The Brits Awards 2022: What to expect
The Brits Awards 2022: What to expect
Male and Female categories have been removed which has sparked some controversy and backlash, but what do you think?
This year will see the removal of gendered categories and the introduction of two new gender-neutral awards: Artist of the Year and International Artist of the Year. These replace the separate male and female prizes for Best Solo and Best International Act. The change was previously urged by a few artists, but it wasn’t until Sam Smith who identifies as non-binary, spoke out about being excluded from last year’s solo artist awards, that things were set into motion. See Smith’s post below:
The post was directly acknowledged by a Brit Awards spokesperson with the statement “if a change unintentionally leads to less inclusion then it risks being counterproductive to diversity and equality”.
However, the controversial decision has been settled on the award ceremony’s official website, Tom March stated:
“It is important that The BRITs continue to evolve and aim to be as inclusive as possible. It feels complete the right time to celebrate the achievements of artists for the music that they create, and the work that they do, irrespective of gender.”
Public votes for four new genre categories
For the first time ever, the BRIT Awards have invited the public to vote for their favourite acts within four new genre categories. The new categories include Dance Act, Hip Hop/Grime/Rap Act, Pop/R&B Act and Rock/Alternative Act. According to the BRIT Awards, these new categories were introduced to “demonstrate the diverse cultural melting pot that British music is known for.”
The public vote for The BRIT Awards 2022 genre awards opened at 12pm GMT Thursday 20th January. You can vote using TikTok, be sure to get your votes in soon. Voting closes at 6pm on Thursday 3rd February. This is the first time TikTok has powered a UK awards show, which is a testament to how vital the video-sharing platform has become for the music industry. The voting process is being supported by on-air promotions from Bauer Media Audio UK brands Absolute Radio, KISS, KISS Fresh and Hits Radio.
For more information on how to vote follow @TheBrits on Instagram for updates
Written by Ilana and Sneha
