FEATURE:
BRITs and Pieces
IN THIS PHOTO: Mahalia
Diversification and Changes to a Music Award Calendar Staple Long Overdue
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EVEN though it has taken…
until this year (and will be implemented next year), the BRIT Awards are changing their rules and addressing criticism after this year’s ceremony. A lot of debate and anger came about with the Artist of the Year (not ‘Best Artist’ as many call it!) category. All five of this year’s nominees are men. Although there were women nominated across most other categories, it was a huge misstep and mystery why none were included in the Artist of the Year bracket! It suggested that all the quality and promise came from men. The BRIT Awards are hardy strangers when it comes to this kind of inequality and tone deaf approach. They have never been great at striking balance and recognising the fact that women – and women of colour especially – are vitally important and yet are being overlooked. Also, the weird pairing and cut-and-shut category of Pop/R&B seemed baffling as there were no R&B artists nominated! There is literally no point at all calling it that if you exclude one of the genres! I don’t think the initiative to change came from the BRIT panel and organisers. Artists and others in the industry reacted strongly and, finally, there are small steps being taken. It is disappointing it has taken this long to get here! I shall share some thoughts. Regarding both issues the BRITs created, there is now pledge to change next year:
“Organisers of the Brit Awards have announced they will update their rules to address criticism over diversity.
The show faced a backlash in January when it was revealed that no women were shortlisted for the best artist prize, which replaced the gendered best male and female categories two years ago.
Harry Styles, who won the award, dedicated it to artists like Charli XCX, who had been overlooked.
The Brits will now expand the number of nominees for the prize from five to 10.
It is hoped the change will create a more balanced field.
A new award for best R&B act will also be created for the 2024 ceremony.
Previously, R&B artists were forced to compete in a combined best pop/R&B category - which was predictably dominated by mainstream stars like Harry Styles and Dua Lipa.
IN THIS PHOTO: Dua Lipa
Singer Mahalia voiced her dissatisfaction at the 2023 Brits ceremony, turning up in a Burberry jacket with the words "Long Live R&B" painted on the back.
Speaking to BBC News on Friday, she welcomed the changes.
"I literally screamed on the phone when I found out," she said. "This is huge".
Mahalia protested the merged pop and R&B category on the Brits' red carpet in February
She continued: "For me, when the [combined] category got announced a couple of years ago, I was disappointed for the younger generation of R&B kids, who were going to think a Brit nomination was impossible.
"I was kind of feeling that, too. If I'm in a longlist with all of these huge art pop artists, I don't know how I'm going to shine through.
"So my initial reaction to the change was just pure happiness and pride."
Her comments were echoed by BBC 1Xtra's DJ Ace, who presents a weekly show dedicated to R&B.
"Right now is such a great time for R&B," he said, citing acts like Ella Mai, Cleo Sol and Flo - all of whom would be eligible for the new prize.
"Feel-good music is back, there's an explosion of R&B and Afrobeats music. People want to feel again.
He credited Mahalia with persuading the organisers to take action.
"Wearing that jacket said a lot, even though it could have been detrimental to her career.
"Going against the grain isn't always the done thing in the music industry, but she had something to say and she said it. And I'm so glad that they've taken heed."
IN THIS PHOTO: Cleo Sol
'Inclusive and reflective'
The Brits said the inaugural best R&B prize would have an eligibility period of 24 months, instead of the usual 12, to make sure artists who may have been overlooked in 2023 were eligible to qualify.
The extended shortlist for artist of the year will also apply to the best international artist category.
The changes were decided as part of an annual review of the ceremony, said Dr Jo Twist, CEO of awards organisers the BPI.
"Obviously we were disappointed that no women were nominated for artist of the year in 2023," she told BBC News.
"So we reached out to people in the industry and expert groups to understand how we can improve this for this year, to make the Brits inclusive and reflective."
She added that "this year is looking very positive" for female artists and R&B acts, with the likes of Dua Lipa, Raye, Mahalia and PinkPantheress all eligible in multiple categories”.
To start with, of course it is good that changes are being introduced! After a rather misjudged and tonally mismatched year where women were left out of a big prize and R&B was lazily clumped together with Pop and then ignored, something did need to be done. I am shocked that the BRIT organisers instantly didn’t react and then say they would change next year. It is only meaningful if the new R&B category includes women. I suspect that it will. More importantly, it is ensuring the genre is represented and seen, regardless of the gender of people included. Same goes with every genre of music. People mislabel R&B or think that it is a minor force. With artists like Mahalia out there, not only fighting for inclusion, but also producing astonishing work, there is rich talent showing how strong British R&B is! One of the most disappointing things is seeing that Artist of the Year category doubled in terms of nominees. Of course, it makes it more likely women are not left out…though why should it come to this?! It is almost patronising! Widening it so they might include one or two. With five names available for Artist of the Year, there is no excuse for excluding women. Rather than adding more names, the organisers needed to recognise the fact that there were so many women rightfully eligible! It is a larger issue that is personified at festivals. Reading and Leeds announced their first ten names yesterday. Among them, only three women are included (two solo artist and a female-led band). One of the six headliners was a woman (Lana Del Rey)! It is not a pipeline issue or a lack of options – it is organisers deliberately excluding and making poor excuses. The BRITs cannot say there are few options with their category. They might be reacting to chart success and sales from that year. If that is the metric, it needs to be decommissioned. The quality and worth of an artist is the strength and quality of the music - and not how many streams it gets how ‘popular’ that moment is.
It just seems condescending that they have almost had to widen the goalposts when they really should ensure they do their job in the first place. This thing or making accommodations rather than understanding and seeing all the amazing women who are more than qualified to take away the Artist of the Year prize. It is frustrating it has come to this. So long as, guaranteed, there is at least one women in the ten – though there legitimately should be many more! – in 2024, then it is a small step at least. Next year’s ceremony takes place on 2nd March. We will hear about the nominees soon (no exact date has been given). I know R&B will be represented now. I hope too that other genres squashed together get separated at some point, as it seems a little reductive. It is that Artist of the Year award, a converted and important one, that looms large. The big fear is that, even with ten names now, is it problematic if there is only one or two women nominated?! It is glaring that no women were nominated for this year’s prize. It is not about literally having one in the pack. It is important that, objectively, it is understood that tokenism and the bare minimum is inexcusable! The industry, no matter how Pop/chart-orientated it is, is not dominated by men. There are plenty of women in the sphere of the BRIT Awards’ catchment that are eligible. One would think that the likes of Little Simz are in contention soon. RAYE is another name that spring to mind. Olivia Dean (both her and RAYE were Mercury Prize-nominated this year). Rather than include one female artist or do what they think is required, it is a moment to step back and take a good look at the impact female artists have made – and will continue to do so for years to come. I shall end on a positive, as it is good news we are hearing. Any step forward is something to be commended! Maybe proper and meaningful equality is going to transpire next year. However, with tiny shafts of light and steps forward, 2024 will at least be…
A year for actual change.