ago for “What Makes You Beautiful”). Capaldi won three years ago for “Someone You Loved.” In a funny (and probably prophetic) statement, Capaldi said, “It’s an honour to be nominated for British Song Of The Year. I very much look forward to seeing Harry Styles accept the award for ‘As It Was’.”
Several of the Brit nominees are nominated for Grammys in equivalent categories. Styles, nominated here for Mastercard album of the year and song of the year, is up for album, record and song of the year at the Grammys. Wet Leg, nominated here for best new artist, is up in that same category at the Grammys. Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul” and Lizzo’s “About Damn Time,” nominated here for international song of the year, are nominated for record and song of the year at the Grammys. Gayle’s “abcdefu,” also nominated here for international song of the year, is up for song of the year at the Grammys.
2023 will see the return of the four public-voted genre awards for alternative/rock act, dance act, hip hop/grime/rap act and pop/R&B act, which were introduced last year. Three of last year’s winners in these four categories are back to defend their titles – Dua Lipa in pop/R&B, Becky Hill in dance and Dave in hip-hop, grime, rap. This year’s winners will be determined by a public vote via TikTok, which will open at midday on Thursday Jan. 19.
In a statement, Hill said, “I am astounded that I am nominated for Best Dance Act for a second year in a row. I am so honoured to be recognised again for my contribution in dance music which is held so closely to my heart…”
In December, The Brits announced FLO as the winner of this year’s Rising Star award. FLO is the first group to win this award.
The nominations for British producer of the year (won last year by Inflo) and songwriter of the year (won last year by Ed Sheeran) will be announced later.
Sheeran is nominated for two different collaborations this year. “Merry Christmas,” his teaming with Elton John, is up for song of the year. “Peru,” his pairing with Fireboy DML, is up for international song of the year.
Winners will be revealed at The Brit Awards on Saturday Feb. 11 at The O2 arena, broadcast on ITV and ITVX, and hosted by Mo Gilligan.
Here’s the complete list of 2023 Brit Awards nominations.
Mastercard album of the year
The 1975, Being Funny in a Foreign Language, Dirty Hit
Wet Leg, Wet Leg, Domino Recordings
Harry Styles, Harry’s House, Columbia, Sony Music
Stormzy, This Is What I Mean, 0207/Merky, Universal Music
Fred Again..,, Actual Life 3 (January 1-September 9 2022), Atlantic Warner Music
Song of the year
Aitch/Ashanti, “Baby,” Capitol, Universal Music
Cat Burns, “Go,” RCA/Since 93, Sony Music
Dave, “Starlight,” Dave/Neighbourhood, Universal Music
Ed Sheeran & Elton John, “Merry Christmas,” Atlantic/EMI, Warner Music, Universal Music
Eliza Rose/Interplanetary Criminal, “B.O.T.A. (Baddest of Them All),” Warner Records/One House/Warner Music
George Ezra, “Green Green Grass,” Columbia, Sony Music
Harry Styles, “As It Was,” Columbia, Sony Music
Lewis Capaldi, “Forget Me,” EMI, Universal Music
LF System, “Afraid to Feel,” Warner Records, Warner Music
Sam Smith & Kim Petras, “Unholy,” Capitol, Universal Music
Artist of the year
Central Cee, Central Cee
Fred Again…, Atlantic, Warner Music
George Ezra, Columbia/Sony Music
Harry Styles, Columbia/Sony Music
Stormzy, 0207/Merky, Universal Music
Group of the year
The 1975, Dirty Hit
Arctic Monkeys, Domino Recordings
Bad Boy Chiller Crew, Relentless, Sony Music
Nova Twins, Marshall Records, Blue Raincoat Music
Wet Leg, Domino Recordings
Best new artist
Kojey Radical, Asylum/Atlantic, Warner Music
Mimi Webb, Epic/RCA, Sony Music
Rina Sawayama, Dirty Hit
Sam Ryder, Parlophone, Warner Music
Wet Leg, Domino Recordings
Rising star
Cat Burns, RCA/Since;93, Sony Music
Winner: FLO, Island, Universal Music
Nia Archives, Island/Universal Music
Alternative/rock act
The 1975, Dirty Hit
Arctic Monkeys, Domino Recordings
Nova Twins, Marshall Records, Blue Raincoat Music
Tom Grennan, Insanity, Sony Music
Wet Leg, Domino Recordings
Hip Hop, grime, rap act
Aitch, Capitol, Universal Music
Central Cee, Central Cee
Dave, Dave/Neighbourhood, Universal Music
Loyle Carner, EMI, Universal Music
Stormzy, 0207/Merky, Universal Music
Dance act
Becky Hill, Polydor, Universal Music
Bonobo, Ninja Tune
Calvin Harris, Columbia, Sony Music
Eliza Rose, Warner Records/One House, Warner Music
Fred again…, Atlantic, Warner Music
Pop/R&B act
Cat Burns, RCA/Since’93, Sony Music
Charli XCX, Asylum/Atlantic, Warner Music
Dua Lipa, Warner Records, Warner Music
Harry Styles, Columbia, Sony Music
Sam Smith, Capitol, Universal Music
International artist of the year
Beyoncé, Columbia/Parkwood/RCA, Sony Music
Burna Boy, Atlantic, Warner Music
Kendrick Lamar, Polydor/Interscope, Universal Music
Lizzo, Atlantic, Warner Music
Taylor Swift, EMI/Republic, Universal Music
International group of the year
Blackpink, Polydor/Interscope, Universal Music
Drake & 21 Savage, Island/OVO/Republic, Epic/Columbia, Universal Music, Sony Music
First Aid Kit, Columbia/Sony Music
Fontaines D.C., Partisan Records
Gabriels, Parlophone, Warner Music
International song of the year
Beyoncé, “Break My Soul,” Columbia/Parkwood/RCA, Sony Music
David Guetta & Bebe Rexha, “I’m Good (Blue),” Parlophone, Warner Music
Fireboy DML & Ed Sheeran, “Peru,” Island/Atlantic, Universal/Warner
Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz and cast of Encanto, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” Universal Music Recordings, Walt Disney, Universal Music
Gayle, “abcdefu,” Atlantic, Warner Music
Jack Harlow, “First Class,” Atlantic, Warner Music
Lizzo’s “About Damn Time,” Atlantic, Warner Music
Lost Frequencies/Calum Scott, “Where Are You Now,” Capitol/Insanity, Sony Music/Universal Music
One Republic, “I Ain’t Worried,” Polydor/Insanity, Sony Music/Universal Music
Taylor Swift, “Anti-Hero,” EMI/Republic, Universal Music
Want to be among the first to know just how many Brit Awards nominations Harry Styles receives for his hit album Harry’s House and his global smash “As It Was”? You can tune into a livestream on Thursday (Jan. 12) at 11 a.m. ET during which the nominations will be announced.
The 30-minute livestream, titled “Bring on The Brits With Mastercard: The 2023 Nominations,” will stream on the official Brits channels on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. In the livestream, viewers will see reactions from artists as they learn the happy news and get the latest updates on the 2023 Brit Awards. The show is set for Saturday, Feb. 11, at the O2 arena in London, with comedian Mo Gilligan hosting for the second year in a row.
Broadcaster Vick Hope will host the livestream. He will be joined by radio broadcaster Jack Saunders as well as various celebrities who will reveal the nominations across their own social media channels. They include Olympian Tom Daley, YouTube’s Yung Filly, World Cup winner Jill Scott and Gogglebox’s Joe and George Baggs.
Styles has won two Brit Awards as a solo artist – British single of the year two years ago for “Watermelon Sugar” and British video of the year five years ago for “Sign of the Times.” At the upcoming Grammy Awards, Styles is nominated for six awards – including album, record and song of the year.
Adele is nominated for seven Grammys – including album, record and song of the year – but don’t look for her in the marquee categories at the Brits. She won last year for British album of the year, British artist of the year and best British single. (The Brits and the Grammys have different eligibility periods.)
Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres, which is also Grammy-nominated for album of the year, will likewise not be a factor in the Brit nods. It was released in October 2021, a month before Adele’s album. Coldplay was nominated for Brits last year for best British group and best rock/alternative artist.
But British indie rock band Wet Leg, which is Grammy-nominated for best new artist, may well get some attention from the Brits. Their eponymous debut album was released in April 2022. The band is set to open for Styles when he plays four nights at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles later this month.
The Brits announced their first winner last month. R&B girl group FLO is the winner of the 2023 Rising Star award.
Saunders will open this year’s TikTok voting for the four genre awards later this month. Those awards, introduced last year, are best pop/R&B act, best dance act, best rock/alternative act and best hip-hop/grime/rap act.
This will mark the first time the Brit Awards, which will broadcast live on ITV1 and ITVX, will be held on a Saturday. This year marks the Brits’ 30th year years with ITV as its broadcast partner; its 25th year with Mastercard as its headline sponsor; and its 13th year at The O2 arena.
A year ago, the Brits’ nominations special was titled The Brits Are Coming. Hosted by Maya Jama and Clara Amfo, the show aired on Dec. 18, 2021.