The BRIT Awards 2021 with Mastercard - Show Programme

TUESDAY 11 MAY THE O2 ARENA ON

The BRIT Awards 2020 

JM Enternational 

CONTENTS 05 CO-CHAIR’S WELCOME 07 MASTERCARD ARE DOING MORE 

08 EXCLUSIVE! GIVE IT UP FOR OUR TROPHY DESIGNERS ES DEVLIN & YINKA 

ILORI! 11 GET SOCIAL-ISING! 12 EXCLUSIVE! HOST JACK WHITEHALL’S BIG 

CHAT’S BACK! 15 NOMINATIONS: THE BIG REVEAL TONIGHT’S PERFORMERS 

& MASTERCARD BRITISH ALBUM OF THE YEAR NOMINEES 18-32 ARLO PARKS, 

CELESTE, DUA LIPA, J HUS & JESSIE WARE 35-39 COLDPLAY, HEADIE ONE & 

OLIVIA RODRIGO 40 EXCLUSIVE! RISING STAR WINNER GRIFF IS BUBBLING 

UP! THE 2021 NOMINEES 45 BRITISH FEMALE SOLO ARTIST 46 BRITISH 

MALE SOLO ARTIST 47 BRITISH GROUP 49 BRITISH BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST 

50 BRITISH SINGLE 52 INTERNATIONAL FEMALE SOLO ARTIST 53 INTERNATIONAL 

MALE SOLO ARTIST 55 INTERNATIONAL GROUP MORE… 56 MONEY AND THE 

MUSIC BIZ 58 LAST (PARTY) NIGHT ON EARTH 62 LEARNING TO LIVE WITH 

IT AT BRIT 64 MUSIC’S RISKY BUSINESS - FUTURE CHALLENGES REVEALED 

66 CRISIS IN CLUBLAND. CAN WE GET BACK ON TRACK? 69 THE BRIT AWARDS 

VOTING ACADEMY 73 GOING GREEN IS THE BRITS DREAM… 74 AGAINST ALL 

ODDS THE SHOW MUST GO ON - HERE’S HOW 75 THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT! 

02 

03

WELCOME TO 

THE BRIT AWARDS 2O21 

WITH MASTERCARD 

Just a few weeks after Sir Rod Stewart 

closed the 2020 BRITs – which had 

also seen performances from Stormzy, 

Billie Eilish, Lewis Capaldi, Lizzo and, 

so memorably, Dave – we were all in a 

very different and much darker place. 

It was a place where who won or lost 

at an awards show suddenly seemed 

terribly unimportant. And, of course, 

set against the tragedy and heroism 

of the last year, it is. But one thing this 

past year has also made abundantly 

clear is that music, what The BRITs 

celebrates, is anything but unimportant. 

People have been turning to music 

like never before – music that has 

provided comfort and escapism 

in equal measure, by artists who 

responded to unique circumstances 

and almost overwhelming events by 

staying truly connected to their fans 

here in the UK and across the globe. 

Even as the world in general and we 

as people became more separated, it 

was the power of community and the 

strength of sharing cultures that bound 

us together and pulled us through – with 

music a huge part of that process. 

So, when we were asked to co-chair 

The BRITs 2021, the first thing we 

agreed was that this year’s event should 

be a recognition not just of individual 

achievement, but of the power of music. 

And that, where last year’s event 

was one of the last examples of the 

old normal, this year’s might be one 

of the first chances for us to start 

celebrating again, start dressing up and 

dancing again, whilst not ignoring the 

momentousness of the suffering and 

struggle which so many are still facing. 

It’s going to be a very different BRITs. 

It’s certainly been a very different 

show to plan. In fact, the concept 

of ‘planning’ has been stretched 

to the limit, with templates being 

torn up, parameters and guidelines 

changing almost weekly – and the 

spectre of no show at all looming 

large on more than one occasion. 

Thankfully, against that backdrop, 

we worked alongside a group of 

individuals and organisations that 

made the impossible possible and 

the improbable almost routine. 

We’d like to especially thank the BPI 

BRITs team, led by CEO Geoff Taylor 

and Director of Events Maggie Crowe, 

and this year’s creative team of TV 

Exec Producer Sally Wood alongside 

two of Britain’s most in-demand visual 

artists Es Devlin and Yinka Ilori who 

have been setting a benchmark 

for the whole show’s aesthetic. 

We’re delighted to continue working 

with ITV, who will broadcast The 

BRITs on primetime television, 

with Jack Whitehall once again 

on presenting duties. 

We’re grateful for another very long-term 

partner, Mastercard, who have been a 

valuable supporter of the event for over 

20 years now. And we welcome back 

Amazon Music, who joined The BRITs 

team last year as our digital partner. 

We can also, of course, already 

congratulate one winner – the 

incredible Griff, who was recently 

revealed as our 2021 Rising Star. 

Thanks to the deliberations of our 

1400-strong Voting Academy, the 

winners of the other categories will be 

revealed on the night. We congratulate 

all the nominees and wish them and 

their teams the very best of luck. 

Most of all, we hope that all of you 

watching the show, enjoy what is 

bound to be a BRITs like no other. 

Rebecca Allen & Selina Webb 

The BRIT Awards Co-Chairs 

05

Congratulations to 

all the nominees 

Dave, with Billie Eilish and brother, 

Finneas O’Connell: The BRIT Awards 2020 


CONNECTING PEOPLE 

THROUGH THE 

POWER OF MUSIC 

Mastercard® is proud to celebrate 

a truly unique BRIT Awards 

Now more than ever, music has shown 

its universal ability to connect people 

every day through priceless moments 

big and small. Even though we’ve 

spent the past year separated from 

our loved ones, we’ve been able to 

enjoy, share and experience the music 

created by the talented musicians who 

have been nominated this evening. 

We are not only incredibly proud 

to continue our sponsorship of The 

BRIT Awards for a 23rd year, but to 

be back presenting the award for 

Mastercard Album, and for the first time, 

British Single with Mastercard. The 

outstanding creativity and dedication 

of music talent in the UK and around 

the globe has resulted in the most 

diverse group of nominees in BRIT 

Awards history. We would like to thank 

and congratulate everyone involved 

in creating so much incredible music 

through these challenging times. 

Wherever you find yourself watching the 

show this year, please sit back and enjoy 

a unique night of stunning performances 

and much deserved awards. 

06 

07

Helen Lamont 

No, you’re not seeing double - The 

BRIT Awards is back with TWO 

trophies per winner and TWO 

amazing designers who collaborated 

to bring them into fruition. 

Es Devlin is a London-based artist and 

stage designer who has worked her 

magic at The BRITs many times previously, 

both for the main show and artists she 

creates for. Creative partners include 

Pet Shop Boys, U2, Kanye West, The 

Weeknd, Stormzy and Beyonce among 

them. Es also designed the London 

Olympics 2012 closing ceremony, and 

the opening of the Rio Olympics 2016. 

Artist-designer and music lover Yinka Ilori 

is a North Londoner who uses a signature 

colour palette reminiscent of his Nigerian 

heritage to bring a happy and instantly 

identifiable vibe to all that he touches. 

The pair worked together to create 

the first-ever joint trophy design at The 

BRITs, ensuring that after a tricky and 

isolating year, they’ve brought forth a 

stunning prize that is all about saying 

thank you, and paying kindness forward. 

Andrew Meredith 

Alfonso Duran 

YOU GET WHAT YOU GIVE 

Exclusive! The famous BRIT Trophy has bagged 

the only ‘Plus One’ at the event this year… 

How did your collaboration come about? 

Es: Yinka and I entered into cocreative 

direction of the BRIT Awards 

in the spirit of seeking common 

denominators between our practices. 

Yinka: Es has done The BRITs for a 

few years now, and she said, ‘Yinka 

would be great to have on board,’ so 

The BRITs reached out to me, and said 

‘Es is designing The BRITs, but could 

you work along side her?’ I said ‘Yes!’ 

straight away. I’m a huge fan of The 

BRITs and I’ve always respected Es 

Devlin who is such an incredible artist 

and designer, to see how she thinks and 

how she creates. It’s super inspirational! 

This is the first year trophies have 

been presented in pairs. Can 

you explain the concept? 

Es: Yinka and I thought that the best 

award that one could receive would be 

agency to award another. We both believe 

in circular design principles and like the 

idea that the giving of an award does not 

end with the initial recipient, but can be 

passed on to others who are perhaps 

less visible to the awarding panels. 

Yinka: I would describe it as two artists 

from different disciplines, different 

inspirations, coming together to design 

a trophy based around the idea of giving 

something back - acts of kindness. 

So each winner gets two trophies…? 

Yinka: Yes! My trophy is an explosion 

of colour, a nod to my aesthetic, based 

around my storytelling theme, of trying 

to create new memories. The Es 

Devlin trophy is half the size of mine. It 

celebrates the design concepts she’s 

been exploring for a few years now. 

Es: The second award is engraved 

with the maze pattern that celebrates 

the paths many of those working 

within the creative industries have 

had to tread in order to progress 

through this challenging year: 

sometimes feeling lost en route. 

Why does the idea of ‘giving’ 

work so well today? 

Es: Humans are at their most distinctly 

human when engaged in compassion. 

What do you hope our acts do 

with the trophy on the night, 

and then moving forward… 

Es: Each recipient is invited to award 

the second trophy to someone 

they consider worthy - they might 

be due recognition - or it might 

be someone that does something 

entirely unrelated to music. 

You are part of a long string 

of design talents who have 

taken on the BRIT trophy, 

and each has come up with 

something uniquely different. 

Es: The overall spirit of The BRITs 

this year is characterised in Yinka’s 

stunning use of colour - which for 

me embodies hope - combined 

with my use of architecture. 

Yinka: It’s incredible. Couple of years 

back Sir David Adjaye told me I’d get 

a call from The BRITs one day, I think 

he has manifested this to happen! 

It’s a huge honour. The people who 

have done it before, Dame Zaha 

Hadid, Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst, 

are all so different, and they have all 

given the trophy their own personal 

touch. I am honoured that music 

artists will have a trophy I designed in 

their house, and hopefully, because 

it is a BRIT, they will cherish it. 

It’s a wonderful celebration 

of both art and music… 

Es: The BRITs has always celebrated 

more than pop music - it has always 

been a meeting point between 

various aspects of pop culture: 

art, fashion, film and architecture 

as well as music. In our practices 

Yinka and I both blur the boundaries 

between art and design and we 

want to bring this sense of a 

borderless approach by fusing our 

work on the trophy and the overall 

creative direction of The BRITs. 

And Yinka have you enjoyed 

being more immersed in 

the music world…? 

Yes, music is huge part of how I 

work. I am listening to Burna Boy, 

and Dave. Headie One has had a 

good album this year; its so nice 

to see people who I listen to get 

nominated. I would love to do more 

crossover work. I would love to get 

the opportunity to do more stage 

design - I am buzzing with ideas! 

What was it like working on 

the project together? 

Es: A lot of fun - we both feel we 

have much to learn from one another. 

Was it tricky to collaborate, 

with the pandemic? 

Yinka: Of course it all started on 

Zoom and then one day Es cycled 

all the way from Dulwich to my 

studio in North Acton to brainstorm 

some ideas. It was a lovely and 

organic start! Afterwards, I sent 

some sketches, and I was really 

obsessed with this idea of kindness, 

of paying something back. The 

idea came from the experience of 

lockdown, where your neighbour 

you’ve lived beside for six years 

and never say hello to suddenly 

gave you flowers, foods, acts of 

kindness. I wanted to capture that. 

But once the trophies are in the 

winners’ hands you move on to 

the next project. What is it? 

Es: For me, its Forest of Us - a 

large scale Maze installation 

at the new Superblue Arts 

Centre in Miami along with 

new works by James 

Turrell and TeamLab - 

opening 24 April. I’m 

also working on the 

Artistic Direction of 

the London Design 

Biennale and creation 

of the Forest for 

Change - a temporary 

reforestation of 

the courtyard at 

Somerset House - 

opening 1st June. 

Yinka: In July this year 

I’m doing my first ever 

permanent playground, in 

Dagenham and Barking, 

it will be very fancy, to 

celebrate the 100th 

year of the Becontree 

Estate. I’m also doing 

a Somerset House 

project, in the 

summer. This year 

we are having 

dodgem cars in the 

courtyard - it’s the 

Yinka Ilori dodgem 

truck extravaganza. 

08 

09

AD 

LOVE AND LIKE 

YOUR STREAMS 

Everyone is invited to 

The BRIT Awards 2021! 

Lizzo on The BRIT Awards 2020 Red Carpet 


There is no need to grab a ticket for 

this year’s unique event. Instead 

our marvellous media partners 

ensure the action takes place right 

in our living rooms - so clear a space 

for your very own dance floor! 

As well as the big show to be broadcast 

live on ITV1 at 8pm, 11 May 2021, our 

social partners are going all-out to 

deliver added value extra content. It’s 

a great way to learn a little more, delve 

a little deeper, or go just that bit further 

behind the scenes. All in a convenient 

and socially distanced way, of course. 

The Somethin’ Else crew have been 

scooting around, out to discover 

exactly how each act has adapted 

to our new ways of working, Keep 

an eye out for official BRITs content 

and artist uploads on Youtube (where 

overseas viewers can also watch 

The BRITs live). TikTok, Facebook, 

Instagram & Twitter are poised to set 

the BRITs trending.if you’re hosting a 

virtual viewing party, let’s see what’s 

going down in your ‘hood! We can’t 

wait to see how you are celebrating 

music’s big party night! Upload your 

antics on any available channel. 

Amazon Music, meanwhile, have 

created exclusive BRITs playlists. And 

soon after the show, our show stopping 

moments will be available to enjoy again 

via downloads and streaming. This year, 

you can really be part of The BRITs. 

10 

11

“CORONAVIRUS? NO, 

POP STARS NEED TO 

SHIELD FROM MY MUM!” 

It’s four-in-a-row for Jack Whitehall, but will 

mum Hilary wangle her way into the top 

secret, socially distanced, 41st BRITs? 

There are lots of labels you can 

throw at gangly, cheeky, posh 

boy wag Jack Whitehall. Perhaps 

psychic isn’t obvious, but in 2020 

he made a presentient statement. 

Stuck in Australia at the tail-end of his 

stand-up tour, at the mercy of bush 

fires and plane cancellations, he’d 

pondered his upcoming BRITs role with 

trepidation: “Who knows… maybe I’ll 

have to stay in Australia and Skype it in!” 

Although Jack made a dash back 

for one last BRITs night of luxurious 

living, many were stranded in farflung 

places. Most International plane 

trips stopped soon after.. And they 

- like life - are still to take back off. 

But - whisper it - The BRITs is 

returning. The cogs of normal 

life are starting to turn. 

Approaching The BRITs 2021 ceremony, 

there is palpable excitement. 

Helen Lamont asks 

Jack Whitehall what’s in store… 


“I am very excited,” says our host, as he 

prepares to return to his biggest arena. 

“It’ll be a significant moment - back 

in a room with music and songs’” 

“We’re putting on a show with 

key workers in the audience, 

people who most deserve a 

night to let their hair down. 

“It will be very special - we will 

have heroes in the room.” 

That these are the things Jack aims for 

is very telling. What a year its been for 

the 32 year-old - and everyone else. 

We can expect music, 

awards, entertainment - but 

what will be different? 

“Obviously I won’t be chatting at 

tables,” says Whitehall. “But given 

the questions I put to people, 

honestly, not a bad thing in itself.” 

Hmm, imagine opening the 2020 

programme with the phrase “I’ll 

be popping up and annoying you 

now and then, like Chris Martin at 

Glastonbury,” then having Coldplay 

announced as performers next outing. 

He’s mischievious. “No, I can’t wait - 

four years I’ve waited to have them 

on at The BRITs. Plus …” he guffaws, 

“I’m not worried, he can’t reach me”. 

“I have a whole new level of opportunity 

for me to throw shade. I’m safe!” 

“Social distancing gives me a 

head start to do a runner. Get 

out of that situation, quick!” 

But surely our affable host hasn’t 

really been threatened by disgruntled 

celebrities… has he? “Nope - the 

real danger is on social media, and 

you hear what’s being said!” 

We’re not talking about gentle 

teasing in the aftermath either. As 

a host and an everyday human, 

the dangers of being cancelled 

abound. Comedy is a minefield. 

Says Whitehall, “I probably play it safer 

now than I did five or ten years ago”. 

“It can be difficult. You don’t necessarily 

know what you might say, that’ll offend. 

You don’t know if your sensibilities 

are out of tune with current trends, 

what you can and can’t say. 

“Whatever the joke is you worry 

might get you into trouble - it’s 

always something else!” 

When Covid kicked off Jack had 

completed a global standup tour: 

“I’d got that itch out of my system.” 

“The last item on the news 

was was this little thing called 

Coronavirus in Wuhan, China. 

“We thought it was a flash-in-the-pan, 

it’d blow over. Little did we know…” 

Then in March 2020, Jack 

contracted Covid himself. 

“Yeah I had it very early doors, just 

before Tom Hanks. He beat me to 

it. Then I didn’t want to come out 

with it publicly, kept schtum. Who 

wants to follow Tom Hanks?” 

“Luckily I didn’t have it very 

badly… dunno if I still have any 

antibodies. Strategically, maybe 

I should’ve got it later on!” 

It was a peculiar period for a workaholic. 

“I realised I like taking my foot off the 

accelerator more than I’d imagined. 

Having a little circuit break, a rest with 

some headspace, is no bad thing.” 

“I did a lot of decadent cooking 

- things you marinade for days.” 

As well a co-launching as ‘bacon 

with everything!’ blog entitled Food 

Slut, Jack & Co. opened a pop-up 

diner last September. So are there 

any future endeavours? “Maybe in 

20 years’ time I’ll come back to it”. 

“I’ll open a disastrous pub that 

gets shut down again a year later. 

That’s what celebrities do! 

“I’ve always been a foodie, but I 

really threw myself into that.” He 

laughs. Once we are back to normal, 

It’ll be ready meals every night!” 

However, after complaining he 

was “coming out of lockdown 

looking like a melted candle,” there 

may be the other alterations. 

“Yes its back on the Hollywood diet for 

me in the run up to The BRITs, having 

let myself go during lockdown.” 

“I’m going full Bloom - Orlando Bloom 

- in preparation of being back on 

stage. It’ll have to be grain oil and 

new oats, whatever it is you need 

to get that Hollywood physique. 

“There will be training sessions and 

Peloton rides to be camera ready.” 

“Certainly when I tried on the suits 

the other week, they had a snugger 

fit than when I got them fitted.” 

But he reassures cheerily, “By the 

time the big show happens, I’ll be 

back looking like a streak of piss”! 

In work, he says, “I’m lucky, 

nothing got cancelled, just 

changed or moved around”. 

“There have been fewer opportunities in 

acting, so I’m waiting for that to open up 

again, I hope to have that as my focus.“ 

However there was time to write 

a family travel memoir, due in 

October, alongside his long-suffering 

parents Hilary and Michael. 

“It kept my mind occupied while 

making sure my mother didn’t 

murder my father. A distraction, to 

think about something else.” 

“It caused a fair bit of family strife 

and misremembering but at 

least we got to edit each others 

work… it will be a funny read.” 

Jack reveals there is also family tension 

over that most important now-annual 

marker - who’ll make his BRITs guest list. 

“My mother will try to wangle an 

invite to The BRITs. Only being 

allowed a limited entourage this year 

might be a blessing in disguise.” 

And thinking back to her namecheck 

last year from a living rock legend, 

he reveals, “She was very excited, 

getting a shout out from Rod Stewart”. 

“She was practically throwing herself 

at him during the afterparty.” 

Of course, Sir Rod and the rest of The 

Faces were seen less during 2020 

thanks to the government mandate 

for elderly supergroups to stay 

indoors and shield from the virus. 

Although shielding has paused, Jack 

says it would be unwise to consider 

themselves completely protected. 

“Oh no”, he laughs. “I still think the 

popstars need to shield from my mum!” 

12 13

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ALL THE LADIES’ SINGLES! (AND 

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All The BRITs 2021 Nominations Revealed… 

The transformation of The BRIT 

Awards continues, and the 2021 

nominations are revealed to be the 

most diverse BRITs shortlists ever. 

This year, there is a very limited 

edition of just ten statuettes to be 

awarded. So whoever takes home 

a stunning Es Devlin/ Yinka Ilori 

trophy will be in a VIP club indeed. 

Last year’s shake-up of voting 

saw a streamlining of process. 

The BRIT Academy now takes the 

strain of picking winners, after we 

said goodbye to public voting. 

At the same time the Academy has 

welcomed large numbers of new 

voting members, ensuring the panel is 

diverse and open to those who felt they 

were previously underrepresented. 

The chosen shortlists reflect back a 

music world which is changing. For 

starters, in 2021, women celebrate 

their strongest ever year, overall. 

We already know that 2021’s BRITs 

Rising Star Award winner is a woman. 

it was won by Celeste in 2020 after a 

stellar run under the previous guise of 

Critics’ Choice. Well done to a delighted 

Griff, who also announced the BRIT 

nominations live on air alongside 

Nick Grimshaw on March 31st. 

Dua Lipa, Arlo Parks and Celeste share 

the accolade of ‘most nominated’ with 

one talented male, Joel Corry, and 

one male duo (Young T & Bugsey). 

All have three nominations apiece. 

Indeed Dua Lipa has quite a track 

record, receiving the highest 

number of shortlist nominations 

in 2018 and 2019 as well. 

The ‘Up for two’ crew in 2021 

include AJ Tracey, Bicep, Jessie 

Ware, Headie One and J Hus. 

In contrast to last year’s Mastercard 

British Album, where Dave topped an 

Hosts: Nick Grimshaw and Griff 

all-male shortlist, eighty percent of the 

acts up for Mastercard British Album in 

2021 are female - a first in BRITs history. 

In that shortlist, while J Hus does it for 

the boys, are the triple threat trio of 

Arlo Parks, Celeste, Due Lipa, as well 

as ‘could be two’ contender Jessie 

Ware. Jessie is the most established 

artist on the British Album list, receiving 

her first BRIT nomination in 2013. 

Swap J Hus out for Lianne La Havas 

and - hey presto - its transformed 

into the Female Solo Artist line-up. 

Moving on, one of 2020s most 

marked trends continues, with the 

increasing representation of artists 

from diverse backgrounds. 

While acts like poet Arlo Parks and 

Celeste have found their own stylistic 

niche we also see the genres of 

grime, rap and drill dominate. 

Half of the ten tracks up for British 

Single are by rappers. And the Male 

Solo Artist category sees black artists 

Photo: Danny Howe 

14 14 

15

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR 

BRIT AWARDS 2021 NOMINATIONS 

BRITISH FEMALE SOLO ARTIST 

BRITISH SINGLE 

MASTERCARD ALBUM OF THE YEAR 

LOVE FROM EVERYONE AT 

AD 

take three of the five available slots 

on the shortlist, as AJ Tracey, Headie 

One and J Hus represent. Joel Corry 

and Yungblud, both having a great 

year, give a more alternative slant. 

Black artists also prevail on the 

Breakthrough shortlist - poet Arlo Parks, 

Celeste and Young T & Bugsey appear, 

with Joel Corry and Bicep alongside. 

Bicep’s second nomination is of course 

in British Group. They join fellow 

Breakthrough band Young T & Bugsey 

alongside Biffy Clyro (who have had 

two previous noms), The 1975 (three 

previous wins from four nominations) 

and the now three-piece Little Mix 

(two wins from nine nominations). 

While artists in the UK categories can 

vie for multiple wins, all of the artists in 

the International categories place all of 

their hopes on one trophy maximum. 

The International categories 

typically feature artists who have 

been around somewhat longer 

than the home-grown lists. 

Up for International Female Artist are 

Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Cardi B, 

Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift. Even 

at nineteen, Billie Eilish is a previous 

Internatiional Female Solo Artist winner 

in 2020. Ariana previously won in 

2019, and Taylor scooped the prize 

in 2015. Although Cardi B and Miley 

Cyrus have yet to win, they’ve also 

received previous nominations. 

International Male mixes previous 

champs Tame Impala (2016), with 

previous nominees The Weeknd, 

Childish Gambino (a.k.a actor Donald 

Glover), and Nigerian Afrobeats 

champion and grime collaborator du jour 

Burna Boy. The category also features 

our most senior nominee, the legend 

that is Bruce Springsteen. Having 

previously won 35 years ago in 1986, 

at 71 he receives his tenth nomination. 

Meanwhile the International Group 

shortlist is as eclectic as they come with 

BRITs stalwarts Foo Fighters at one end 

and fresh-faced K-Pop megastars BTS at 

the other. Haim, Fontaines D.C. and Run 

The Jewels complete the gang. With 

four previous titles, Foo Fighters will 

keep their fingers crossed for a fifth win. 

Harry Styles, meanwhile, is the 

artist with the most wins (and most 

previous nominations) to his name 

in the shortlists. Harry won seven 

trophies with One Direction as well 

as one as a solo performer. Will the 

British Single contender Watermelon 

Sugar bring him his ninth win? 

THE BRIT AWARDS 2021 

NOMINATIONS LIST IN FULL 

FEMALE SOLO ARTIST 

IN ASSOCIATION WITH AMAZON MUSIC 

ARLO PARKS TRANSGRESSIVE 

CELESTE POLYDOR, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

DUA LIPA WARNER, WARNER MUSIC 

JESSIE WARE EMI, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

LIANNE LA HAVAS WARNER, WARNER MUSIC 

MALE SOLO ARTIST 


AJ TRACEY AJ TRACEY 

HEADIE ONE RELENTLESS, SONY MUSIC 

J HUS BLACK BUTTER, SONY MUSIC 

JOEL CORRY 

ASYLUM/PERFECT HAVOC, WARNER MUSIC 

YUNGBLUD INTERSCOPE, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

BRITISH GROUP 

BICEP NINJA TUNE 

BIFFY CLYRO WARNER, WARNER MUSIC 

LITTLE MIX RCA, SONY MUSIC 

THE 1975 

DIRTY HIT/POLYDOR, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

YOUNG T & BUGSEY 

BLACK BUTTER, SONY MUSIC 

BRITS RISING STAR 

IDENTIFIED BY A PANEL OF CRITICS, 

INFLUENCERS, WRITERS AND COMPOSERS, 

SUPPORTED BY BBC RADIO 1 

GRIFF WARNER, WARNER (WINNER) 

PA SALIEU WARNER, WARNER MUSIC 

RINA SAWAYAMA DIRTY HIT 

BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST 

ARLO PARKS TRANSGRESSIVE 

BICEP NINJA TUNE 

CELESTE POLYDOR, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

JOEL CORRY 




MASTERCARD ALBUM 

ARLO PARKS 

COLLAPSED IN SUNBEAMS 

TRANSGRESSIVE 

CELESTE 

NOT YOUR MUSE 

POLYDOR, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

DUA LIPA 

FUTURE NOSTALGIA 

WARNER, WARNER MUSIC 

J HUS 

BIG CONSPIRACY 


JESSIE WARE 

WHAT'S YOUR PLEASURE? 

EMI, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

BRITISH SINGLE WITH MASTERCARD 

THE TOP TEN IDENTIFIED BY CHART ELIGIBLE SALES 

SUCCESS THEN VOTED FOR BY THE ACADEMY, 

SUPPORTED BY CAPITAL FM 

220 KID & GRACEY 

DON'T NEED LOVE 


AITCH & AJ TRACEY FT TAY KEITH 

RAIN 

NQ, VIRGIN, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

DUA LIPA PHYSICAL 


HARRY STYLES 

WATERMELON SUGAR 

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HEADIE ONE FT AJ TRACEY & 

STORMZY 

AIN'T IT DIFFERENT 

RELENTLESS, SONY MUSIC 

JOEL CORRY FT MNEK 

HEAD & HEART 


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ATLANTIC, WARNER MUSIC 

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PARLOPHONE, WARNER MUSIC 

YOUNG T & BUGSEY FT HEADIE ONE 

DON'T RUSH 


INTERNATIONAL FEMALE SOLO ARTIST 

ARIANA GRANDE 

REPUBLIC, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

BILLIE EILISH INTERSCOPE, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

CARDI B ATLANTIC, WARNER MUSIC 

MILEY CYRUS RCA, SONY MUSIC 

TAYLOR SWIFT EMI, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

INTERNATIONAL MALE SOLO ARTIST 

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN 


BURNA BOY ATLANTIC, WARNER MUSIC 

CHILDISH GAMBINO COLUMBIA, SONY MUSIC 

TAME IMPALA FICTION, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

THE WEEKND REPUBLIC/XO, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

INTERNATIONAL GROUP 

BTS BIG HIT ENTERTAINMENT 

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RUN THE JEWELS BMG MUSIC 

16 16 

17

“To be nominated for 

three BRIT Awards at 

20 years old as an 

independent artist 

is something that 

exceeds my wildest 

dreams. I genuinely 

don’t have the words 

to describe how 

grateful I am. This 

year has been difficult 

to say the least but art 

has been holding us 

together in some way 

and I’m excited to be 

part of this celebration 

of British music.” 

ARLO PARKS 

Alex Waespi 

“Where there is this global sense 

of confusion and uncertainty 

and fear, I like to think my music 

provides something soothing.” 

Fans of Arlo Parks were not 

disappointed by her January 2021 

debut album, ‘Collapsed In Sunbeams’. 

The buzz around this 20 yearold 

songwriter-poet has been 

unprecedented, with the likes of Billie 

Eilish, Phoebe Bridgers and Michelle 

Obama professing themselves to be 

fans. Arlo Parks names, Thom Yorke, 

Portishead, Sylvia Plath and Frank 

Ocean among her early inspirations. 

Sonically there are certainly nods here 

to Portishead and the light, trip-hop 

loops of their style of production. Here 

we have sparse, easy atmospherics and 

dream-quality layers of emotion, plucked 

strings so simple they leave space for 

the heart of the song to be found. 

It’s the perfect backdrop for the lyrical 

themes of self care and empathy, 

depression (Black Dog and Hope), 

addiction (Hurt), sexuality (Eugene) and 

love gone wrong or unrequited (the 

Clairo-backed Green Eyes, Caroline 

and Just Go). She confides her own 

troubles and seemingly offers a 

reciprocal listening ear back in return. 

The result is soft, and comfortable, 

sometimes R&B, sometimes reassuringly 

folksy; a pillow of emotion to salve 

souls so troubled by lockdown. 

Taking its name from a Zadie 

Smith short story, Collapsed in 

Sunbeams came together in a 

rented flat in Dalston, where Parks 

felt “incubated in the world of the 

ARLO PARKS 

COLLAPSED 

IN SUNBEAMS 

TRANSGRESSIVE 

record,” recording alongside regular 

writing partner Gianluca Buccellati. 

“It was quite a free-flowing process,” 

she reveals, “and most of the 

songs were written in a few hours, 

even an hour or so… it was very 

much spikes of inspiration”. 

Revisiting old heartaches proved to be 

an exhilarating but tiring process: “After 

I wrote this album I was exhausted… I 

gave so much of myself to this story.” 

“It’s weird to say, but it feels 

almost as if the songs are writing 

themselves. I’m just a vessel for 

thoughts and for the words. It’s almost 

like an emotional outpouring.” 

“I wanted it to be a time capsule. 

And for that to be authentic then 

I guess you have to get back 

into those shoes, as it were.” 

And so those remembered vignette 

moments have been captured, 

narrated, and dissected for the listener; 

a collection of lyrical Polaroids that 

piece together the sum of a life. 

It’s all about “making hyper-specific 

moments feel universal,” says Arlo 

Park of her art, “I want it to feel like 

you’re looking down the lens of a 

camera and watching a scene unfold.” 

And so the last track of the album, 

the Paul Epworth-produced Porta 

400, appears. It opens with the 

nonchalant disclaimer, “I’m always 

making rainbows out of something 

painful,” and in doing so, Arlo Parks 

offers the perfect review of her record, 

as the end credits roll on the work. 

It’s the perfect ending. She’s chased 

away the dark clouds. And it looks 

as though the sun is coming out. 

18 

19

AD 

AD 

BRITISH SINGLE WITH 

MASTERCARD: 

220 KID & GRACEY 

‘DON’T NEED LOVE’ 

AITCH & AJ TRACEY 

FT. TAY KEITH ‘RAIN’ 

FEMALE SOLO ARTIST: 

CELESTE 

JESSIE WARE 

MALE SOLO ARTIST: 

YUNGBLUD 

BRITISH GROUP: 

THE 1975 

BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST: 

CELESTE 

INTERNATIONAL GROUP: 

HAIM 


OF THE YEAR: 

CELESTE 

‘NOT YOUR MUSE’ 

JESSIE WARE 

‘WHAT’S YOUR PLEASURE’ 

INTERNATIONAL MALE 

SOLO ARTIST: 

TAME IMPALA 

THE WEEKND 

INTERNATIONAL FEMALE 

SOLO ARTIST: 

ARIANA GRANDE 

BILLIE EILISH 

TAYLOR SWIFT 

20 

21

CELESTE 

NOT YOUR MUSE 

POLYDOR. UNIVERSAL 

“It’s never been in my nature 

to try to fit in,” says 26 

year-old Celeste, discussing her 

No.1 debut album Not Your Muse. 

And why would it be, when you have 

an inimitable style, and a rich smoky 

vocal that can silence a room. 

Fresh from a whirl of early 2020 

promo and with delivery of an allimportant 

album on the slate, Celeste 

found a positive side to lockdown. 

In fact, “Everything slowing down 

was quite helpful,” she says. “I 

could take stock of what was really 

important to me and focus on why 

I was here in the first place.” 

Instead of a gnawing feeling she’d lost 

creative control, she knew the answer: 

“Surrounding myself with my band and 

people who were there only to make 

good music, it brought me back in 

touch with why I love making music.” 

She took risks, wanted to trust her own 

instinct while honing her smooth sound, 

all vintage jazz/soul/r&b, a dreamy and 

atmospheric cinematic surround style. 

And she’d tasted success already, 

taking note what worked in live shows. 

“The songs people had responded 

to the most were the ones that I had 

put the most genuine feeling into.” 

Happily, the recording period was 

also time of great excitement, due 

to a new romance: “Something that I 

experienced — properly — was falling 

in love. So there is more warmth and 

sincerity to my approach… before I was 

a bit more sombre and guarded. Now 

it’s big horns, and make it triumphant!” 

“It was purely about making a 

piece of music that I really liked 

and could feel proud of.” 

All of that meant “I felt more and more 

confident with each leap I took”. 

So she found the strength to lay out her 

red lines in Ideal Woman, the courage 

to embrace the woozy 50s feel of the 

love song Beloved, and the optimism 

to end the album with the ever hopeful 

Same Goodbyes Come With Hellos. 

There are the singles — the ethereal 

sense of loss on Strange, written in the 

aftermath of an LA bush fire, as well as 

the horn laden romance, Love Is Back. 

And there are cinematic tracks that 

found an unexpected audience; Stop 

This Flame found a home on the EA 

Games FIFA franchise; Give A Little Love 

became a John Lewis Christmas song. 

The empowering message of the 

album’s title, and indeed its titular single, 

is that Celeste has an open heart but a 

singular vision. Sure, she’ll collaborate. 

But there’s a comfort line beyond which 

she will not travel. This lady isn’t one to 

follow the trends. She’s a trendsetter. 

A niche artist who will embrace the 

mainstream, as long as its on her 

own terms. Otherwise, she believes, 

sounds will never progress forward. 

“There has to be somebody 

willing to take that risk. And 

it’s within me to strive”. 

“I feel like I’ll have more longevity 

in what I’m doing if I do something 

that I find fulfilling, I’m happy playing 

songs l like, rather than playing 

songs I hate to fifty million people. 

“In this album I came back to a 

place of knowing my true voice, 

and knowing who I am again.” 

“I genuinely thought 

I wouldn’t be in with 

a chance of receiving 

any nominations, so 

to be receiving this 

recognition in just the 

nominations is astounding 

for me and I’m so 

happy to be considered 

worthy of winning any 

of these prizes!” 

CELESTE 

22 

23

“This is really overwhelming. 

I am so proud of my album 

Future Nostalgia and single 

Physical. Thanks so much to 

everyone who has supported 

me and enjoyed my music – it 

means everything to me. 

“I am so excited to be returning 

to perform for you all at The 

BRITs this year. It’s going to 

be truly special to be back 

on stage in the UK.” 

DUA LIPA 

“No ballads, only bangers” was Dua 

Lipa’s mantra as she approached 

the making of her second album. 

Settling on the title Future Nostalgia 

while out walking, headphones on, 

around Las Vegas; she knew her eureka 

moment had hit upon a moniker that 

would encapsulate her creative streak. 

“I’d already started working on the 

record and I knew I wanted it to 

reflect my childhood influences, 

but I hadn’t quite figured out what 

direction I wanted to go.” 

Leaning heavily on synth pop and disco 

beats from the 80s and 90s, it harked 

back to when Dua herself was younger. 

“I want it to be the album that young 

girls look back on, the way I look 

back on Missundaztood by Pink or 

The Dutchess by Fergie,” she says. 

Her “soundtrack for young girls,” 

then, is the sort of ‘I’ll show ‘em!’ 

self-help that comes in a glossy box, 

where you dust off disappointment 

and put on the lipgloss. 

Hitting upon the recipe for early 

track and otherworldly future 

single Levitate turned her regular 

studio session into a party. 

It was the “first song that I could present 

to my A&R and manager and be like, 

‘This is the world I’m going into’”. 

Dua, happily loved up in a relationship, 

didn’t leave space for any slow songs. 

She explains, “I wanted to write 

songs that were more sad, more 

about heartbreak, because I thought 

that writing happy songs would 

turn into cheesy songs. I had to 

DUA LIPA 

FUTURE NOSTALGIA 

WARNER. WARNER 

fight that because I was like, ‘I am 

happy. I deserve to be happy.’” 

“I should be able to write about that 

without the fear of feeling like I’m 

compromising my authenticity.” 

Her clutch of “dark pop” tracks includes 

Hallucinate (the song she’ll play at 

every festival), and Break My Heart, 

with the Need You Tonight INXS 

sample. As well as the vibe-y workout 

wonder Physical, there’s a nod to 

sisterhood on Boys Will Be Boys. 

After two years of hard work, an 

internet leak meant the record 

was rushed out at the last minute, 

a week ahead of schedule. As the 

pandemic kicked in she worried the 

move would seem in poor taste. 

But no, she explained, “I made this 

record as a form of escapism, to get 

away from any pressures or words from 

other people. It was the reason why this 

album was created so, if there was any 

time to put it out, it should be now.” 

“I hope it brings you some happiness, 

I hope it makes you smile and I 

hope it makes you proud.” 

So many of us ached for something 

upbeat and Dua’s remedy was 

the ultimate kitchen disco. 

The success of the original eleven track 

record, and subsequent deluxe edition, 

prompted a thumping remix album, 

Club Future Nostalgia (Aug 2020). The 

arms aloft, jubilant, and sample-heavy 

reprise had a guest list including Gwen 

Stefani, Mark Ronson, and Madonna. 

Now with one of the world’s certified 

Top 10 biggest sellers of 2020, there’s 

a sense of achievement. “I feel so 

proud of Future Nostalgia,” reveals Dua, 

already eyeing up her next project. “I 

really feel like I’m finding my feet.” 

24 

25


DUA LIPA 

LIANNE LA HAVAS 


JOEL CORRY 


BIFFY CLYRO 

AD 

BRITISH SINGLE WITH MASTERCARD 

DUA LIPA, “PHYSICAL” 

JOEL CORRY FT MNEK, “HEAD & HEART” 

NATHAN DAWE FT KSI, “LIGHTER” 

S1MBA FT DTG, “ROVER” 

AD 


JOEL CORRY 


DUA LIPA, FUTURE NOSTALGIA 

INTERNATIONAL FEMALE SOLO ARTIST 

CARDI B 

INTERNATIONAL MALE SOLO ARTIST 

BURNA BOY 

RISING STAR 

GRIFF – WINNER 

PA SALIEU 

26 

27

“Before the UK was trying 

to imitate, before we was 

trying to do what America 

was doing - but now we 

got our own thing innit, 

now they are copying 

us. We are owning it!” 

J HUS 

J HUS 

BIG CONSPIRACY 

BLACK BUTTER. SONY 

“You can’t cover me, I show my 

defiance, look deep in your soul if 

you’re looking for guidance,” warns 

J Hus on the anti-establishment 

opener to his second album, 

Big Conspiracy which knocked 

Eminem’s Music To Be Murdered 

By off No.1 in February 2020. 

The album’s urgent release came 

after tracks were leaked online but 

if anything the first glimpses of the 

rapper’s new music only served 

to whet the appetite of fans. 

A mission statement if every there 

was one, the 13 track collection - 

launched around a year after he was 

sentenced to an eight month stint in 

jail, is chock-full of revolutionary intent, 

introspection, cheeky word play, and 

tales of questionable sexual adventure. 

The album sees collaborations 

from some of the hottest names in 

global music in the exec producer 

and long-time collaborator 

JAE5, plus Levi Lennox, Skribz 

Riley, Io and Nana Rogues. 

TobiShyBoy (TSB) adds influence 

with the multidimensional addition 

of pianos, saxophones and violins. 

The first two singles from the record 

were Must Be (a first Top 5 for J Hus 

in Nov 2019) and No Denying, noted 

for the intensity of its drill beat. 

Fight For Your Life is a requiem for lost 

friends in his inner circle while Must 

Be One sees smooth saxophone back 

a narrative of life in the ends - is the 

paranoia real or is it the betrayal? 

Play Play meanwhile is a song meant for 

the overheated days of city summers, 

full of steel drums and sexual tension, 

slick talk and and weapon envy. 

Burna Boy features where Jamaican 

influences and afropop meet. 

The album catches J Hus in a period 

of refection, where his raw Stratford 

conduct codes clash with influences, 

such as Sun Tsu’s The Art of War 

found in prison library books. 

You can almost hear the internal 

struggle, as growth and ambition wrestle 

in vibrant metaphors against the habits 

of his proud hometown neighbourhood. 

At home in his own creation, he mixes 

rapped verse with sung choruses but 

Repeat, featuring Koffee, is sung in 

an afrobeat/drill hybrid throughout, 

with choruses lilting in patois. 

Female vocals lighten the mood, 

provided by Ella Mae on One and Only 

and Icee TGM, rumoured to be J Hus’s 

sister, on Big Conspiracy and Helicopter. 

The whole thing finishes with Deeper 

than Rap, a four minute monologue 

relentlessly spilling his truth over 

relaxed piano and synth violins. It zaps 

from from topic to topic: revenge and 

wrongdoing, religion and astronomy, 

colonialism, race. Its a lot to keep up 

with, a stream of consciousness if you 

will. This anxious clash of influences is 

reality for the plate-spinning J Hus, 

The album has been descri as vibrant 

and thought provoking, violent and, at 

times, childlike. Its creator has captured 

the market in the music that defines 

the zeitgeist UK scene at the moment. 

“In the end it was all worth it,” says J 

Hus, despite ”so much work, so much 

effort, blood, sweat, and tears”. 

28 

29

AD 

CONGRATULATIONS 

TO ALL OUR 

INCREDIBLE ARTISTS 

NOMINATED AT 

AD 

THE BRIT AWARDS 

2021 

30 

31

JESSIE WARE 

WHAT’S YOUR 

PLEASURE? 

EMI. UNIVERSAL 

“Women have always 

made great music and 

wonderful albums, but 

this is the first time in the 

entire BRITs history that 

we have dominated the 

best album category. 

The time is now - albeit 

long overdue - to 

start respecting and 

appreciating the vital 

role women, and their 

music, play in the British 

music industry. I want to 

thank everyone who has 

acknowledged What’s 

Your Pleasure?, I’m so 

proud of the record we 

made and am thrilled to 

be up for Best Album. I 

am also elated to have 

my fourth ‘British Female 

Solo Artist’ nomination 

to go with my fourth, and 

now BRIT nominated, 

studio album.” 

JESSIE WARE 

Jessie Ware’s Save A Kiss strikes a 

chord for all the couples torn apart 

by lockdown. “Save A Kiss for me 

tonight/Wait for me, no compromise,” 

she trills, disco beats behind her. 

Coming from her fourth album What’s 

Your Pleasure? (2020), and showcasing 

its disco Studio 54 vibe to the max, 

the single spoke to the heart, says 

Jessie, and “accidentally became 

far more poignant… saying, ‘Wait 

there, I’ll be there with that kiss.’” 

“I’m so proud of this record, and I think 

it’s going to connect with people,” she 

explains, noting its themes of “Pleasure 

and escapism and sex…” Sex? Yep - 

“Where there’s a will there’s a way!” 

When the world appears to be 

going crazy sometimes it’s temping 

to go wild with abandon. 

Although she couldn’t guess Covid-19 

was coming, she approached her 

most commercially successful record 

to date with a joy. “The word I find 

myself using a lot is freeing.” 

An introspective third album Glasshouse 

(2017) had not been wholly fulfilling, 

but it was overtaken by a career 

sidestep, the hugely successful cookery 

podcast Table Manners. She paused, 

went back to her dance music roots 

with less trepidation, perhaps come 

full circle. She holed up in pal and 

producer James Ford’s Clapton attic 

hanging out with Kindness, Joseph 

Mount, Dave Okomu and more. Being 

comfortable set her creativity rising. 

“We do a lot of back-and-forth, playing 

groove tunes and disco tunes. I learned 

a lot, and [James] introduced me to a 

lot.” In absorbing it all she took lessons 

from Donna Summer, Gloria Gaynor, 

and Debbie Harry. “There was a lot of 

dancing, a lot of fun, turning it up and 

imagining what our night out with this 

record would be — it felt light and free.” 

“With What’s Your Pleasure?, the 

title track, when we were writing it, 

I could imagine Kylie Minogue.” 

So there’s the secret: Instead of 

delving deep inside herself for 

lyrical heartache, she’s creating a 

persona with sequins and paint. 

“That’s the beauty and the grandeur 

of disco and dance music, you go 

into the performance. And I feel like 

this was a more confident Jessie 

Ware performance in its entirety.” 

And so the songs come rushing out. 

There’s Ooh La La, a funky bassled 

drama, and Soul Control, with its 

Superbad-as-in-great vocal riffs. In 

Spotlight, she’s alone, twirling in the 

glitterball’s shimmer. Meanwhile “People 

have told me ‘Remember Where You 

Are’ is their lockdown anthem,” she 

ventures, “its about observing the world 

being on fire”. It closes the album. “I 

was imagining it could be played at 

the end of The Handmaiden’s Tale.” 

Well. The world might be a “dystopian 

nightmare” but at least Jessie Ware 

is more sure of her place in it. 

“I totally feel like an artist now,” she says. 

“This album really cemented that for me. 

I understand myself better than ever.” 

“My confidence is there now. I’ve 

always felt that I’ve never been able 

to be defined by one genre and now 

I can’t be defined by one job.” 

“It feels limitless…” 

And that’s not the only thing it 

feels, says Jessie. “It feels like 

everyone needs a bit of a party.” 

32 

33

“We as a band want to thank 

you for coming out, not just 

tonight but for all the nights.” 

CHRIS MARTIN 

“There is light at the end 

of the tunnel… there will 

be a lot of people dusting 

off their instruments 

now, thinking OK, let’s 

get rehearsing. It’s 

been a long time.” 

WILL CHAMPION 

AD 

ARLO PARKS 

Congratulations on your three 

nominations for 

British Album Of The Year 

British Female Solo Artist 

Breakthrough Artist 

Love from everyone at Transgressive 

Anton Corbijn 

34 

35

AD 

EADIE 

NE 

“Big flick, 

big BRITs, 

steady” 

HEADIE ONE 

36 

37

AD 

SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR AWARD 

“The biggest thank you 

in the whole world, it 

is the biggest honour 

of my whole life.” 

“Thank you so much for 

all of your support.” 

OLIVIA RODRIGO 

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE BRIT AWARD 

NOMINEES FOR 2021. WE HOPE THERE IS 

ONE NEW CATEGORY IN 2022. 

38 39

BUBBLING WITH 

EXCITEMENT 



When 20 year-old Sarah Faith Griffiths, 

a.k.a. popstar Griff won The BRITs 2021 

Rising Star Award, she took herself into 

a field with a picnic blanket and a bottle 

of Prosecco to celebrate… because 

Lockdown meant she couldn’t toast 

her win with friends. Here, the Black 

Hole hitmaker chats to Helen Lamont 

about her bedroom-produced, (and 

bedroom-promoted) rise to the top… 

Congratulations on your Rising Star win! 

Thank you! I’ve got major impostor 

syndrome. It feels silly. How have I 

managed to bag myself a spot on 

this incredible long list of artists who 

have gone before? I don’t think it 

is going to feel real until I am in the 

O2, with the adrenalin in the air. 

Are you looking forward to 

your big night? 

I am! I’d like to bump into one 

of the Directioners backstage. 

I’m low-key a Directioner. So if I 

saw Niall I’d be delighted! 

How did you find out? 

I’d just had a long day filming my Jools 

Holland performance, waiting for my 

cab. My manager called me, then 

put Phil (Christie, President of Warner 

Music) on, who said, ‘Congratulations, 

you’ve won it’. I screamed on Hoxton 

High Street. My Addison Lee driver 

didn’t know what was going on! 

Introduce yourself and your sound for us… 

I’m a young songwriter and producer. 

I just started making beats in my 

room. I love pop music, and I try to 

write honest emotional pop melodies 

and lyrics, and interesting beats. 

You began your musical 

endeavours very early. 

I grew up in church and music was a 

huge part of my life, and I listened to 

soul/R&B. At eight, I found Taylor Swift’s 

Fearless album mind-blowing - all uplifting 

melodies, major chords, and teenage 

girl lyrics. From there I began writing 

songs, and I was lucky that my dad sings, 

and he’s always sung in church. He had 

Logic [Pro, production software] lying 

around. I realised I could go on Logic 

and record, and harmonise with myself. 

It opened up a whole new world. 

And you were in your first recording 

studio aged ten? 

Yeah, I was in a girl band at ten, and 

another band at fifteen. Every musician 

has had an embarrassing past and mine 

is no different! The heights of that was me 

supporting Peter Andre on his UK tour, 

with my blue TopShop jeans and my blue 

snapback, without ever releasing music. 

Bet you learned a lot though. 

I learned that a lot of adults don’t know 

what they’re doing, It made me a bit 

cynical to be honest. But it was fun and 

hopefully a stepping stone, because 

the music industry can be this big 

intimidating thing; you don’t know how 

to access it. It definitely made me work 

ten times harder to do things for myself. 

And just before your A levels, 

you went solo… 

I was around 16, 17. I’d do lessons in the 

morning and then travel in [to London] 

and work with any producer that would 

have me. I started to co-write and do more 

studio sessions. My music got heard, and I 

started to get publishing and label interest. 

I signed when I was mid-way through sixth 

form, just juggling A Levels with trying to 

write, record songs and do photoshoots. 

Gonna bet you did OK in those exams… 

Yeah I got all A’s which feels like a miracle. 

Economics, Geography and Textiles. There 

was always a plan to go to university, 

which is wild now. My friends are all at 

Uni I’m here trying to understand taxes. 

Lockdown’s been a strange 

time to be a popstar… 

It’s been hard to get a feel for who is 

listening. Social media has been amazing 

to keep in contact with existing followers, 

but you’re never sure who is out there. 

For example, I only did one headline 

ticketed show, to about 250 people, 

the November before Covid. So there 

will be a big jump and it is exciting and 

quite terrifying, and a bit overwhelming, 

although I know I love to perform. It’ll be 

crazy to see real bodies, real people’s 

mouths singing along to the songs. 

40 

41

CONGRATULATIONS TO 

THE BRITs RISING STAR 

LOVE FROM DELEON & 

EVERYONE AT GRUMPY OLD MANAGEMENT 

You have a creative soul, and more than 

a passing interest in fashion! 

I make a lot of the clothes. It was a fun 

side that accidentally developed into a 

thing. I’d just bring a few bits to shoots, 

and if I have time I’ll make a top for a 

performance. I love an oversized frilly 

dress, I’m addicted to vintage bridal 

dresses. It’s a nice way to build my 

visual world and stay in artistic control. 

I can think of a few who mix 

music with fashion… 

I hope one day I can take the fashion 

side more seriously, and release a 

proper collection, that feels like I’ve 

designed it all completely. But that’s 

a quiet dream, for later on, I think. 

What do you hope your career 

trajectory will be? 

If I can look back, in five years, and know 

that I’ve been 100 percent honest and 

authentic in what I put out, if I’m in creative 

control, and I’ve written songs that have 

impacted people, I will be happy. 

Which artists inspire you? 

There are so many! Lorde makes 

me super-inspired, with how she’s 

managed to do pop but also stay left 

field. I love how Julia Michaels has 

written such emotional songs. And 

Imogen Heap, of course, is sick, and 

a female producer since day one. 

Meantime, what do you 

hope 2021 holds for you? 

Honestly, its hard to think ahead. I feel so 

satisfied with what I’ve already achieved. 

I just hope more people will be able 

to discover my music and love it. [But] 

I am definitely hoping to do some gigs 

again, I’m very excited that we have 

announced dates in October. That’s nuts! 

Before that there will be new music… 

Yes, a mixtape in June, called One Foot 

In Front Of The Other, which is seven 

of my best songs this year. I feel really 

proud of it. It’s been hard to write and 

stay inspired during lockdown, but it 

speaks into what I want to say right now. 

Of course your biggest 

show will be The BRITs itself… 

Oh I’m trying to think about it now! 

We will go big on set design, I’ll be in 

an outfit I’ve made myself, and there 

will be a lot of dancing. So much 

dancing! A high energy performance! 

With so much to look forward to, it’s 

gonna be hard to stay grounded. 

No, I have good people around 

me. Everyone is excited, but 

proper grounded. My mum said, 

“Congratulations, but can we move 

on now”? My dad said, “Gosh, I’m 

just as excited about this as I was 

when you passed your driving test”! 

One Foot On Front Of The Other 

is out on Warner on June 11, 

AD 

…ALSO ON THE 

BRIT AWARDS 2021 

SHORTLIST 

Pa Salieu 

Slough-born rapper Pa Saleiu grew up 

on his grandparents’ farm in The Gambia, 

before returning to settle in Coventry. 

After releasing an early track Never 

Had in 2018, the 23 year-old ‘Hood 

Representative’ used the city’s mean 

streets as backdrop to his first mixtape, 

Send Them To Coventry, featuring 

Mahalia and M1llions collaborations. His 

genre-busting mix of afrobeats, drill and 

dancehall rumbles under inventive but 

intense lyrics. After the buzz-worthy debut 

Frontline, Salieu has already upped the 

ante in 2021 with the breakout hit Energy. 

Rina Sawayama 


Clashing wild-eyed punk with regimented 

beats, and scooping R&B sounds into 

the mix with Japanese opera, 30 yearold 

Rina Sawayama makes exiting and 

innovative future-pop. The confident 

Cambridge graduate, who has called 

London home since childhood, has been 

through several musical incarnations, 

including in a hip hop band as well 

as the glossy pop of debut EP Rina. 

However she settled on her avant-garde 

solo work, as showcased in the highly 

personal debut album Sawayama, 

and catchy singles including STFU!, 

Comme Des Garçons and XS. 

42 43



Photo by Sophie Jones 

AD 

ARLO PARKS 

TRANSGRESSIVE 

CELESTE 


DUA LIPA 


JESSIE WARE 


LIANNE LA HAVAS 


Who hasn’t let a tricky thing like 

lockdown stand in their way? 

One of three previous BRIT winners featured, 25 year‐old 

Londoner Dua Lipa has turned many a bedroom into a 

dance floor with uplifting music. She has ten previous 

BRIT nominations and three wins to date, most recently 

Song of The Year for One Kiss, a 2018 Calvin Harris duet. 

It’s been a journey. After an eponymous 2017 debut 

launched singles Be The One, IGDAF and the 2bn 

views on YouTube New Rules on the world, she 

renewed her chart-topping credentials with the disco 

album Future Nostalgia (2020), which spent a month 

at No.1. She’s kept us dancing throughout with Don’t 

Start Now, Physical and Break My Heart, and even 

collaborated with Kylie Minogue and Miley Cyrus. 

Describing herself as ‘analogue, not digital’, the slow-down 

of 2020 suited Not Your Muse maker Celeste. The jazz-R&B 

singer was on the cusp of the busiest year after winning the 

BRITs Rising Star Awards. Lockdown allowed her to finish 

her No.1 debut album, promoting singles without the usual 

promo whirlwind. However, her tracks sell themselves (and 

other things besides); most notably on John Lewis’s Give 

A Little Love campaign and Sky Sports (Stop The Flame). 

Celeste duetted with Jon Batiste on It’s Alright, 

from 2020’s Disney Soul soundtrack. She 

received a 2021 Oscar nomination for Hear My 

Voice, from The Trial Of The Chicago 7 OST. 

One of the other upsides of more downtime was the 

opportunity to discover Table Manners, the cookery 

Podcast Jessie Ware hosts with her mum. Yes, when she’s 

not releasing UK No.3 albums, like June 2020’s What’s 

Your Pleasure?, the soon-to-be mum-of-three is cooking 

up a storm in the kitchen as well as on the dance floor. 

Ware celebrates a decade in music in 2021, as well as 

her fifth and sixth BRITs nominations. She’s previously 

released albums Devotion (2012), Tough Love (2014), and 

Glasshouse (2017). A fifth collection is expected in 2022. 

It’s been five years since the last Lianne La Havas album 

and four years since the Londoners’ last British Female 

BRIT nomination. The 31 year-old burst onto the scene in 

2011 singing Paloma Faith backing vocals before a 2012 

debut Is Your Love Big Enough?, was followed by the 

2015 disc Blood. Her third came with a self-titled 10 track 

break-up album (No.7 in July 2020). She’s been all over 

the airwaves with minimalist singles Bittersweet and Paper 

Thin as well as the lush collaboration with R&B singer 

Nao on the female celebration, Woman (August 2020). 

The album Collapsed in Sunbeams (January 21) by 

newcomer Arlo Parks is sure to end 2021 on the best‐of 

lists. Featuring singles including Eugene, Black Dog, 

and Caroline, it announced her into a world of lockdown 

listening where lo-fi zoom performances bend best to 

simple sounds, and sonic adventures are to be savoured 

alongside a lyrical talent warm with empathy and emotion. 

Hammersmith’s songwriter-poet plays summer festivals 

and her biggest headliners to date in Autumn 2021, 

including a homecoming at Shepherds’ Bush Empire. 

44 

45




Grime gets the edge with three shortlisted 

artists but there’s much more to the story. 

AJ Tracey, 27, raised around reggae, rap and drum 

& bass, took the ten-year pirate radio route to 

notoriety. Butterflies (2018), brought commercial 

success before a 2019 self-titled album rose to 

No.3, mixing afrobeat, dancehall and country. 

AJ TRACEY 

AJ TRACEY 

BICEP 

NINJA TUNE 

Woah! We have some heavy hitters in 

the British Group category. 

This is The 1975’s fifth BRIT Nomination and they 

have three wins (British Group in 2017 and Group 

and Album in 2019), already to their name. 

Matt Healy & Co. join an elite club with the release of their 

fourth album, Notes On A Conditional Form; they’ve topped 

the UK album chart with every collection released. 

After that, he was never off the airwaves 

alongside Dave on Thiago Silva, Aitch and Tay 

Keith on Rain, or MoStack on Dinner Guest. 

After Ladbroke Grove scored a BRIT nomination, he 

went old skool on the Secure The Bag 2 EP (2020). 

He’s released singles Bringing It Back and Anxious 

already in 2021, both from the hot album Flu Game. 

Headie One is drill rap to his core. He’s been releasing 

mixtapes since 2010 onward, gaining reputation and 

name. In 2019, 18Hunna ft. Dave, gained a No.6 chart 

place, at the time it was the highest for a drill artist 

ever. Cross pollination between grime and rap artists 

brought collaborations with Stormzy, Krept and Konan 

and Skepta - and in July 2020 he featured Drake on 

single Only You Freestyle, which preceded his Oct 2020 

No.1 album, Edna. Named after his mum it also featured 

tracks Ain’t It Different (No.2) and Princess Cuts (No.11). 

Named for the hustle, J Hus captures the moment. 

Stratford-born of Gambian descent, the once-troubled 

teen announced himself with the drill/afroswing 

anthem Dem Boy Paignon around 2015, in a clutch 

of freestyle online releases. Lean & Bop and Friendly 

grew his reputation, before 2017’s debut album 

Common Sense made No.6 and garnered his first BRIT 

nomination. Several hot singles, plus Dave collaboration 

Samantha followed. After a 2019 prison stint his second 

album Big Conspiracy (No.1 in Feb 2020), included 

preceding singles Must Be (No.5) and No Denying 

plus features by Burna Boy, Ella Mae and Koffee. 

Workaholic Joel Corry is not part of this particular trend, 

but he’s making and breaking records. The former 

Geordie Shore DJ-Producer knows what buttons to 

push for maximum effect. After a string of 2018 singles 

he released the No.6 Love Island banger, Sorry. It 

broke the record for most Shazams in one day. After 

Lonely (No.4 in Feb 20) came a July 20 team-up with 

MNEK, Head & Heart, which spent six weeks at No.1 

in the UK and was a global smash. Recently, Corry 

teamed up with Raye and David Guetta for his fourth 

Top 10 single in March 2021 - the euphoric No.6, Bed. 

Finally, alt-rock-punk star Yungblud a.k.a. 23 year-old 

Dominic Harrison aims for out-of-this-world success. 

NASA chose the Doncasterian’s Life On Mars? cover 

to accompany Mars Landing footage. The performer’s 

multiple personalities showcase themselves on charttopping 

album Weird! (Dec 2020). It featured the 

No.3 KSI and Polo G collab Patience, Obey alongside 

BMTH, and Cotton Candy. It all started for Yungblud 

with single King Charles (2017), the No. 6 EP The 

Underrated Youth (2019), plus work with Halsey and 

Travis Barker, Marshmello and Machine Gun Kelly. 

Check out also the LP 21st Century Liability (2018). 

HEADIE ONE 


J HUS 


JOEL CORRY 

ASYLUM/PERFECT HAVOC, WARNER 

YUNGBLUD 

INTERSCOPE, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

BIFFY CLYRO 


LITTLE MIX 

RCA, SONY MUSIC 

THE 1975 

DIRTY HIT/POLYDOR, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 



Notes on A Conditional Form is seen by the band as the 

end of their Music For Cars era, finishing a run begun by 

The 1975 (2013), I Like It When You Sleep… (2016), and A 

Brief Enquiry Into Online Relationships (2018). This creative 

period has also seem collabs with a No Rome/Charlie XCX 

supergroup and the Healy side project Drive Like I Do. 

Little Mix may have one fewer BRIT Statuettes on the shelf 

(They won British Single in 2017 and British Video in 2019) 

but they’ve notched up an amazing ten BRITs nominations. 

The X Factor alumni formed in 2011 and to date they have 

achieved sales of over 60 million records, and five No.1 

singles, Cannonball, Wings, Black Magic, Shout Out To 

My Ex, and Sweet Melody. In 2020 they followed albums 

DNA (2012), Salute (2013), Get Weird (2015), Glory Days 

(2016), LM5 (2019), with sixth album Confetti. When Jesy 

Nelson left the band in December 2020, the remaining 

trio vowed to continue releasing, including a No.1 single 

Sweet Melody and teasing a project alongside MNEK. 

One man who won’t have minded the barbers shutting in 

lockdown is singer Simon Neil from anthemic alt-rockers 

Biffy Clyro. The Kilmarnock band released a debut album 

Blackened Sky in 2002, before breaking through with 

fourth album Puzzle (No.2 in 2007) and going international 

with Only Revolutions in 2009. All studio albums since 

have made No.1 - Opposites (2013), Similarities (2014), 

Ellipses (2016), and recently A Celebration Without Ending 

(2020). A busy period of late also included the Balance Not 

Symmetry OST (2019). Among other things, Biffy Clyro are 

known for writing Matt Cardle’s hit single When We Collide, 

and their fan favourite encouragement, ‘Mon The Biff’. 

Fellow Celts Bicep are one of the hottest bands in Britain 

right now but you may not know what they look like. The 

Northern Irish, London-based producer duo, are claiming 

so many streaming units they’ve put euphoric synth house 

back on the map. The pair - Andrew Ferguson and Matthew 

McBriar released their second album, the No.2 Isles in 2021 

(it followed the 2017 debut Bicep). Soon they will be testing 

their recent uplifting dance tracks - Atlas, Apricots, Saki 

and Sundial out on clubbing crowds alongside perennial 

favourites from the Vision of Love EP, Sacrifice and Just. 

You spend years preparing for fame and then one viral video 

changes everything. Young T & Bugsey have the aptlynamed 

Headie One collab Don’t Rush and its 2020 TikTok 

#Don’tRushChallenge to thank for exposure prompting 

international fame. Anyhow, there was plenty for new fans 

to savour, not least the Lizzy/Fredo banger Ay Carumba 

(2018) and 2019’s No.9 single Strike A Pose featuring Aitch. 

The duo - Ra’Chard Tucker and Doylin Julius - came 

straight outta Nottingham punching, thanks to their 

mixtape, Plead The 5th. Now they’re banging the hits out 

- with Bully Beef and New Shape following, and a returnthe-favour 

feature on Headie One’s Princess Cuts. 

46 

47

NINJA TUNE CONGRATULATE 

bicep 

2 BRIT AWARD NOMINATIONS 

BRITISH GROUP | BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST 

HHHH 

guardian 

HHHH 

nme 

HHHH 

mojo 

AD 

isles 

the new album out now 

HHHH 

the evening standard 

HHHH 

the independent 

HHHH 

financial times 

HHHH 

the i 

HHHH 

loud & quiet 

HHHH 

diy 

HHHH 

clash 

ARLO PARKS 

TRANSGRESSIVE 

BICEP 

NINJA TUNE 

CELESTE 


JOEL CORRY 





Each year, it seems, the artists in the 

British Breakthrough category get 

more and more accomplished. 

Already a winner of The BRITs Rising Star Award, and 

a performer on The BRITs stage last year, Celeste 

Epiphany Waite has reached household name status 

in the space of a year. Of course she has been 

working a lot longer on her career. The now 26-year 

old was born in LA and raised near Brighton, before 

catching attention with the single Daydreaming in 

2016, EP Lately, then Father’s Son and Coco Blood. 

Celeste trailed her No.1 debut album Not Your Muse 

with the single Strange (2019), a sparse, smokyvoiced 

jazz vocal like nothing else you’ll hear. 

Arlo Parks (born Anaïs Oluwatoyin Estelle Marinho) 

is, at 20, the youngest act on the shortlist. She 

grew up in Hammersmith of Nigerian, Chadian 

and French heritage. A poet and songwriter, she 

began uploading tracks to BBC Introducing. Her 

breakthrough number, Cola, is a song of betrayal. It 

was released in Nov 2018. The SuperSad Generation 

EP followed in Jan 2019 before Romantic Garbage 

in March that year. Parks played festivals aplenty in 

summer 2019 ahead of the airy, poetic trip hop of 

lockdown album Collapsed In Sunbeams (Jan 2021). 

Nottingham duo Young T & Bugsey have learned that 

overnight success can takes ages. After meeting in 

2013 and signing their Black Butter deal five years 

back, they paid their dues on the rap and grime 

circuits before their breakthrough finally came 

with the Aitch collaboration, Strike A Pose, which 

featured on Love Island. Don’t Rush, featuring a 

half-sung-rap verse plus Headie One and DaBaby, 

became a TikTok craze, the #Don’tRushChallenge, 

propelling them and their breakthrough March 

2020 Mixtape, Plead The 5th to success. 

Bicep, too, have paid their dues, this time on the DJ 

circuit. The Northern Irish, London-based duo began 

writing a dance music blog Feel My Bicep before 

offers for them to DJ flooded in. By 2012 they’d made 

their own house revival anthem, Visions Of Love. By 

2015, they were plugging a new single, Just, and by 

2017 they’d delivered their self-titled first album. Four 

years down the road, Bicep released the 2021 trip hop 

collection Isles, and singles Atlas, Apricot, Saku and 

Sundial cementing their place as heroes of house. 

It also feels like the Barnet DJ previously known as DJ 

Jenga, Joel Corry, has been around a long time before 

being featured in Breakthrough. But while we knew 

his as a gym owner, bodybuilder and 2013-onwards 

Geordie Shore love interest, his DJ work came to the 

fore. In 2019 he was one of Britain’s most in-demand 

DJs, remixing Zayn Malik, Aitch, Stormzy and Burna 

Boy. But 2020 was the year Joel Corry tipped the 

scale. As the go-to man for the A-list, he’s remixed 

Katy Perry, Sam Smith, Megan Thee Stallion and 

Mabel. But he also claimed the biggest single by a 

British artist of the year, Head & Heart ft. MNEK. 

48 

49

BRITISH SINGLE 

WITH MASTERCARD 

THE TOP TEN IDENTIFIED BY CHART ELIGIBLE SALES SUCCESS THEN 

VOTED FOR BY THE ACADEMY, SUPPORTED BY CAPITAL FM 

PHYSICAL 


SECRETS 

MINISTRY OF SOUND 

DON’T NEED LOVE 


HEAD & HEART 


WATERMELON SUGAR 


ROVER 

PARLOPHONE, WARNER MUSIC 

RAIN 

NQ, VIRGIN, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

LIGHTER 


AIN’T IT 

DIFFERENT 


DON’T RUSH 


Should we just go ahead and pronounce 

2020 to be the Year of the Kitchen Disco? 

With work lives interrupted and stay-athome 

orders in place, the best thing to 

do to improve our mood was turn the 

radio (or playlist, or streaming service) up 

and get down to our favourite sounds. 

Streaming now accounts for 80 percent 

of all consumed music. As album tracks 

mix with promo singles, it’s getting a bit 

trickier to separate the two in our lists. 

Dance and drill music remain the place to 

find wonders on one track. Collaborations, 

club bangers and killer beats all come 

to the fore. Newly emerged artists shine 

brightly on the singles chart, pushing their 

musical calling card through the door. 

Amazingly, there’s just one bona-fide chart 

topper in contention for British Single with 

Mastercard in what has been a global 

industry year. Joel Corry x MNEK held No.1 for 

six weeks and was the biggest-selling 2020 

release by a British artist (Lewis Capaldi’s 

ineligible Before You Go was released earlier, 

but remained a massive-seller too). Head & 

Heart had a feel-good vibe, with an evocative 

Sliding Doors promo reminder that music 

can always help you look on the bright side. 

Dua Lipa and Harry Styles notched up two 

of Spotify’s most streamed albums, and 

hits from those albums also make the list. 

Worth noting though, that big albums are 

seeing their top tracks stream as part of a 

new whole-album offering. They’re revisited 

again with an official single release. 

One of those songs, Harry Styles’ 

Watermelon Sugar (UK No.4) is a slice of 

summery pure pop rock escapism. The 

track, from his second album, Fine Line, 

was released in May 2020, with a sexy 

promo made pre-lockdown, evoking 

much-missed hazy days at the beach. 

Dua Lipa is riding a wave of success. Her 

album, Future Nostalgia, is a polished, dance 

pop-fest treat - and fans couldn’t get enough 

of it, clearly. No wonder there was a week 

in February 2020 when not one but three of 

her singles charted - Don’t Start Now, Break 

My Heart and the nominated No.3, Physical. 

No British female has ruled the chart in this 

manner since Dame Vera Lynn nabbed three 

out the ten top spots, way back in 1952! 

When our nightlife reawakens we can’t wait 

to hear Secrets, by Regard & Raye, plus 

220 Kid & Gracey’s Don’t Need Love on 

the dance floor! Kosovan producer Regard 

plus British chanteuse Raye made No.6 in 

May with their collaboration. Meanwhile 

220 Kid (named after the number of miles 

the procurer ran in a marathon week) and 

BRITs School alumnus Grace Barker had 

a thumping good time taking Don’t Need 

Love to No.9 in April last year. As per the 

lyric, you might not talk when your sober 

- but we hope you’re ready to sing! 

Manchester rapper Aitch is 21. After being 

nominated for Best Newcomer at The 

BRITs 2020 he’s back in the British Single 

with Mastercard category, looking like the 

lad collaborators AJ Tracey and Tay Keith 

have met on the way home from school. 

The platinum-certified single Rain has 

amassed bucketfuls of views on Youtube, 

and 100 million streams, to be exact. 

Our shortlist proves again that the singles 

chart is the natural home for collaborations. 

The biggest-selling rap track here is 

Rover, by Simba ft. DTG (No.3) . Twentyone 

year-olds Simba, (a fresh-faced 

youth from Zimbabwe via Swindon) and 

DTG (social media singing sensation 

Deji from Croydon) are all about the 

money. They’ll make plenty, earning the 

rap breakthrough of lockdown with the 

marketing genius TikTok #MulaChallenge. 

Also making a name on TikTok are Young T 

& Bugsey, a Nottingham hip hop duo who 

launched a global #Don’tRushChallenge. 

The ‘get ready, quick!’ pick earned upwards 

of 800 million views in 6 months. Active 

since 2010, the pair worked with Aitch on 

Strike A Pose (2019) and pulled in another 

pal Headie One, for a Don’t Rush verse. 

Meanwhile, if anyone needs to know 

about Social Media success ask KSI, an 

original YouTube gamer, prankster and 

boxer turned rapper, now with 20 million 

followers. He teamed up with Burton-on- 

Trent producer Nathan Dawe for single 

Lighter. The tongue-in cheek rap track 

made No.3 in July 2020. It also featured 

vocals from an uncredited Ella Henderson. 

The last name on the list is Headie One, who 

appears alongside featured muckers Stormzy 

(he had to be somewhere!) and AJ Tracey 

on the bravado-heavy comparison of life 

pre-fame and on the up, Ain’t It Different. If 

drill music has royalty, then this would be it. 

50 

51

INTERNATIONAL 


The women on the International Female 

shortlist have really put the years in. 

Starting young and pushing onward, each is giving her 

all. Three featured already have a BRIT at home - Taylor 

Swift (2015), Ariana Grande (2019) and Billie Eilish (2020). 

Let’s start with still ambitious Cardi B - what a noise she 

made in 2020 with the release of the lead single off her 

forthcoming second album. The aggressively sexual duet 

with Megan Thee Stallion, WAP was “The most Googled 

song of 2020” and the first female rap collab to reach 

UK No.1. February brought a follow-up single, Up, with an 

album to succeed 2018’s Invasion of Privacy in the offing. 

She could hardly be more talked about - but can she 

build on the 12 UK Top 40 singles she’s achieved to date? 

Miley Cyrus is on form with a seventh LP Plastic 

Hearts (Oct 2020); her biggest UK hit since Bangerz 

(2013). Miley teased the collection with a No.2 single 

Midnight Sky, (and Stevie Nicks remix Edge of Midnight), 

plus, among others, a Dua Lipa feature on the No.8 

single Prisoner. Miley’s career began on Disney’s 

Hannah Montana, and since, she’s celebrated two 

UK No.1 singles, We Can’t Stop and Wrecking Ball, 

and dialled up a plethora of showbiz pals for a song. 

In 2019 these included Ariana Grande and Lana Del 

Rey who teamed up for a Charlie’s Angels theme. 

Ah, movies. Billie Eilish debuted her Bond blaster 

No Time To Die at last year’s BRITs. The No.1 was the 

biggest-ever opener for a 007 theme. Her achievement 

pile is growing, including an earned 1 billion total music 

streams and having 2019’s biggest global single, Bad 

Guy (No.9 in 2020 as well). All this since the Don’t 

Smile At Me EP (2018), breakthrough single When 

The Party’s Over, and record-breaking UK No.1 album 

When We Fall Asleep Where Do We Go?, when aged 

17 in 2019. The recent No.2 single Therefore I Am 

appears on Billie’s scheduled second album. 

Taylor Swift worked through lockdown in a reflective 

period, releasing her eighth and ninth studio albums, 

Folklore (Britain’s biggest-selling album by an international 

artist) and Evermore, which both hit No.1 in 2020. 

More folk-rock that pop gone before, they feature 

collabs with Haim, The National and Bon Iver. Taylor’s 

success is exceptional. Six number one albums in six 

years placed her in the Guinness Book of Records, 

and 150 million records sold to date places her in the 

history books. In April 21 she released a ‘directors’ 

cut’ re-recording of 2008 breakthrough Fearless, 

preceded by single Fearless (Taylor’s Version). 

The Ariana Grande phenomenon mixes Grace Kelly 

charm with unprecedented success. The Florida native 

started out in 2008. Now 27, she released five albums 

before her October 2020 sixth, Positions, followed the 

success of 2019’s Thank U, Next, becoming her fourth 

consecutive UK. No.1. Ariana has achieved seven UK 

No.1 singles. In 2020, Rain On Me, a Lady Gaga duet, 

and single Positions augmented her chart-topper tally. 

Grande is the most-streamed female artist ever, notching 

up 90 billion streams. She is also the most followed 

female solo artist on Instagram, Spotify and YouTube. 

ARIANA GRANDE 

REPUBLIC, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

BILLIE EILISH 

INTERSCOPE, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

CARDI B 


MILEY CYRUS 

RCA, SONY MUSIC 

TAYLOR SWIFT 


BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN 


BURNA BOY 


CHILDISH GAMBINO 


TAME IMPALA 

FICTION, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

THE WEEKND 

REPUBLIC/XO, UNIVERSAL MUSIC 

INTERNATIONAL 


Whoever makes any decision about the International 

Male winner, be ready to defend your choices! 

Every nominee has blown it out the park. 

Huge commercial success means Elton John favourite 

Abel Makkonen Tesfaye - a.k.a. The Weeknd - is already 

celebrating. His single Blinding Lights was the planet’s 

biggest of 2020. The Super Bowl favourite topped the 

chart in 30 countries; this included eight weeks at UK 

No.1. Blinding Lights, plus singles Heartless, Save Your 

Tears, and In Your Eyes, feature on After Hours, The 

Weeknd’s New Wave-laced fourth studio album. He 

also supplemented his UK No.1 collection with tracks 

alongside Juice Wlrd (Smile), Calvin Harris (Over Now) 

and Ariana Grande (Off The Table). The Canadian 

released a greatest hits, The Highlights in Feb 2021. 

Childish Gambino also has his vocal supporters. The musical 

alter ego of actor-writer-commentator Donald Glover 

released a fourth LP in March 2020. Glover turned cultural 

commentator with the social justice themes of 2018 zeitgeist 

single This Is America; that track and follow-up Feels Like 

Summer feature on the genre-defying psychedelic funksoul-rap 

of his leaked-then-released 3.15.20 collection. Also 

included are Time, featuring Ariana Grande and 12.38 aided 

by 21 Savage, Ink and Kadhja Bonet. Childish Gambino 

was previously nominated for International Male in 2018. 

Burna Boy - Nigerian Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu - lives 

between Lagos and London, creating an unmistakable 

fusion of afrobeats dancehall and reggae. One of Africa’s 

biggest stars, he’s grown his influence, including a BRITs 

2020 nomination. It was Burna’s fourth studio album, African 

Giant in 2019, which featured Dave, Mahalia, Jorja Smith, 

Stormzy and Ed Sheeran, that sent him global. Following 

later was 2020’s Twice as Tall, co-produced by P Diddy. 

Collaborators include Stormzy on Real Life and Coldplay’s 

Chris Martin and activist Ama Ata Aidoo on the call-toarms 

track for the African diaspora Monsters You Made. 

The final two nominees are previous winners. Australian 

Tame Impala - that’s Fremantle-born Kevin Parker - scooped 

his gong in 2016 on the back of his third album Currents 

(previously classified under International Group). Five years 

later, The Slow Rush (2020) was a euphoric adventure, but 

one that almost didn’t happen as his writer’s hidewaway 

was destroyed in California wildfires. However, tracks 

including singles Patience, Borderline and It Might Be Time 

survived and turned disaster into a triumphant disco. 

Bruce Springsteen’s incredible creative streak continues, 

matching the rate of his prolific creations to his on-stage 

work ethic. Springsteen won a sole International Male 

BRIT in 1986 but he celebrates his eleventh nomination 

in 2021; could this be his year? The Born in The USA 

superstar, who has sold over 150 million records worldwide, 

followed his 19th studio album Western Stars (2019) with an 

anticipated E Street Band reunion. October 2020’s Letter 

To You, was inspired by the love and loss of peers and 

bandmates. As well as the poignant singles Letter To You 

(the idea became an Apple Music Channel) Ghosts and I’ll 

See You In My Dreams, it features three tracks originally 

meant for his 1973 debut Greetings From Asbury Park. 

52 

53

MUSIC MAKES 

MEMORIES THAT 

LAST A LIFETIME 

AD 

THE ANTICIPATION, THE MOMENT THE LIGHTS GO DOWN, 

THE FIRST NOTES – ALL MOMENTS TO TREASURE 

Whether spending an unforgettable summer weekend watching the world’s biggest 

acts strut their stuff, escaping to a boutique festival on one of our magical islands, 

or indulging in Celtic extravaganzas dedicated to the nation’s rich musical heritage - 

when it comes to music festivals, you can’t top Scotland for variety and atmosphere. 

We can’t wait to welcome you back to enjoy Scotland’s globally renowned music 

scene when the time is right. 

For a full list of events, go to VISITSCOTLAND.COM/EVENTS 

TRNSMT Festival 2019 

BTS 

BIG HIT ENTERTAINMENT 

FONTAINES D.C. 

PARTISAN 

FOO FIGHTERS 


HAIM 


RUN THE JEWELS 

BMG MUSIC 

INTERNATIONAL 

GROUP 

The International Group category sees 

rock legends Foo Fighters stand alongside 

K-Pop ambassadors BTS with the best of 

rock, guitar pop and hip hop thrown in. 

South Korean boy band BTS are the sevenstrong 

band ruling the pop world. 

Formed in 2010, they are still breaking records in 

2020 with their fourth official collection, Map of The 

Soul 7. In addition their fifth, Be, was the year’s 4th 

biggest global seller. In August 2020, Dynamite was 

their first English language single. With 1.28 billion 

download and streaming units tallied, It hit No.1 here 

and 20 other countries besides. Other favourites on 

YouTube include their Boy With Luv duet with Halsey, 

IDOL, and DNA (their first to garner a billion views). 

Foo Fighters have been nominated for eight BRIT 

Awards to date; they’ve won five of them, including 

International Group the most recent four times. Their 

first nomination since 2018 arrives with the February 

2021 release of their tenth studio album Medicine 

at Midnight. The No.1 marked 25 years since the 

band’s formation, and outsold the next six biggestselling 

records that week combined. A fifth UK No.1 

for Dave Grohl and co., it followed One By One 

(2002), Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace (2007), 

Wasting Light (2011) and Concrete & Gold (2017). 

Whether it’s the sticky-floored, coiled-spring energy of 

the 2019 UK No.9 debut Dogrel or the crisper 2020 LP 

A Hero’s Death, the Dublin five-piece Fontaines D.C. 

are a post-punk force the be reckoned with. Several 

self-produced singles (plus two books of poetry) 

preceded their debut proper. Hurricane Laugher 

was full of reverb guitars and sparse vocals; Arctic 

Monkeys meets Shane McGowan meets narrating 

Yeats if you will. Six months later LA beckoned to make 

the No.2 sequel. It included a titular single, strangely 

less sunny, but refreshingly Celtic in its angst. 

Hip-hop duo Run the Jewels make unique music 

with a visual edge. Jaime ‘El-P’ Meline produced 

MC Michael ‘Killer Mike’ Render’s album in 2012. 

Four - amazingly, free download - albums followed, 

with Boots and Travis Barker appearing on Run 

The Jewels 2 (2014). A cat-heavy remix album, 

Meow The Jewels, followed. RTM4 (2020) is fun 

and important, with star contributions. There’s Josh 

Homme and Pharrell Williams, Danger Mouse and 

Big Boi on Chase Me, plus regularly-featured Zack 

De La Rocha from RATM. Run The Jewels music 

appears on the Venom movie soundtrack plus games 

Spider-Man Mike Morales and Cyperpunk 2077. 

Haim are, of course, a trio of multi-instrumentalist 

sisters renowned for their pop rock sound. The 

band’s third album, Women In Music Pt. III, followed 

predecessor Days are Gone (2013) to UK No.1, and 

went one better than July 2017’s Something To Tell 

You which hit No.2. The band have also created a 

soundtrack to the upcoming Netflix animated film The 

Witch Boy, and have made Taylor Swift collaboration 

tracks for both artists’ albums. This is their third 

BRIT Awards International Group nomination. They 

were previously nominated in 2014 and 2018. 

54 

55

industry makes £5.8billion each 

year for the nation, all the more 

important in these strained times. 

Similar departments already exist 

in Canada and Australia, and 

we could certainly do with the 

money. It’s estimated that up to £1 

billion extra in revenue could be 

raised over the next ten years. 

Says BRITs chair Geoff Taylor: 

“To achieve this, we propose that 

government should expand the 

successful Music Export Growth Scheme 

for indie-signed artists, collaborate 

on more international showcases 

for UK artists, and consider a music 

or creative industries exports office 

to help artists and music companies 

navigate the complexities of building 

their international business, in the 

EU, the Americas and Asia. We 

are working with government to 

take this thinking forward.” 

A joint approach seems all the more 

likely given the complex situation 

facing the music industry since Brexit. 

No deal was struck prior to exiting the 

EU, despite hopes that arrangements 

would be made to allow easy, 

visa-free travel for bands. 

As the live music sector moves to 

reopen promoters will face difficulties 

in moving personnel and equipment 

across multiple borders. This makes it 

harder for musicians and artists to take 

their live act overseas - even if streaming 

makes it more easy for audiences to 

discover their sound. It also means 

that EU artists may find it tricky to play 

here too, affecting UK live venues. 

Prime Minister Boris Johnson conceded 

that a way must be found to move 

forward, explaining: “I want to say how 

strongly I share the frustrations of the 

sector. This is a massively important part 

of the economy that contributes many of 

billions of pounds to the economy and 

jobs and to the general joy of the nation. 

It is hugely important and they are also a 

massive export industry. We must fix it.” 

WHAT NEXT 

FOR MUSIC? 

The twin challenges of Brexit and Covid-19 

have forced the music industry to discover 

new ways to thrive. 

There’s no doubt about it: 

2020 was a rollercoaster year 

for the music industry. 

The live sector reeled from its enforced 

shutdown, leaving its workers stunned 

and possibly unemployed in the process. 

But with most of the nation forced to 

stay home during lockdowns, music 

was undoubtedly needed. Indeed, in a 

world of ever-expanding choices music 

consumption was up 8.2% year-on-year. 

With more time on our hands and a 

more autonomous workspace, 28% of 

people surveyed said they’d listened 

to music more during the pandemic. 

And when our moods were low and 

our motivation lacking, favourite songs 

provided a shut-it-all-out haven at home. 

That all chalked up to an equivalent of 

155 million album sales. In numbers, that’s 

139 billion audio streams, 16 million CDs 

(down 18.5%), five million vinyl records 

(up 30.5%), and still 150,000 on cassette 

format - that’s actually up 4.4% since 2019. 

As you can see, one of the top trends 

in the last calendar year was the rise of 

vinyl. Record collections were dusted 

off and augmented and more than a 

few of us gave our DJ skills a go. Kylie 

Minogue’s Disco was the new record 

most purchased on vinyl, for bedroom 

sing-a-longs and kitchen discos. Lady 

Gaga’s Chromatica was the biggestselling 

tape, (matching a sudden 

rush for 80s muscle cars, indeed!) 

On to streaming, which remains by far the 

strongest trend in music consumption. 

Accounting these days for 80% of all 

music consumed, its ease of availability 

was the perfect way to hear new music 

with the sad enforced closure of local 

record stores (they’re open again now, so 

don’t forget to get through those doors)! 

Most of that consumption comes from 

paid-for subscriptions to Spotify, Apple, 

Amazon or Deezer, and that’s an increase 

in revenue of 15.4% or £736million. 

A Parliamentary committee is currently 

deliberating how to ensure everyone, 

especially artists, get a fair slice of 

the streaming revenues cake. 

The rise of streaming has meant that 

UK artists have more opportunity than 

ever before to export their music - 

there is no need to have, for example, 

a physical distribution deal in place. 

Indeed it is estimated that one in 

ten tracks streamed globally is by 

a UK artist, with Harry Styles, Dua 

Lipa and Lewis Capaldi among 

those flying the flag overseas. 

The BPI has made a strong case to 

government to start up a joint trade and 

government body to promote British 

interests abroad - an Export Office. 

Such a body would made sound 

financial sense given the music 

SEND A 

POSTCARD TO 

THE WORLD 

The BPI’s Music Export Growth 

Scheme awards grants to small 

and medium-sized (SME) record 

labels. Sums ranging from £5,000 

to £50,000 (representing 70% 

of the campaign total) are used 

to promote, showcase and 

market British acts overseas. 

The scheme is targeted at artists 

who have achieved some degree 

of UK success and are now to 

test the waters internationally. 

Over £4m in grants have been 

distributed since 2014, helping 

more than 280 acts. It’s been 

estimated that the country gets 

investment back twelvefold - 

meaning £36m in revenues has 

been raised by the scheme. 

MEGS took a hiatus in 2020 

but early in 2021 it returned, 

announcing that the ten 

successful artists to chosen to 

take part in the 19th round of 

funding include Beabadboobee, 

KWAYE and Working Men’s Club. 

There are three applications 

tranches per calendar year. 

Learn more at: 

bpi.co.uk/news-analysis/musicexport-growth-scheme/ 

Opposite page: Dua Lipa - The BRIT Awards 2019 

Harry Styles - The BRIT Awards 2020 


56 57

Mabel. Below: Dave, opposite: Stormzy 


THE GOOD OLD DAYS 

Back then, we’d no idea The BRIT Awards 

2020 was the last party we’d go to for a 

very long time… 

Helen Lamont 

Ah, those were the days my friend. 

We thought they’d never end. 

But less than four weeks after 

the 40th BRIT Awards Ceremony, 

the venue was shuttered and our 

social lives mothballed. And its 

stayed that way for, well, most 

of the fifteen months since. 

The BRITs last year was a stormer. The 

audience - 20,000 souls gathered in 

close proximity to share the same air 

as our showbiz elite - made a mountain 

of memories - breathless excitement, 

a bit of singing, bit of dancing, hugs, 

cuddles and kisses goodnight. 

How things have changed! 

But not forever. 

The BRITs will be back in front of its 

full and fabulous audience as soon 

as science allows. But for now, let’s 

remember our 2020 show… stopper. 

From the era-defining musical highlights 

to some really funny moments we 

enjoyed it all, from Bring Me The Horizon 

dressing up as the Spice Girls to host 

Jack Whitehall mistaking Harry Styles’ 

sister for his date. It was an amazing 

night. Albeit one where a certain 

someone would be “popping up every 

now and then to annoy you like Chris 

Martin at Glastonbury,” Jack warned. 

“Don’t Call Me Up,” teased the perfect 

pop beat of Mabel, all pastel utility pants 

and unfeasibly big smile. She sizzled 

her way round a pink pocket-sized 

call centre where all of the tasks were 

completed by hunks in cravats. Amid 

the whirl of staccato beats and attitude, 

she had a savvy eye twinkle: ‘and that, 

my friends, is show opening style!’ 

Picking up the gong for British Female 

Solo Artist later, Mabel thanked her 

parents especially pop star mum 

Neneh Cherry, herself celebrating a 

special night. The 25 year-old said, 

“Its exactly 30 years ago today since 

[my mum] took home two of these, 

and performed on this stage”. 

Mabel with her telephone song might 

have been playing by ear but it seemed 

like everyone - everyone! - else was 

playing piano. Harry Styles, in fact, 

brought along a pair of the grand babies 

for the evening… then went all of a 

Truman Capote in his white Gucci boiler 

suit for the sultry tale of human frailty, 

Falling. It’s true, many a great band 

have chucked a piano in a swimming 

pool, signifying party excess. Not many 

have started the show with an empty 

pool then sprung a gasket, the place 

was awash! We’ll have to get a plumber 

in, fella. You’re not dressed for labour 

in that vision in lace and pearls! 

Next act up was Lizzo. And when we 

say up, we mean up. Up, very high, 

precariously perched on top of a 

flight of stage stairs and cocooned in 

swathes of Grecian gauze in the style 

of a blood red… uh maybe shouldn’t 

mention the word… Madonna? 

Our favourite flautist is apparently 

fleeter of foot than our other lady, 

however, and soon she’d hopped 

down and popped out of her covering 

exposing what appeared to be a 

brown and probably very expensive 

leather basketweave basque. Soon 

fans jumped up to enjoy her medley, 

and although the crowd-pleasing move 

‘touch every outstretched hand in the 

audience’ might scream ‘antibacterial 

hand gel!’ in 2021, let me tell you 

even the dear seats were dancing 

round the tables, and couldn’t get 

enough of those jiggles or that Juice. 

Whatever Lizzo has got it had quite 

an affect on Jack Whitehall, and while 

Lizzo and Harry Styles camped it up 

for the cameras, Jack proclaimed 

his jealousy (unsure if that was 

over her faux-mance or the fact 

she could down straight tequila). 

Apart from International Male Solo Artist 

winner Tyler The Creator, who used his 

winner’s speech to have dig at former 

PM Theresa May: “Special shout out - I 

know she’s at home pissed off” - the 

most political of moments came from 

Dave, and (bringing what could be 

this year’s entire allowed audience 

number up on stage), Stormzy. 

British Male Solo Artist Stormzy stayed 

true to his rep for sharing his glory as 

he welcomed, again, a host of friends 

into the spotlight mostly to cheer, 

twerk and chill but also to collaborate, 

in Tiana Major9 and Burna Boy. 

Since The BRITs encouraged artists 

to share more of their musical vision, 

Stormzy’s proven himself to be 

egalitarian, fierce, proud, and a fan 

of questionable health and safety 

practices, burning bits, and a downpour. 

That Stormzy’s crew were 

overwhelmingly black, was, of course, 

a clear statement. He beamed the lyric 

to ‘Black is Beautiful’ up for all to see. 

Dave, announced as Mastercard British 

Album winner for Psychodrama, also 

wanted to talk about his experience 

as a black man in a much-talked-about 

moment. His rendition of single Black 

commenced with low piano notes 

over the recognisable rap before the 

whole thing exploded with energy, with 

breakneck speed verses which tossed 

freshly-penned burrs at the society he 

sees as failing his community’s needs. 

Careering from topics of slavery to 

reparations to racism, Grenfell, and even 

Kate and Megan, he also took a swipe 

at the penal system; it was a theme 

he’d mention at speech time as well. 

There were certainly points where 

we needed to take a break and the 

pace slowed right down. Rising Star 

winner Celeste impressed all under 

a simple spotlight on the satellite 

stage. Her intimate performance of 

Strange was as classy as they come; 

she was smokey eyed and smokey 

voiced, elegant in evening gloves 

and matching gown. Her wonderful, 

sparse torch song soared out into a 

room transformed, speakeasy style. 

International Female Solo Artist winner 

Billie Eillish was performing alongside 

her co-creator brother FINNEAS, Johnny 

Marr and Hans Zimmer (plus friends). 

The unlikely collaborators unveiled the 

Bond theme No Time To Die on The 

BRITs stage… what a moment! From the 

simplest of early bars tiptoeing through 

the O2 air, to the strings in the orchestral 

crescendo crashing out like a storm, 

her unmistakable vocal stayed heartfelt 

throughout (and she got all emotional 

58 

59

AD 

SINGLE PAGE 

210MM X 297.5 

3MM BLEED 

15MM GUTTER 

during her acceptance speech and 

could hardly get the words out). 

Now, you’ve gotta love best-selling artist 

of 2019 and biggest BRITs winner of 

2020 Lewis Capaldi - and if you don’t 

we’ll have words later. Okay, it’s true that 

Scotland’s Beyonce could use a few 

pointers on in-song annunciation, but it 

was no barrier to the bereft audience 

who upon hearing the outrageously sad, 

plaintive cry of “o-le-ma-gar-doo, an-denyou-pull-dera” 

found them prostrating 

themselves with tearful emotion (which 

is hard when concurrently holding a 

lighter aloft). The Bathgate superstar 

earned two awards. First he collected 

Best New Artist from Clara Amfo and 

mucker Niall Horan (that hug!), and 

then he bemused Song of The Year 

presenter Tom Jones by thanking his 

inspirational gran for dying and collecting 

his gong while proudly ‘representing 

his culture’, i.e. holding a bottle of fine 

Buckfast Triangle tonic in hand. 

Ronnie Wood, Sally Humphreys, Kenney Jones. 

Rod Stewart and Penny Lancaster (L to R). 

Below: Harry Styles & Lizzo. Bottom: Melanie C 

with Bring Me The Horizon. 

SOMETHIN’ ELSE, GLOBAL DIGITAL 

AGENCY FOR THE BRITs 


And to round the night off was the 

legendary Rod Stewart, who dedicated 

a cheeky but goosebump-inducing 

version of I Don’t Want To Talk About 

It to Jack Whitehall’s mum Hilary (the 

wag!) before explaining “The BRITs is 

forty years old… the Faces are fifty years 

old!” Bringing out former bandmates 

Kenney Jones and everyone’s favourite 

perennial BRITs ligger Ronnie Wood to 

rock through Stay With Me alongside 

the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. 

Now, which of 2020’s best moments 

will we remember this fondly half 

a century down the road? 

60 61

“THERE IS NO 

EDUCATION 

LIKE ADVERSITY” 

– BENJAMIN DISRAELI 

How creative solutions brought 

the buzz back to The BRIT School 

Helen Lamont 

Like every other educational 

establishment in the country, the 

world-famous BRIT School shut up 

shop in March 2020 - or did it? 

True, the majority of the Selhurst 

South London school’s students 

were told to stay at home and await 

further instruction as the first wave 

of Covid-19 swept through. 

But for those in need, its corridors and 

classrooms remained open. And for 

the rest of its roll, an education like 

no other before it became the goal. 

BRIT is a free-to-attend school founded 

in 1991 through a unique partnership 

between The BRIT Trust and the 

Department of Education. The learning 

that happens there consists of nine 

creative industries strands plus the full 

gamut of academic education. Those 

strands - including some of the most 

collaborative, most physical, most 

up-close and hands-on work you can 

imagine - had to stop without warning. 

But BRIT is an innovator. And, says 

the BRIT School’s longstanding Head 

Teacher Stuart Worden, “Within 24 

hours of the first lockdown, we were 

doing face-to-face lessons on Zoom”. 

“We’ve never been ‘chalk and talk’ as a 

school. For example, we already do an 

Interactive Digital Design course for the 

heroes of the digital world, the games 

designers and animators of the future. 

“And through collaborations, the whole 

school is very familiar with digital 

integration and learning, and all the 

creativity that comes with that. 

“The kids are amazing, much faster 

than adults with our digital options. 

They exist on the screen, so it was 

just… ‘ah, we do it like this now”’. 

There were, of course, challenges: 

“I mean, yes, it took a while to do 

synchronised singing, or work 

in the kitchen, or teach acting at 

the highest level, but we found 

solutions; we got there quickly.” 

With unexpected hurdles came 

unexpected costs and the school 

was approached by The BRIT Trust 

very early in the pandemic to discuss 

how help could be offered. 

Says Stuart, “What The BRIT Trust 

has done for us this year has been 

absolutely off the hook. They 

have been extraordinary”. 

Urgent funds were required for 

things no school thinks it’ll need. 

“There were covid-safe booths to 

sing in, built by the school’s set 

designers, laptops, plus expensive 

Zoom licenses. Even a huge wellventilated 

tent which sprung up to 

accommodate choral practice. 

“We turned our theatre into a TV studio, 

and The BRIT Trust funded cameras and 

a boom microphone, used during the 

school’s live-streamed Motown event.” 

For Stuart, there was no time to waste 

in this critical period of childhood 

development. “The 14-18 year 

old brain is thrilling. Extraordinary 

things happen - even better when 

incorporating a work angle”. 

“We’re not talking about making radio 

- we’re making radio. We’re not talking 

about game design - we’re making 

games you can play. In lockdown, 

kids weren’t doing music in their 

bedrooms. They were doing a gig, 

being streamed around the world in an 

industry standard way. They see quality. 

“They have a work ethic and they grow 

into the industry and into practical 

applications of their creativity.” 

This all happened a time when 

other benefactors were reluctantly 

withdrawing pledges made prepandemic. 

It was a blow, especially 

after fundraising campaigns in the run 

up to the schools 30th anniversary in 

2021. Suddenly, “People were saying, 

we’d help, but we’ve had to rethink it. 

And so you cut your cloth to suit”. 

One of the delights of the BRIT 

School community is the spirit of ‘all 

hands on deck’, and the Headteacher 

is grateful to industry friends and 

alumni who got involved. 

“Some, like Andrew Lloyd Webber, 

continue to do so much to support 

us. And the wonderful Lisa Dickens 

persuaded so may to help.” 

“Its been inspirational to see over 

a hundred professionals join for 

masterclasses or workshops - Cush 

Jumbo, Tom Holland, Dan Gillespie 

Sells, Katie Melua, Laura Dockerill, 

Jovian Wade - oh wow, fourteen year 

olds want to be Jovian Wade! - as 

well as industry figures including Nick 

Raphael and Jason Isley and Kwame 

Kwaten. For design, you can’t get better 

than Es Devlin herself. Speaking with 

people at the top of their profession, 

is an invaluable student experience, 

so thank you everyone, very much.” 

In the longer term new ways 

of working may bring extra 

opportunities for community partners 

as well as enrolled students. 

Says Stuart, “For years we’ve run 

classes for younger children, called 

BRIT Kids. These days, eight hundred 

children, some overseas, join online on 

Saturdays. They’ve proven so successful 

it’s likely they’ll continue somehow”. 

“It was also important to find ways to 

work with our community - we have 

people with learning difficulties, local 

hospices, people with Alzheimer’s 

for whom access to music is vital. 

We had to work with them over this 

period. And we found a way”. 

“Now our students can say they’ve 

actively run community courses. I 

always remember former student Kate 

Nash saying, ‘The best thing about 

BRIT is that you learn how to do it 

yourself’. Because our kids don’t wait 

around waiting for things to happen. 

They make them happen. That has 

never been more true than now.” 

And what of the school’s future, when 

the pandemic has passed, as it will…? 

“There will be a buzz, because the school 

has always had a buzz. It is exciting.” 

“We’ll have to get used to not 

hugging, which will be hard, because 

we are a hugging school. 

“Our famous drag show will take 

place this summer, somehow, at an 

outdoor venue. We’ll do outdoor 

Shakespeare. And we’re aiming 

for a music festival again. 

“You know, we’ve learnt that sometimes 

in austerity amazing art happens. 

Our kids have positivity. They want 

to be the ones making that art. 

“There has been a colossal bump, 

and there are bumps ahead of us. 

But the human spirit has realised 

how much it needs creativity. We 

need music, TV, film, theatre, and 

games more than ever before.“ 

62 

63

THANKS AGAIN… 

Each year, The BRIT Awards donates 

prized show passes to Tickets 

For Troops, ensuring members 

of the serving military as wells as 

those injured in action since 2001 

receive a small but heartfelt thank 

you for their service to the nation. 

We donate loads of charity prizes 

each year, to War Child, Stand 

Up To Cancer and Text Santa, for 

example. This year we’ve invited 

key workers from many sectors as a 

special thank you. Welcome to our 

care home and NHS staff, delivery 

drivers, retail staff, postal workers 

and many more, to enjoy the show. 

Thank you to them and to 

everyone for all their efforts 

during this difficult time. 

TRUST IN US 

When we find ourselves in times of crisis, 

we find we need our friends the most. 

The entertainment industries 

surely include some of the most 

generous sorts on the planet. But 

the Covid-19 Pandemic has hit the 

creative sectors more than most. 

Venues have closed and events have 

been cancelled. But the show must go 

on! And kickstarting a better year ahead 

is the 2021 BRIT Awards. After all, The 

BRITs - in its all-singing, all-dancing glory 

- is more than a musical celebration. The 

BRIT Awards is a vital, much-needed 

fundraiser, the flagship event of packed 

music biz charity calendar managed 

by the BRIT Trust (itself the charitable 

arm of the trade body, the BPI). Despite 

an impressive track record of donating 

£27 million since its inception, the 

Trust has had its work cut out this year, 

with conditions more challenging than 

in any time since its 1989 formation. 

And just as donations get harder to 

come by, the Trust’s partners have 

needed more help that even before. 

Tony Wadsworth, who takes over from 

John Craig as Trust chairperson after 

16 years as a trustee, explains, “This 

year brings its particular challenges”. 

“The Trust will be there to meet these 

challenges. And it will do so by staying 

true to its founding principles of 

empowering people of all backgrounds 

through music and the creative arts 

and by supporting education and 

Stuart Worden (Principal of The BRIT School), 

Agnes Woolrich, Vice President, Marketing & 

Communications, Mastercard UK&I, Griff (BRITs 

Rising Star 2021) Geoff Taylor (BPI & BRIT Awards 

CEO) and Mia Runham. Music Year 13 and founding 

member of The BRIT School AACS (Afro Asian 

Caribbean Society). JM Enternational 

wellbeing charities that inspire them 

to realise their full potential”. 

“This changed landscape means 

there is now an opportunity to reset 

the ways we look to achieve our 

goals so these are closely aligned 

with the needs of our industry and the 

communities we are here to serve.” 

“Additionally, a priority of the Trust will 

be to also spread the word to all those 

who work in our industry, particularly the 

next generation coming through, that 

this is their charity and is something to 

be proud of and to get involved with. So 

that, unlike my younger self, more of us 

will be aware that The BRITs is so much 

more than just a great awards show.” 

The BRIT Trust is a registered charity (Charity No. 1000413) 

MENTAL HEALTH CHARITIES 

The BRIT Trust has rightly increased 

its focus on work with mental health 

charities in recent years, and quickly 

recognised that the Covid-19 pandemic 

would increase demand for mental 

health services of all kinds. 

In 2020 the Trust donated £30,000 

to established partner Music Support, 

which works to improve access to 

mental health help within the creative 

industries. Now, as well providing 

telephone helplines, the charity’s 

innovative NHS-approved Mental Health 

app Thrive is rolling out to 10,000 users. 

ELAM, Key4Life, MIND and Music for 

Mental Health were also among sector 

charities which received support. 

NORDOFF ROBBINS 

Known around the world, Nordoff 

Robbins is a universally-respected 

provider of Music Therapy training 

and services. Remarkably, the charity 

receives no public funding despite 

working at the heart of provision for 

the NHS, Education, and Social Care. 

Services for society’s most vulnerable 

groups have had to adapt to new 

ways of working during the Covid-19 

pandemic. The need to transform 

the lives of those living with brain 

injury, dementia, autism, stroke, 

as well as a myriad of learning 

difficulties, through music is now 

greater than ever. But for months on 

end, in-person outreach plus fifteen 

partner centres have had to close. 

In their place, for now, have sprung 

forth accessible online music lessons 

and a warm and wonderful choir. 

There are also targeted education 

resources, groups for adults who can 

join with a carer, and for parents and 

toddlers. Internationally-renowned 

practitioner training, including the 

Master of Music Therapy (Nordoff 

Robbins): Music Heath, Society 

continues and adapts to these times. 

As centres reopen stringent measures 

must ensure vulnerable users are 

protected. If you can contribute, please 

support this invaluable work. Nordoff 

Robbins relies entirely on donations from 

The BRIT Trust and individual kind souls. 

BRIT SCHOOL 

The BRIT School, a free-to-attend state 

school nurturing the next generation 

of entertainment industry talent, 

was founded in 1991 in a unique 

partnership between the BRIT Trust 

and the Department of Education. It has 

provided an unparalleled education 

to its students ever since, educating 

in excess of ten thousand 14-19 yearolds 

to date. The year 2020 saw the 

School expand its online presence 

with a plethora of streamed events, 

and this outreach led to BRIT’s 

biggest ever recruitment year to date. 

Applications were received across 

nine vocational ‘strand’ specialisms. 

That’s understandable - with a 30- 

year track record, the impact of 

BRIT School alumni in UK Arts, Arts 

Technology and Performances 

spheres is hard to overstate. 

The BRIT School has received around 

£13.4m in funding from The BRIT Trust 

to date and it is especially grateful for 

donations received in this challenging 

time. Fundraising, as always, continues. 

Previous BRIT Trust grant 

recipients include the 

following organisations: 

Access To Music, Arts & Kids/London, 

Sinfonietta, Avenues Youth Project, Bigga 

Fish, Black Arts Alliance, Blackheath 

Halls, Blantyre Music Project, Glasgow, 

British Performing Arts, Medicine Trust, 

Canford Summer School, Charterhouse 

in Southwark, Chicken Shed, Community 

Music, Commission for Racial Equality, 

Community Music East, Dame Vera 

Lynn Trust, Drugscope, ELAM, 

Global Rock Challenge, Heart’n’Soul, 

Heathfield Community College, 

Irene Taylor Trust (Music in Prisons), 

Key4Life, Lenton Community Association, 

LIPA, Making Music, Mencap, Midi Music 

Company, Music & Sound Experience, 

Wales, Music and the Deaf, Musical 

Dots, Musicians’ Benevolent Fund, 

Musicians In Focus, Musicians Union, 

National Foundation for Youth Music, 

National Music Day, Pimlico School, 

Portishead Youth, Princes’ Trust, Raphael 

Walters, Release, Rock School, Roundhouse 

Trust, Royal Commonwealth Society, 

Save The Children, St David’s Hall 

Cardiff, St Luke’s School, Terrence 

Higgins Trust, Tim Macbeth Two 

Moors Festival, Tomorrow’s Warriors, 

Urban Development, West Lothian 

College, Young Persons Concert 

Foundation, Youth Music Theatre UK 

At The BRIT Awards, we take our 

responsibility to living and working in 

a sustainable fashion very seriously. 

Working alongside Julie’s Bicycle, 

we constantly re-evaluate our 

practices, striving to put the planet’s 

needs at the heart of all we do. 

64 65

BRING THE BEAT BACK 

The hard-hit night-time economy struggles to 

survive amid prolonged lockdowns. 

Keane - Brixton Academy 

JM Enternational, Helen Lamont 

We have all endured hardship 

during the Covid-19 pandemic. The 

entertainment sphere has suffered 

more than most. Music venues were 

forced to lock their doors indefinitely 

at the start of the first UK lockdown on 

March 23, 2020. Still not able to fully 

open, the impact has been huge. 

It’s hard to put into words how 

much we miss live music. 

We miss the energy and the excitement 

in large venues and small, the feeling of 

unity, and shared experience. We miss 

the mosh pits, the queues at the bar, the 

smell of spilt beer, and bouncing floors 

at our feet. We miss the anticipation of 

the last encore, knowing the chorus and 

the meeting of minds with similar folks. 

Being part of live music is a sweaty, 

steamy, shared experience like no other. 

Whether it’s a euphoric festival 

in a soggy field or a fiddlers’ jam 

in a trad pub snug, it has been 

heartbreaking to see venues shuttered 

and tour after tour postponed. 

Spare a thought then, for our legendary, 

large and small, live music venues. 

Spare a thought for venues themselves 

and workers within. The owners, 

the barmen, the toilet attendants. 

Spare a thought for the artists (most 

musicians earn just a few pounds in 

weekly rap battles, tribute nights and 

ceilidh sessions), it’s not just the big 

names. Spare a thought for the drivers, 

the stagehands, the lighting and 

sound techs, the T-shirt stall fellas. 

Sure, we are all in this together. 

But our live music sector has 

been in it more than most. 

The BRIT Awards is a test event for 

the return of live music venues. One 

way or another, it is vital that music 

returns - for our souls, and to show 

support for the sector that’s been part 

of the brightest spots in our lives. 

Workers in the entertainment industry 

are often self-employed people 

who have, since March 2020, been 

struggling immensely. They lost not 

just a large chunk of income, but 

they’ve been prised from their social 

and work networks, the things we 

simply must have to keep hearts 

warm and heads sane. Or, they’re 

small business owners no longer 

allowed to just keep ticking over, 

who suddenly can’t make thier next 

payment of a loan, or business rates. 

Early in the pandemic it soon 

became clear that 556 grassroots 

music venues from 670 total were 

struggling, and pending bills plus 

no income meant many could 

vanish without rapid intervention. 

The Music Venues Trust set up the 

Music Venues Alliance, and their 

emergency response service provided 

advice and information to venues 

dealing with the threat of immediate 

closure. A Grassroots Music 

Venues Crisis Fund was launched, 

#saveourvenues, along with a traffic 

light scheme showing businesses 

teetering most on the brink. 

In July, 1,500 artists including Dua 

Lipa, Liam Gallagher and Sir Paul 

McCartney signed an open letter 

calling for the government to 

provide support for live music. 

They obliged with the July 2020 

announcement that the Government 

would provide a £1.57 billion support 

package for the arts and culture 

industries. It included £270m in 

loans and £880m in grants for 

music venues, theatres, museums, 

art galleries and heritage sites. 

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden 

agreed our clubs and venues 

were where “nearly all of our 

globally successful music stars 

started out,” and he intended to 

“make sure those organisations 

weather the Covid storm”. 

But there’s still a shortfall. 

By the end of 2020 MVT fundraising 

efforts had raised £3,872,512, 

a sum ploughed straight into 

keeping venues afloat until the can 

fully reopen and revive trade. 

The picture is looking somewhat 

brighter but there is still work 

to be done. Venues including 

Brixton’s The Windmill, The Venue 

in Derby and Alchemy Croydon 

are among twenty or more venues 

living right now with a day-to-day 

threat of permanent closure. 

Trading conditions are going to 

be tough for a long time and the 

sector will not be out of the woods 

even when allowed to re-open. 

Mass participation and cultural 

venues look likely to be among the 

last parts of society to normalise 

after lockdown. Capacities - and 

therefore profits - may be cut 

indefinitely, and of course consumer 

confidence is down… no-one can 

guarantee queues at the door. 

Let us not assume we are at 

the end of this struggle. 

Thats why, among The BRITs’ glitz 

and the glitter, we do NOT forget 

those who, despite great personal 

hardship, have done whatever it 

takes, when asked by the nation. 

But we are all looking forward to 

the day we can all get together, 

in venues large and small around 

the country. And they will throw 

open their doors in welcome. 

I hear there’s a great band 

on, so get the beers in. 

Let’s make it a date. 

66 

67

good luck 

to the 

nominees! 

68 

At Pizza Hut Delivery, we’ve been delivering our 

pizzas to your home for 35 years. From our £5 

Favourites Menu to our mouth-watering sides 

and famous Stuffed Crust, we have something 

for music lovers everywhere. 

As Official Home Pizza Partner to The BRIT 

Awards 2021 with Mastercard, we believe a 

slice of great music is best served with a slice 

AD 

of perfectly tasty pizza, which is why we always 

deliver your favourite pizza with a smile. 

Now that’s delivering! 

OFFICIAL PARTNER 

NEGLA ABDELA • 

NEMAT ABDELA • 

YEMI ABIADE • DIPAL 

ACHARYA ACHYRA • 

LOUISE ADAMS • SAM ADEBAYO • 

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MICHAEL ADEX • SAMUEL ADMOSU • 

LISA AFFENZELLER • FRED AGAIN • 

ADDINGTON AGBEPA • IRENE AGBONTAEN • 

JESSICA AGOMBAR • DESMOND AGYEKUMHENE • 

AKUA AGYEMFRA • JAMIE AHYE • GLYN AIKINS • 

JOHN AIZLEWOOD • SAM AJILORE • EMRE AKCA • ADE AKIN- 

DEKO • GEORGE AKINS • JENNIFER AKOTO • PAULA AKPAN • 

ARIA ALAGHA • ROUSHAN ALAM • KEMI ALEMORU • DENISE ALLAN • 

DEREK ALLEN • LUCY ALLEN • AYESHA ALLEN • REBECCA ALLEN • 

DUNCAN ALLEN • ANNIKA ALLEN ALLEN • KENNY ALLSTAR • KELLY ALLWOOD • 

EMMALOUISE AMANSHIA • CASEY AMBER • CHLOE AMEH • WILL AMERY • KEITH AMES • 

CLARA AMFO • SALMAN AMIN • IMAN AMRANI • ALEX ANDERSON • GARETH ANDREWS • 

SAMMY ANDREWS • LORETTA ANDREWS • KAMARAE ANGUS • BOB ANGUS • HELENA ANTONIADES • 

NIKOS ANTONIOU • THEA ANTONIOU • SUZI APLIN • GINELLE APPAU • HOLLY APPLETON • 

IAIN ARCHER • STEPHEN ARCHIBALD • SALLY ARDIS • SUE ARMSTRONG • DENNIS ARNOLD • 

VICTOR AROLDOSS • MANISH ARORA • LAURA AROWOLO • NIHAL ARTHANAYAKE • JANE ARTHY • 

DAVID ASANTE • DANIEL ASANTE • CORBYN ASBURY • HARI ASHURST-VENN • BRAD ASPESS • 

RUBY ATKIN • NICK ATKINSON • LOVISA ATTEBRANT • VIBICA AULD • TAMSIN AUSTIN • 

CHRIS AUSTIN • LUCIE AVERY • ALANNA AYLEN • PHILIPPA AYLOTT • BILLY B • RACHEL BABBAGE • 

LUCY BACON • ALMASS BADAT • JONATHAN BADYAL • MICHAEL BAGGS • HAMISH BAILEY • 

TIM BAILEY • CLARE BAKER • ALEX BAKER • AARON BAKER • VANESSA BAKEWELL • GARY BALES • 

LUCY BALL • ELIAS BALLY • MICHAEL BANBROOK • LUCY BANNATYNE • KATIE BAPTIE • 

MARIA BARHAM • ADAM BARKER • MILLIE BARKER • SIMON BARNABAS • LIZ BARNES • 

STEVE BARNES • TOM BARNES (AKA TMS) • ANNETTE BARRETT • DAVID BARROW • JO BARTLETT • 

PHILIP BARTON • JAMES BASS • EKAETE BASSEY • ELEANOR BATE • COLIN BATSA • KIM BAYLEY • 

ALICE BEAL • ALEX BEAN • SARAH BEAUMONT • BEN BEAUMONT-THOMAS • VICTORIA BECKS • 

RACHAEL BEE • JANE BEESE • EAMU BEGUM • SYBIL BELL • SHIARRA BELL • STUART BELL • 

JEFF BELL • CHRISTOPHER BELLAM • BEN • CANNELLE BENCHERQI • JESSICA BENDIEN • 

JIM BENNER • ALEXANDER BENNETT • AMI BENNETT • XAVIER BENOIT • RACHEL BENTLEY • 

JOHN BERGIN • JESSE BERNARD • ROZEENA BERNARD • LUKE BERRY • CARINA BERTHET • 

ELLIE BEST • DANNY BETESH • KELLY BETTS • JACK BEVAN • ALICE BEVERTON-PALMER • 

ZAHRA BHALUANI • HITEN BHARADIA • SERENA BHARDWAJ • SIMI BHULLAR • DAN BIDDLE • 

TOM BILLINGTON • JAGUAR BINGHAM • SANDEEP BINNING • SOPHIE BIRD • RAYMOND BLACK • 

LUCY BLAIR • JIMMY BLAKE • DELEON BLAKE • RIC BLAXILL • RIKI BLEAU • LOUIS BLOOM • 

WILL BLOOMFIELD • EDD BLOWER • ALEX BOATENG • ALEC BOATENG • AARON BOGUCKI • 

RACHEL BOLLAND • ALEXANDER BONE • GARY BONES • MICHAEL BONNER • KIRSTY BOOTH • 

AL BOOTH • FRANCIS BOOTH • JOEL BORQUAYE • JAMES BORRER • HOLLIE BOSTON • 

HEIDI BOSTON-THOMPSON • SUMIT BOTHRA • LUNICK BOURGESS • PAUL BOURNE • 

THE 

VOTING 

ACADEMY 


PHIL BOWDERY • LAURA BOWER • ANDREW BOWLES • EDITH BOWMAN • HELEN BOWNASS • 

BURNA BOY • SIMON BOYLE • LEYTON BRACEGIRDLE • JADE BRADSHAW • CIARA BRADY • 

CHRISTIAN BRAGG • STEVEN BRAINES • HOLLY BRANSON • LAUREN BRENNAN • ALBERT BRETT • 

WOZZY BREWSTER, OBE FRSA • PAUL BRIDGEWATER • SAM BRIGGS • JOE BRINE • JO BROCK • 

JOHNNY BROCKLEHURST • RACHEL BROMFIELD • SHARON BROOKS • CHLOE BROOKS • 

THE VOTING 

REGISTER 

Industry success in music 

isn’t just measured in chart 

placements and video views. 

SARAH BROOKSBANK • LAURA BROSNAN • SHANNON BROWN • SARAH BROWN • DAISY BROWN • 

BOBBY BROWN • MICHAELA BROWNE • JAMES BROWNLOW • ROBERT BRUCE • GRAHAM BRYCE • 

GRANT BRYDON • LISA BUCHAN • ROSS BUCHANAN • AARON BUCKINGHAM • STEPHEN BUDD • 

LIZA BUDDIE • JENNIFER BULCRAIG • JESSIE BULL • JUSTIN BULLEY • CHARLIE BULLOCK • 

PAUL BURGER • NICK BURGESS • MEGAN BURNS • BEN BURRELL • FLEUR BUTLER • 

CLARE BYRNE • OLIVIA BYRNE • NIAMH BYRNE • JAMES CABOOTER • ANNA CAFOLLA • 

MELANIE CAGER • RYAN CAHILL • CHARLOTTE CALEB • OLIVER CAMERON • JODIE CAMMIDGE • 

STUART CAMP • JOEL CAMPBELL • RACHEL CAMPBELL • KAI CANNON • DAN CAPLEN • 

NICKY CARDER • ADAM CARDEW • MATT CAREY • KIM CARR • PAT CARR • MALAIKA CARR 

HAJI • SHANNON CARRAGHER • CHARLIE CARRINGTON • ANDRE CARROLL • JENNY CARROLL • 

ED CARRUTHERS • SARAH CARSON • DANIEL P. CARTER • JASON CARTER • MILLIE CARTER • 

ADRIAN CARTER • EMILY CARTER • CANDICE CARTY WILLIAMS • GENNARO CASTALDO • 

RICH CASTILLO • ABBY CATCHPOWLE • ALLAN CATLIN • JOHN CATTINI • CLIVE CAWLEY • 

GABRIELLE CAWTHORNE • PAUL CENTELLAS • HERMEET CHADHA • CHRIS CHADWICK • 

HANNAH CHADWICK • RENATA CHAGRIN • CHALKY • DANIEL CHALMERS • JIM CHANCELLOR • 

ANDY CHANDLER • DOTTY CHARLES • MORGAN CHARLTON • JO CHARRINGTON • 

SHENIECE CHARWAY • FUZZ CHAUDHREY • NIKITA CHAUHAN • MISS S K CHEEMA • 

BETH CHERRY • LISA CHEUNG • OLIVIA CHEW • JEAN-PATRICK CHEYLAN • JANNAT CHOUDHURY • 

ANNIE CHRISTENSEN • DAMIAN CHRISTIAN • KEVIN CHRISTIAN-BLAIR • PHIL CHRISTIE • 

BRYN CHRISTOPHER • CHE CHUMBER • LAUREN CHURCHMAN • DUMITRU DARIUS CIUPERCA • 

SHIKAYLA CLACKEN-LEWIN • CAITLIN CLANCY • MICHAEL CLAPHAM • NATHAN CLARE • 

JODIE CLARK • DAN CLARK • MEI CLARK • NATHAN CLARK • JOE CLARK • FIONA CLARK • 

LORNA CLARKE • HAYLEY CLARKE • RICHARD CLARKE • JERMAYNE CLAYTON • AMY CLEAR • 

JANE CLEMETSON • PATRICK CLIFTON • ELISE COBAIN • TED COCKLE • JOSH COHEN • 

LYOR COHEN • ANNABELLA COLDRICK • RAFFAELLA COLEMAN • MARK COLLEN • RUTH COLLETT • 

Many of our esteemed colleagues receive 

their very own recognition from The BRITs 

- an invite to take a seat on The BRIT 

Awards Voting Academy. 

Now 1,500 members-strong and 

spanning all of the specialisations within 

the music industry, acceptance of an 

Academy role comes with a solemn 

responsibility - to choose wisely. 

That’s because casting a BRIT Awards 

vote is a privilege and a challenge 

afforded to people placed in the beating 

heart of the UK music scene. 

We’ve asked a strong cross section 

of workers - musicians, artists, DJs 

and journalists, plus managers and 

retailers, and producers and promoters 

(and plenty of others) to take on the 

challenge of choosing who’ll triumph. 

In 2021, The Rising Star Award is 

chosen by a separate industry panel 

leaving nail-biting decisions on the 

remaining nine awards to be taken. 

The BRITs strives to ensure a range diverse 

voices are heard and so the BRITs actively 

works to reflect this on the voting panel. 

Thank you to everyone who zoomed 

through the voting papers during lockdown, 

picking their personal winners. Now the 

votes are tallied, so the results are clear. 

And thanks to you guys, our winners 

are living the dream. 

HATTIE COLLINS • HANNAH COLSON • NEIL COMBER • TOM CONNAUGHTON • PHILIP CONNOLLY • 

MARC CONNOR • ANNA CONRAD • LIAM CONROY • CHRIS COOKE • JAMES COOKE • 

SOPHIE COOKE • JAX COOMBES • LEONIE COOPER • BEN COOPER • ROBERT COPSEY • 

LEWIS CORNER • HOWARD CORNER • JOHN CORNWELL • RAYE COSBERT • FRANCESCA COSTA • 

MARIA COSTA • CLAIRE COSTER • SIMON COSYNS • TOM COTTON • DAN COX • SARA COX • JAY COX • 

KATHERINE CRABTREE • MICHAEL CRAGG • PAUL CRAIG • CAMERON CRAIG • ALEX CRITCHLEY • 

PAUL CROCKFORD • JOY CROOKES • GEMMA CROPPER • ADELE CROSS • MAGGIE CROWE • ALEXA CRUICKSHANK • 

ROB CRUTCHLEY • CAROLINE CULLEN • LISA CULLINGTON • JAMES CURRAN • LOUISE CYNBERG • IMAN D-FULLER • 

SHAURAV D’SILVA • AUSTIN DABOH • KAREN DAGG • NADIA DAHABIYEH • IKRAN DAHIR • AMANDA DAL • AVA DALEY • 

PC DALTON • RHIAN DALY • ANDY DANIELL • EVE DANIELS • LUCY DANN • MARCO DARCY • TOM DARK • OWAIN DAVES • 

LAURA DAVIDSON • JACKIE DAVIDSON • GUY DAVIE • RACHEL DAVIES • HARRI DAVIES • CATHERINE ANNE DAVIES • 

SALLY DAVIES • JEREMY DAVIES • HANNAH J DAVIES • ANDREW DAVIES • HOWELL DAVIES • RICHARD J DAWES • ALAN DAY • 

CHARLOTTE DE BURGH-HOLDER • GIUSEPPE DE CRISTOFANO • DANNY DE REYBEKILL • IAN DE-WHYTELL • CHARLIE DEAKIN- 

DAVIES • JONATHAN DEAN • SARAH DEEN • MARTIN DELL • TIM DELLOW • STEFAN DEMETRIOU • CHRIS DEMPSEY • 

HANNAH DENCHFIELD • ISAAC DENSU • ALEXANDRA DENTON • DANNY DESAI • SARAH DESMOND • RACHAEL DEVINE • 

RORY DEWAR • ACHAL DHILLON • BARRY DICKINS • SONIA DIWAN • CONAL DODDS • NIALL DOHERTY • GED DOHERTY • 

DAVID DOLLIMORE • CAROLINE DOLLLIMORE • FAYE DONALDSON • LORNA DONLON • DIANA DONNELLY • 

NUALA DONNELLY • ANNETTE DONNELLY • JASMINE DOTIWALA • CLAIRE DOUGHERTY • VICKY DOWDALL • 

JACK DOWLING • CHRISTIE DRIVER-SNELL • ANYA DU SAUZAY • BECCA DUDLEY • KIYANDA DUNCAN • 

STEPHANIE DUNCAN-BOSU • FRANKIE DUNN • DAISY DUNN • ANTHONY DUNNING • AIMEE DURHAM • 

BEN DURLING • NIKE DUROSARO • KAI DUXBURY • JEMMA DWYER • HOLLIE DYES SHEPHERD • 

FLEUR EAST • NEALE EASTERBY • FLOSSIE EASTHOPE • VICTORIA EASTON-RILEY • 

UGO EBOH • ALEX EDEN-SMITH • LIZZIE EDMONDS • NATALIE EDWARDS • ZOE EDWARDS • 

AZADEH EFTEKHARI • BILLIE EILISH • ANIEFIOK EKPOUDOM • 

YASIN EL ASHRAFI BEM • JESS ELDRIDGE • ROYSTON ELDRIDGE • SIAN ELERI • 

BETHAN ELFYN • LENA ELGHAMRY • AMY ELIZABETH • CAROLINE ELLERAY • 

BRUNO ELLINGHAM • JASON ELLIS • SOPHIE ELLIS • ANDREW ELLIS • 

GEOFF ELLIS • CHRIS ELSTON • EMMA ELWOOD • RHIAN EMANUEL • 

SUSIE EMBER • JAMES EMBIRICOS • EUGENE EMELIN • 

ARIT EMINUE • KITTY EMPIRE • KATIE ENEVOLDSEN • 

GEORGE ERGATOUDIS • KATE ETTERIDGE • 

RUSS EVANS • NINA EVANS • MYVANWY EVANS • 

YASMIN EVANS • GARETH EVANS • 

JUDITH EVANS • PIPPA EVERS • 

H A N N A H E W E N S • 

JACKIE EYEWE • JULIE EYRE • 

AMIKA EZER • 

JENNI FALCONER • 

HAJA FANTA • 

69

THE 

VOTING 

ACADEMY 


JASON FARMER • 

COLIN FARQUHAR • 

LUKE FERRAR • 

JOYCE FERREIRA • 

CONOR FERRIS • AVRIL FIDDES • 

CHANTELLE FIDDY • MATT FINCHAM • 

MARK FINDLAY • CAITLIN FINE • 

PAUL FIRTH • AMY FITZ DOYLEY • 

NAOISE FITZGERALD • HELEN FLEMING • 

MEGAN FLETCHER • PAUL FLETCHER • TONY FLETCHER • 

STEPHEN FLINT WOOD • CLIFF FLUET • LUKE FLYNN • 

JAMES FOLEY • SIMON FORBES • DEIDRE FORD • NICK FORD • 

LUCY FORD • EAMONN FORDE • RACHEL FORDE • JACK FORSYTH- 

FOSTER • JAMES FOSTER • JUNIOR FOSTER • MEL FOX • LIZ FOX-RICE • 

DEAN FRANCIS • REBECCA FRANK • TOMAS FRASER • CHRIS FRASER • 

ANTHONY FRENCH • JULIAN FRENCH • THOMAS FRENCH • NADINE FRESKO • 

BOBBY FRICTION • FEEDY FRIZZI • DAVID FROST • LUCY FULFORD • CHRIS FULLER • 

IONA FYFE • STUART GALBRAITH • CALLUM GALLACHER • SARAH GALLAGHER • SAM GARCIA • 

ALI GARDINER • DANNY GARDNER • GEORGE GARNER • ROBERT GAROFALO • JORDAN GARRATT • 

SINEAD GARVAN • MAXIE GEDGE • CHRISTINE GEISSMAR • DAN GENNOE • JILLIAN GERNGROSS • 

PAUL GERRARD • LUCIANO GIAIMO • ALYS GIBSON • HARRIET GIBSONE • PAT GILBERT • JULES GILCHRIST • 

ELLIE GILES • WILL GILGRASS • DEE GILL • JAMES GILLESPIE • MARK GILLESPIE • NAOMI GILLIES • FIONA GILLOTT • 

CHARLIE GIRLING • ERIK GIUSTI • EDWARD GLEAVE • JOHN GLOVER • JAMIE GLYDON • GEORGE GODFREY • 

SIMON GOGERLY • PHOEBE GOLD • KAYLEE GOLDING • ROYSTON GOODEN • LIZ GOODWIN • TOM GOODWYN • ELLA- 

BONAI GORDON • MAXINE GORDON • NICK GOREE • JAKE GOSLING • SARAH GOSLING • JOE GOSSA • CARINA GRACE • 

CASSANDRA GRACEY • LEONA GRAHAM • EVANGELINE GRAIN • MANON GRANDJEAN • IZZY GRANT • CHAR GRANT • SARAH GRANT • 

HILARY GRANT • SILAS GRAY • KEELEY GRAY • ANDREW GRAYS • ANGIE GREAVES • ASHLIE GREEN • OLIVIA GREEN • MIRI • 

JAMES GREEN • MARK GREEN • CHRIS GREEN • JONATHAN GREEN • EMMA GREENGRASS • DAISY GREENHEAD • DOUGLAS GREENWOOD • 

CLAIRE GREGORY • NATASHA GREGORY • CRAIG GRIEVE • YVETTE GRIFFITH • GEORGE GRIFFITHS • RICHARD GRIFFITHS • GARETH GRIFFITHS • 

NICK GRIMSHAW • KATY GRIMWOOD • BARRY GRINT • VICTORIA GROSVENOR • MERRILY GROUT • LIDYA GUMUS • CHARLOTTE GUNN • 

CHARLOTTE GUTIERREZ • MARK HAGEN • PIERRE HALL • ROB HALLETT • STEPHEN HALLOWES • ELEANOR HALLS • ANDY HALLS • STEVE HANCOCK • 

PAULA HANLEY • FIONA HANLON • MICHAEL HANSON • KAMRAN HAQ • NIGEL HARDING • MINNIE HARDING • TONY HARLOW • ANDREI HARMSWORTH • 

REMI HARRIS • PRU HARRIS • MINNIE HARRIS • ROB HARRISON • INDIA HARRISON • TRENTON HARRISON‐LEWIS • JO HART • ANNA HARVEY • 

PHIL HARVEY • KERRY HARVEY-PIPER • RICHARD HASWELL • ADINA HAVARD • BOBBY HAVENS • DAVID HAWKES • PAUL HAWKINS • CHRIS HAWKINS • 

LEE HAWTHORN • KATIE HAWTHORNE • ALED HAYDN-JONES • LOUISE HEALEY • WAYNE HECTOR • CHRIS HELSEN • LAURA HENDERSON • 

RHONDA HENDERSON • ELLIE HENMAN • SAMUEL HENNESSY • ALANNA HENRY • AFRYEA HENRY-FONTAINE • AARON HERCULES • JO HERON • 

LUCY HEYMAN • MARK HIGGINS • VANESSA HIGGINS • DREW HILL • ELE HILL • JENNIFER HILLS • NEHA HINDOCHA • RICHARD HINKLEY • 

IAN HIPPOLYTE • LOUISE HODGES • KIENDA HOJI • KATE HOLDER • JOSH HOLLAND • ABBIE HOLLEBONE • LIZZIE HOLLICK • JILL HOLLYWOOD • 

LOUISE HOLMES • KEVIN HOLMES-ATTIVOR • STEVE HOMER • BEN HOMEWOOD • WILL HOPE • JOSH HOSKINS • PATRICK HOUGH • NIGEL HOUSE • 

YAZMIN HOW • ED HOWARD • JESSE HOWARD • PATRICK HOWE • ALISON HOWE • LEON HOWES • FAY HOYTE • BROGAN HUBBER • SALI HUGHES • 

GAVIN HUGHES • KEVIN HUGHES • GREG HUGHES • DOROTHY HUI • GUS HULLY • MICHELLE HUMPHREYS • IAN HUMPHREYS • KENYA HUNT • 

LOTTIE HUNT • EL HUNT • CHRIS HUNTE • VERITY HUNTER • LUDOVIC HUNTER-TILNEY • STYLIANOS HURHANGEE • AHMED HUSSAIN • NAZ HUSSAIN • 

NOHA HUSSEIN • LAUREN HUTCHINSON • REBECCA HUTCHINSON • TOM HUTTON • PAUL HUTTON • JACKIE HYDE • SUZY HYLAND • JAMIE IBE • 

JOE IDDISON • MELANIE IJIEH • JASON ILEY • TIMOTHY INGHAM • DANNY INGHAM • KEITH INGRAM • NOSHEEN IQBAL • ZUBIN IRANI • 

ADRIAN ISTRATE • JESS ISZATT • JENNIFER IVORY • CHI CHI IZUNDU • MALCOLM JACK • DEAN JACKSON • MATT JACOB • OLLIE JACOB • 

VIKKI JACONELLI • NADIA JAE • KILO JALLOH • DELLESSA JAMES • IAIN JAMES • BETHAN JAMES • NATALIE JAMIESON • SARAH JAMIESON • 

NIMESH JANI • FRANCESCA ANNA JANNETTA • KIM JARRETT • MYN JAZEEL • TRE JEAN MARE • LAUREN JEFFERYS • LISA JENNINGS • JOSHUA JENNINGS • 

NATALIE JENNINGS • SEJ JHEETA • SHABS JOBANPUTRA • SUKHRAJ JOHAL • BRYAN JOHNSON • CALLUM JOHNSON • GEORGE JOHNSON • 

MELANIE JOHNSON • SEAN JOHNSTON • KATHLEEN JOHNSTON • ADRIAN JOLLY • SOPHIE JONES • DAVID JONES • SAMMY JONES • SIMON JONES • 

JULIA JONES • CLIFF JONES • EMMA JONES • THOMAS JONES • DAISY JONES • PHIL JONES • JONELLE JONES ALLEYNE • FABIA JONES RUSSELL • 

LUCY JORDACHE • LAWRIE JORDAN • ALAN JORDAN • DAVID JOSEPH • HANNAH JOSEPH • ANGELLE JOSEPH • TARA JOSHI • FREDERICK JUDE • 

ARAMIDE KADRI • MAYA KALEV • AMMAR KALIA • JOANNA KALLI • EMMA KAMEN • JESS KANGALEE • ANNA KARATZIVA • NEAL KARIA • 

NATTY KASAMBALA • BOBBY KAUR • JASON ‘SCULLY’ KAVUMA • ANNA KAY • ALEX KEAGUE-DAVIES • SOPHIA KEARNEY • JESSICA KEELEY- 

CARTER • PETE ‘MERF’ KELLEHER • JENNIFER ANN KELLER • TYLER DAMARA KELLY • EMMA KELLY • JANINE KEMPADOO • EMILY KENT • JOE KENTISH • 

CHARLEY KENWARD • JENNIFER KEOGH • ROB KHAN • SEMERA KHAN • NADIA KHAN • ALIM KHERAJ • MORAD KHOKAR • ELEANOR KIFVEL • 

JULIA KILLER • LUCY KILNER • OLIVER KING • MOLLIE KING • KANYA KING • SIMON KING • LIAM KINSLOW • JONATHAN KLEIN • ANDY KNOX • 

CHRIS KOEGEN • OLIVIA KOLO • JESSICA KORAVOS • SOPHIE KOSTROWSKI • ANEESHA KOTWANI • LOUISE KOVACS • SABRINA KRISTIANSEN • 

DAYALAN KULENDRAN • HEMAH KWAKYE • KWAME KWATEN • HENRIE KWUSHUE • ISAAC KYEREMATEN • ANTONIA KYTE • LEE LABORDE • 

GRACE LADOJA • LAIA LAFUENTE • YASMIN LAJOIE • MARIE LALLIA • GEORGE LAMBERT • SAFIYA LAMBIE-KNIGHT • MARK LAMPO • SOPHIE LANE • 

REBECCA LAPORTA • JEREMY LASCELLES • FARHAD LASHANIZAND • ZOE LAU • JAY LAWRENCE • AMY LAWSON • GREG LAWTON • ORLA LEE • 

JORDAN LEE • TOBY LEIGHTON-POPE • LAURA LEON • MIRIAM LESSAR • YASMIN LEUNG • DAVID LEVESLEY • TOBY LEVESON • NICK LEVINE • 

EMERALD LEWIS • ROB LEWIS • MEL LEWIS • TOM LEWIS • BEN LEWIS • LEAH LEWIS • RONNIE LEY • LIBERTY • GINTARE LILEIKYTE • NATHAN LILLEY • 

70 

JAM LINDSAY • SARAH LIPMAN • DANIEL LISTER • STUART LITTLEWOOD • LIZZO • LOTTIE LLEWELLYN • SARAH LOCKHART • ANTHONY LOCKWOOD • 

RYAN LOFTHOUSE • REMEL LONDON • JANICE LONG • STEVE LONG • JEN LONG • PAULETTE LONG • AYESHA LORDE DUNN • EMMY LOVELL • 

HONGI LUO • MAX LUTKIN • MERVYN LYN • DORIAN LYNSKEY • WILL LYONS • MOLLY MACASKILL • KATE MACDONALD • PAUL MACK • TOBY MACKENZIE • 

MARK MACKIE • AVRIL MACKINTOSH • TOM MACKLIN • A MACMANUS • SCOTT MACRAE • NATALIE MADDIX • DR MAHA • CARLY MAILE • TIM MAJOR • 

PAUL MALONE • COLLEEN MALONEY • ANDY MALT • NATASHA MANN • HOLLY MANNERS • JAMES MANNING • JAMES MANNION • ROZ MANSFIELD • 

CHIMENE MANTORI • TOM MARCH • HAYLEY MARCHANT • JASON MARCUS • MIKE MARDARI • KATERINA MARKA • CATHERINE MARKS • JEREMY MARSH • 

RICKY MARSHALL • JULIAN MARSHALL • HOLLY MARSHALL • KORDA MARSHALL • JOHN MARSHALL • CHARLES MARTIN • FELICITY MARTIN • 

STEPH MARZIANO • DAISY MASKELL • SHEENA MASON • BEVERLEY MASON • GUY MASSEY • ANTHONY MATCHETT • AYANDA MATIWANE • 

CHRISTINA MATTEOTTI • TINA MATTHEWS • SARAH MATTHEWS • OLIVIA MATTHIAS • ALISTAIR MAWAS • BEN MAWSON • AMANDA MAXWELL • 

SAM MAYERS • RONI MAYES • IAN MCANDREW • FIONA MCAULEY • KARA MCCABE • ABBIE MCCARTHY • MIKE MCCORMACK • NEIL MCCORMICK • 

KATH MCDERMOTT • PAUL MCDONALD • PHOEBE MCDONNELL • HELENA MCGEOUGH • WILL MCGILLIVRAY • MARY MCGOVERN • DEBI MCGRATH • 

JAMES MCGUINNESS • VIKKI MCHATTIE • SAMANTHA MCKENNA • FARON MCKENZIE • PADDY MCLEAN • CRAIG MCLEAN • KIM MCNALLY‐LUKE • 

BEN MCOWEN WILSON • NOREEN MCSHANE • MABEL MCVEY • MICK MEADOWS • GRACE MEDFORD • JOCELYN MEEK • KIRSTY MEHTA • JACK MELHUISH • 

LIANA MELLOTTE • THE INVISIBLE MEN • JENNY MENSAH • BENSON MENSAH-BONSU • MERCK MERCURIADES • AMANDA MERDZAN • ARIANNE MERRY • 

ANNA-SOPHIE MERTENS • JOSEPHIN MEYER • SARAH MHAMDI • MICHAEL MICHEL • ANTHEA XTRA MILE RECORDINGS • TIM MILES • RACHEL MILLAR • 

GLENN MILLER • ED MILLETT • SCOTT MILLS • ALEX MITCHAM • VIKKI MITCHELL • MARK MITCHELL • CHARLIE MOCK • DAVID MOGENDORFF • 

SAGAL MOHAMMED • DEREK MOIR • TSHEPO MOKOENA • CAMILA MOLLARD • CARLY-ANN MOND • PHIL MONGREDIEN • LAURA MONKS • 

DAVE MONKS • TONY MOOREY • FABIOLA MORALES • SIMON MORAN • BRUNO MORELLI • DAMIAN MORGAN • MAYBELLE MORGAN • CARLENE MORLESE • 

KEVIN MOROSKY • KADISH MORRIS • ZOSIA MORRIS • BEN MORTIMER • MAGGIE MOUZAKITIS • EMILY MOXON • LAURENCE MOZAFARI • 

AMEL MUKHTAR • NATASHA MULENGA • ALEXIA MULET • CLAIRE MULLORD • RUBY MULRAINE • WAI MUNDIA • NIGEL MUNJOMA • COLLEEN MURPHY • 

CONRAD MURRAY • SAM MURRAY • ROBIN MURRAY • ALEX MURRAY • NICOLA MURRAY • ANDY MUSGRAVE • TOYIN MUSTAPHA • NANA MUYOVWE • 

NICK MYERS • HANNAH MYLREA • LIZO MZIMBA • DAMNSHAQ N/A • YASSER N/A • DJ KYE N/A • MISTAJAM N/A • CHARLESY N/A • RAV N/A • 

JAMILA NABUKEERA • MAYA NAGRA • SANDRA NAMUSIITWA • KIRAN NANDRA • NINA NANNAR • MELISSA NATHOO • NICK NEADS • 

ANNA NEALE • HANNAH NEAVES • MICHAEL NEIDUS • IAN NEIL • JENNIFER NELSON • ROBBIE NELSON • MICHAEL NELSON • JAMIE NELSON • 

LEANNA NEOFITOU • PIP NEWBY • JOSH NEWIS-SMITH • CHANELLE NEWMAN • RYAN NEWMAN • JAMES NEWMAN • NOJAN NEZHAD • 

VICTORIA NICHOLLS • ALLUM NICK • STEPHANIE NIEUWENHUYS • NICHOLA NITM • JAMIE NJOKU-GOODWIN • DAN NOBLE • 

ALISTAIR NORBURY • ANTHONY NORRIS-WATSON • GEORGETTE NUMMELIN • SHARON O’CONNELL • DAN O’CONNELL • 

ROISIN O’CONNOR • SEAN O’DALY • CLODAGH O’DONOGHUE • MIKE O’KEEFE • DERMOT O’LEARY • KATIE O’MALLEY • 

PADDY O’NEILL • SHANE O’NEILL • LAUREN O’NEILL • ALI O’REILLY • ARLO O’CALLAGHAN • CIARA O’MEARA • 

BENJAMIN OAKLEY • OLE OBERMANN • EUNICE OBIANAGHA • JAMIE OBORNE • DUMI OBUROTA • 

MEENAL ODEDRA • MIKE OFFEN • ABISOLA OKE • TOBI OLADIGBOLU • MJ OLAORE • SINEAD OLDNALL • 

SAGE OLITO • ISH OLOKUNBOLA • MUSTAFA OMER • ASHANTI OMKAR FRSA • PRECIOUS OMOREGIE • 

YEWANDE OMOTAYO • SULINNA ONG • TOBE ONWUKA • ISAAC ONYEKA • GABBY ORLEANS- 

LINDSAY • ALEX OSBORNE • KOJO OSEI • SEUN OSHINUSI • RAY OUDKERK • STEVE OWEN • 

CHARLOTTE OWEN • NICKIE OWEN • ADETOKUNBO T OYELOLA • NUR OZDAMAR • 

PAUL PACIFICO • MALVIKA PADIN • MEGAN PAGE • LUCY PALMER • JULIAN PALMER • 

MARIA PANAYI • NAGARANI PANDIARAJ • LUCIE PANTON • ANNA PAPASAVVA • 

RICHARD PARK • JULES PARKER • JO PARKERSON • STEVE PARKINSON • 

DIPESH PARMAR • DANIEL PARMAR • BENJAMIN PARMAR • 

MANDY PARNELL • RUTH PARRISH • HANNAH PARTINGTON • 

JESSICA PARTRIDGE • ROB PASCOE • JOANNE PATEL • 

DIMPAL PATEL • JAY PATEL • VAISHNI PATEL • 

COLIN PATERSON • JAMES PATERSON • 

NICK PATRICK • RACHAEL PATTERSON • 

JOSEPH PATTERSON • STEFANIA PAVLOU • 

CAIUS PAWSON • ED PEARSON • 

HATTIE PEARSON • GUY PELEG • 

MICHAEL PELL • 

JACK PEPPER • 

ALEXANDER PEPPIATT • 

SAKI PEREIRA-PUERTA • 

JONATHAN PERRY • 

DANIELLE PERRY • ANDREW PERRY • 

JASON PERRY • FRANCINE PERRY • 

ROBYN PETERS • YANNIS PHILIPPAKIS • 

AIMEE PHILLIPS • MICHAEL PICKARD • 

ELIZABETH PIKE • NAOMI PIKE • EMILY PILBEAM • 

ANU PILLAI • ABBIE PINK • SHAHNA PINNOCK • 

ALYCIA PIRMOHAMED • STEVE PITRON • NICK PITTS • 

KAROLINA PLASKATY • DANIEL POKU • ALEXANDRA POLLARD • 

DAVID POLLOCK • OLIVE POMETSEY • ROB POOLE • JEROME PORRITT • 

SIMON PORTER • CLAIRE POTGIETER • ED POTTON • LOUISE POWIS • 

SHIV PRAKASH • BEN PRICE • CHRIS PRICE • MALCOLM PRINCE • SARAH PROBERT • 

ELLIE PROHAN • COOKIE PRYCE • LUIS PULIDO • WILL PUXLEY • ADAM PYZER • 

JOEL QUARTEY • ARUSA QURESHI • MADDY RADCLIFF • MARK RADCLIFFE • JAMES RADICE • 

KAITY RAE • ASHLEIGH M RAINBIRD • LAKSHMY RAJAH • DAVE RAJAN • MARK RALPH • 

SHIREEN RAMEZANI • GUILLERMO RAMOS • SOREN RAMSING • NICK RAPHAEL • TOM RAVENSCROFT • 

ROSIE RAWSON • ABBEY RAYMONDE • JAMES REA • ADAM READ • ASHLEY READ • ANTHONY REDPATH • 

DAVY REED • OSCAR REES • NICK REILLY • GEMMA REILLY-HAMMOND • APRIL RENE • DAVID RENSHAW • 

DAMARIS REXTAYLOR • OLLY RICE • JACQUELINE RICE • LEE-ANNE RICHARDSON • EMILY RICHARDSON • 

TARA RICHARDSON • JADE RICHARDSON • ANNA RICHARDSON • JACOB RICKARD • CHARLIE RICKARD • JORDAN RILEY • 

SHARON RILEY • MICHAEL RIVALLAND • PAUL ROBERTS • CALLUM ROBERTS • DAN ROBERTS • CHLOE ROBERTS • 

COLIN ROBERTS • MICHAEL ROBINSON • PAUL ROBINSON • MARC ROBINSON • PETER ROBINSON • DESPA ROBINSON • 

JAZZ ROCKET • SCOTT RODGER • CATHERINE ROE • GEORGIE ROGERS • CHARLIE ROLFE • MARK RONSON • KERRI-ANN ROPER • 

KIRSTY ROSE • BRIAN ROSE • JB ROSE • ELLA ROSE BROADHURST • NINA ROSENBERGER • OLLIE ROSENBLATT • LAURA ROSMANN • 

MATT ROSS • CHARLOTTE ROSS • MEL ROUND • DAVID ROWE ROWE • STEPHEN ROWE • DAVID ROWETT • TIANN ROWLAND-DIXON • 

LIAM RUDDEN • ELLIE RUMBOLD • MATTHEW RUMBOLD • ANGELIQUE SABINE • BROOKE SALISBURY • RIC SALMON • DAVID SALMON • 

MARTA SALOGNI • DON SAMKANGE • DARI SAMUELS • PAUL SAMUELS • GEMMA SAMWAYS • WHITNEY SANCHEZ • 

JAMES SANDOM • JULIE SANDRIN • RAG SATGURU • MARK SAVAGE • PHILIP SAVILL • CHRIS SAWYER • NEIL SAXBY • 

SOPHIA SAYANY • ALEX SAYERS • PAUL SCAIFE • CARLO SCARAMPI • JAMIE SCOTT • PHOEBE SCOTT • JUSSY SCOTT • 

SANDRA SCOTT • BEAU-AZRA TAVI SCOTT • DUNCAN SCOTT • CHANTELLE SCOTT • KOMALI SCOTT -JONES• 

LYLE SCOUGALL • SAM SEAGER • GRACE SEAL • DUNCAN SEAMAN • HELEN SEARLE • ELENA SEGAL • MIKA SELLENS • 

DJ SEMTEX • SECIL SEN • MARCO SENSI • SARA SESARDIC • SAMANTHA SEWELL • TALIA SHABATAI • ZAYNA SHAIKH • 

SHAHESTA SHAITLY • PROFESSOR JONATHAN SHALIT • AUTUMN SHARKEY • NIK SHARMA • DAVID SHARPE • 

EDDIE SHAW • HILLARY SHAW • CHARLIE SHAWCROSS • PAUL SHEEHAN • SALEEM SHEIKH • MATT SHELDON • 

LISA SHENTON • ZOE SHENTON • KATE SHEPHERD • GRACE SHERIDAN-SHARE • JAZMIN SHERMAN • ADAM SHERWIN • 

ANDREW SHIER • HIROKI SHIRASUKA • ROBERT SHORT • SOLEY SIGFUSDOTTIR • GONCALO SILVA • CRAIG SILVEY • 

SEBASTIAN SIMONE • DAVE SIMPSON • GEORGE SIMPSON • PHOEBE SINCLAIR • VICTORIA SINDEN • CLAIRE SINGERS • 

SAM SINGH • LEILA SINGH • SUNIL SINGHVI • MARCUS SIU • JESSICA SLATER • CLAIRE SLEVIN • 

JENNIFER SMALL • DAN SMEE • PAUL SMERNICKI • JIMMY SMITH • CHRISTIAN SMITH • JAY SMITH • 

ED SMITH • NAOMI SMITH • MADDY SMITH • JEFF SMITH • CAROLE SMITH • PATRICK SMITH • PHILIP SMITH • 

HARRIET SMITH • JENNIFER SMITH • PORSCHE SMITH • CARL SMITH • CHARLOTTE SMITH-OATES • 

DAVID SMYTH • CAT SMYTH • STE SOFTLEY • KATE SOLOMON • KOSI SOMPETA • JOJO SONUBI • TIMI SOTIRE • 

JESSICA SPAINE • OLIVIA SPALICE • WILL SPEER • SAM SPENCER • MIKE SPENCER • JAMIE SPINKS • 

JASMINE SRIH • HANA STADDON • AC STANLEY • CAMERON STANTON • RICHARD STEEL • GARY STEIN • 

LINTON STEPHENS • HUW STEPHENS • WILLIAM STEVENS • HOLLY STEVENS • JAMES STIRLING • 

ROB STONEHOUSE • LEA STONHILL • STORMZY • SOPHIE STOTT • CRAIG STRACHAN • KATIE STRACHAN • 

CASANDRA STRAUSS • CHRIS STRAW • GEORGIA STRAWSON • DARREN STRUWIG • STUART STUBBS • 

CLAIRE STURGESS • HARRY STYLES • JAYNE STYNES • CLAIRE SUGRUE • CAROLINE SULLIVAN • 

RACHEL SULLIVAN • KEMI SULOLA • ATTILA SUMER • DANTON SUPPLE • MARK SUTHERLAND • 

LOUISA SUTHERLAND • MUZI SWAKAMISA • EMMA SWANN • OLIVIA SWASH • VICKI SWEENEY • JACQUI SWIFT • 

ADRIAN SYKES • ASHLEY SYKES • OLIVER SYKES • PAUL SYLVESTER • LINZI SYMONS • PHILIP TAGGART • 

ROMAN TAGOE • DEVLIN TAGOE • SHAHLAA TAHIRA • MARTIN TALBOT • AMMO TALWAR • JIMMY TAM • 

CHRIS TAMS • STACEY TANG • ALI TANT • MAZIN TAPPUNI • DJ TARGET • MATT TASKER • INA TATARKO • 

STEPHEN TAVERNER • KATIE TAVINI • REBEKAH TAYLER • TINEA TAYLOR • ELLIOT TAYLOR • SAMANTHA TAYLOR • 

JOSEPH TAYLOR • PIPPA TAYLOR • JAMES TAYLOR • MATT TAYLOR • GEOFF TAYLOR • PETER TAYLOR • 

CHARDINE TAYLOR-STONE • MAASHALLAH TAYO • TINIE TEMPAH • SUNTA TEMPLETON • KATIE TETLEY • 

BRIDGITTE TETTEH • AMY TETTEY • NATHAN TETTEY • DR JERRY THACKRAY • RICHARD THANE • ELISE THAYER • 

CHRISTINA THEODOROPOULOU • BEE THOMAS • JEN THOMAS • DOMINIC THOMAS • HELEN THOMAS • 

LAVIEA THOMAS • GREG THOMPSON • LUCKY THOMPSON • CLARE THOMPSON • NATHAN THOMSON • 

TOM THOROGOOD • JAMES THORPE • ADRIAN THRILLS • JANE THURLOW • STEVE TILLEY • 

KATIE TOMCZYNSKA • JACK TOMINEY • CARA TOPPING • CHARLIE TORRIBLE • SANDY TRAPPITT • 

ANDREW TRENDELL • CANDICE TRIMINGHAM • CAROLINE TROUT • DAVID TRUEMAN • 

ADAM TUDHOPE • NICOLA TUER • BRIONY TURNER • KATHLEEN TURNER • BEN TURNER • 

HUGO TURQUET • LEE TYLER • JANA ULAITE • CLAIRE UMNEY • TERRY UNDERHILL • 

FERDY UNGER HAMILTON • BENGI UNSAL • GEORGINA UPTON • DINA VAN DER ELST • 

DUTCH VAN SPALL • ANDY VARLEY • ALICE VAUGHAN • JOANNE VAUGHAN-JONES • 

ADAM VELASCO • DAVID VENTURA • DONNA VERGIER • PHIL VERNOL • TIM VERNON • 

CLAIRE VERRI • LISA VERRICO • INDY VIDYALANKARA • ANDREW VINCENT • 

ANDY VINCENT • VANGEL VLASHKI • MARTIN VOVK • NATALIE WADE • TONY WADSWORTH • 

DIANE WAGG • TRAVIS WALBY • CHRIS WALKER • LINDA WALKER • TOM WALKER • 

OLIVIA WALKER • JORDAN WALKINSHAW • ALEX WALL • SARAH WALL • MEGAN WALLACE • 

DOMINIC WALLACE • MIKE WALSH • ANNIKA WALSH • SARAH WARBURTON-JONES • 

LISA WARD • SEAN WARD • SIOBHAN WARD • CRAIG WARD • SIMON WARD • CHRIS WAREING • 

OLIVIA WARNFORD‐DAVIS • LEE WARREN • GEORGINA WARREN • ADEM WATERMAN • 

JOS WATKIN • ELLY WATSON • LUCIE WATSON • RAJU WATTS • DAWN WATTS • HALINA WATTS • 

SELINA WEBB • LAUREN WEBB • LANA WEBB • ALICE WEBB • LEANNE WEBSTER • 

JON WEBSTER • SELINA WEDDERBURN • TYLER WEST • KIRSTY WHALLEY • AMY WHEATLEY • 

KATHERINE WHEELER • STUART WHEELEY • COREY WHELAN • CHRISTY WHELAN • 

JACK WHITE • ADELE WHITE • MATTHEW WHITEHOUSE • TOM WHITER • AUBREY WHITFIELD • 

LU WHITING • AMARU WILCOX • WILL WILKIN • ESTELLE WILKINSON • STEPH WILKINSON • 

TINA WILLIAMS • HOLLY WILLIAMS • NAOMI WILLIAMS • NICOLE WILLIAMS • 

JENESSA WILLIAMS • TODD WILLS • PETE WILSON • HARRY WILSON • ANDY WILSON • 

SHASHI WILSON-JOSHI • ANDY WISE • PHIL WITTS • BENJAMIN WOLFORD • 

SALLY WOOD • ALYSHA WOOD • CHARLES WOOD • LUCY WOOD • 

KARIN WOOLFE • MATTHEW WOOLLISCROFT • AGNES WOOLRICH • 

LOUISE WOOLSEY • STUART WORDEN • BOB WORKMAN • 

RACHAEL WORSLEY • TATIANA WORTLEY • LISA WRIGHT • 

CLARE WRIGHT • KATE WRIGHT • DOUGLAS WRIGHT • 

KATE WYN JONES • SAM WYNN • BEN WYNTER • 

COURTNEY WYNTER • KIERAN YEATES • 

VIVIAN YEUNG • CHRIS YORK • 

TOM YOUNG • PHIL YOUNGMAN • 

I A N Y O U N G S • 

NATASHA YOUNGS • 

RIAN ZOLL‐KHAN • 

71

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OVER 

50 YEARS 

OF EXPERIENCE 

Our Music & Event 

industry roots date 

back to 1964 

Harry ry Styles Styles Rihanna Rihanna Beck Beck Paul Paul McCartney The The BRIT BRIT Awards James Corden BTS Mercury Prize 5SOS Elton John Paloma Faith Queens Of OfThe Stone Age AgeLaura Mvula Craig Craig David David Take Take That That Jessie Jessie 

eare Sting Sting Noel Noel Gallagher Labrinth Johnny Marr Marr Lewis Capaldi Pharrell Williams Shawn Mendes REM Spice Girls Steve Aoki The Kills Casio Isle Of Of Wight Festival Madness Sony Sony Legacy DJ DJ 

Khaled Khaled 

Eels Fat Fat Boy Boy Slim Slim Gary Gary Barlow Iggy Iggy Pop Pop Jamie Cullum Jax Jax Jones L L Devine Mysterines NERD P!NK European Tour Queen Rita Ora Sundara Karma Supergrass Stereophonics Trojan Records You You 

Me At Six At Six Pioneer Pioneer DJ 

Jordan DJ Jordan North North Jack Jack Saunders Vick Vick Hope Global Podcasts Imagine Dragons Meters Music Shaun Ross Tom Grennan Prince Harry Styles Rihanna Beck Beck Paul Paul McCartney The The 

BRIT Awards Awards James James Corden Corden BTS BTS Mercury Prize Prize 5SOS 5SOS Elton John Paloma Faith Queens Of The Stone Age Laura Mvula Craig David Take That Jessie Ware Sting Noel Noel Gallagher Labrinth Johnny Johnny 

Marr r Lewis Lewis Capaldi Capaldi Pharrell Pharrell Williams Shawn Shawn Mendes REM REM Spice Girls Steve Aoki The Kills Casio Isle Of Wight Festival Madness Sony Legacy DJ DJ 

Khaled Eels EelsFat Fat Boy Boy Slim SlimGary Gary Barlow Barlow Iggy Iggy Pop Pop 

amie Cullum Cullum Jax Jax Jones Jones L Devine L Devine Mysterines NERD NERD P!NK P!NK European Tour Queen Rita Ora Sundara Karma Supergrass Stereophonics Trojan Records You YouMe MeAt At Six Six Pioneer DJ DJ 

Jordan Jordan North North Jack Jack 

Saunders Vick Vick Hope Hope Global Global Podcasts Podcasts Imagine Imagine Dragons Met Meters Music Shaun Ross Tom Grennan Prince Harry Styles Rihanna Beck eckPaul McCartney The TheBRIT BRITAwards James James Corden Corden BTS BTS Mercury Mercury 

Prize e 5SOS 5SOS Elton Elton John John Paloma Paloma Faith Faith Queens Queens Of Of The The Stone Stone Age Age Laura Laura Mvula Craig David Take That Jessie Ware Sting Noel Gallagher gherLabrinth Johnny Marr Marr Lewis Lewis Capaldi Capaldi Pharrell Pharrell Williams Williams Shawn Shawn 

Mendes REM REM Spice Spice Girls Girls Steve Steve Aoki Aoki The The Kills Kills Casio Casio Isle Isle Of Of Wight Wight Festival Festival Madness Sony Sony Legacy DJ 

DJ Khaled Eels Fat Boy Slim Gary aryBarlow Iggy IggyPop PopJamie JamieCullum CullumJax Jax Jones Jones L Devine L Devine Mysterines Mysterines 

DERD P!NK P!NK European European Tour Tour Queen Queen Rita Rita Ora Ora Sundara Sundara Karma Karma a Supergrass Supergrass Stereophonics Trojan Trojan Records You Me At At Six Six Pioneer DJ DJ 

Jordan JordanNorth NorthJack JackSaunders Vick Vick Hope Hope Global Global Podcasts Podcasts Imagine Imagine 

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gons Meters 

Meters 

Music 

Music 

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Shaun 

Ross 

Ross 

Tom 

Tom 

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Grennan 

Prince 

Prince 

Harry Harry 

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Styles 

Rihanna 

Rihanna 

Beck 

Beck 

Paul 

Paul 

McCartney 

McCartney 

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James 

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Corden BTS 

BTS 

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Mercury 

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Prize 

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5SOS 

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Elton 

John 

John 

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Paloma 

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Faith 

Queens 

Queens 

Of 

O 


Stone 

Stone 

Age 

Age 

Laura 

Laura 

Mvula 

Mvula 

Craig 

Craig 

David 

David 

Take 

Take 

That 

That 

Jessie 

Jessie Ware 

Ware 

Sting 

Sting 

Noel 

Noel 

Gallagher 

Gallagher 

Labrinth 

Labrinth 

Johnny 

Johnny 

Marr 

Marr Lewis 

Lewis 

Capaldi 

Capaldi 

Pharrell 

Pharrell Williams 

Williams 

Shawn 

Shawn 

Mendes 

Mendes 

REM 

REM 

Spice 

Spice 

Girls 

Girls 

Steve 

Steve 

Aoki 

Aoki 



Kills 

Kills 

Casio Isle Of Wight Festival Madness Sony Legacy DJ Khaled Eels Fat Boy Slim Gary Barlow Iggy Pop Jamie Cullum Jax Jones L Devine Mysterines NERD P!NK European Tour Queen Rita Ora 

o Isle Of Wight Festival Madness Sony Legacy DJ 

Khaled Eels Fat Boy Slim Gary Barlow Iggy Pop Jamie Cullum Jax Jones L Devine Mysterines NERD P!NK European Tour Queen Rita Ora 

undara Karma Supergrass Stereophonics Trojan Records You Me At Six Pioneer DJ Jordan North Jack Saunders Vick Hope Global Podcasts Imagine Dragons Meters Music Shaun Ross Tom 

dara Karma Supergrass Stereophonics Trojan Records You Me At Six Pioneer DJ 

Jordan North Jack Saunders Vick Hope Global Podcasts Imagine Dragons Meters Music Shaun Ross Tom 

Grennan Prince Harry Styles Rihanna Beck Paul McCartney The BRIT Awards James Corden BTS Mercury Prize 5SOS Elton John Paloma Faith Queens Of The Stone Age Laura Mvula Craig David 

nnan Prince Harry Styles Rihanna Beck Paul McCartney The BRIT Awards James Corden BTS Mercury Prize 5SOS Elton John Paloma Faith Queens Of The Stone Age Laura Mvula Craig David 

Take That Jessie Ware Sting Noel Gallagher Labrinth Johnny Marr Lewis Capaldi Pharrell Williams Shawn Mendes REM Spice Girls Steve Aoki The Kills Casio Isle Of Wight Festival Madness Sony 

That Jessie Ware Sting Noel Gallagher Labrinth Johnny 

Marr Lewis Capaldi Pharrell Williams Shawn Mendes REM Spice Girls Steve Aoki The Kills Casio Isle Of Wight Festival Madness Sony 

Legacy DJ Khaled Eels Fat Boy Slim Gary Barlow Iggy Pop Jamie Cullum Jax Jones L Devine Mysterines NERD P!NK European Tour Queen Rita Ora Sundara Karma Supergrass Stereophonics 

cy DJ 

Khaled Eels Fat Boy Slim Gary Barlow Iggy Pop Jamie Cullum Jax Jones L Devine Mysterines NERD P!NK European Tour Queen Rita Ora Sundara Karma Supergrass Stereophonics 

Trojan Records You Me At Six Pioneer DJ Jordan North Jack Saunders Vick Hope Global Podcasts Imagine Dragons Meters Music Shaun Ross Tom Grennan Prince Harry Styles Rihanna Beck Paul 

an Records You Me At Six Pioneer DJ 

Jordan North Jack Saunders Vick Hope Global Podcasts Imagine Dragons Meters Music Shaun Ross Tom Grennan Prince Harry Styles Rihanna Beck Pau 

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Billie Eilish - The BRIT Awards 2020 


REUSE, RECYCLE, 

RETHINK 

The BRIT Awards strives to be 

an environmentally sustainable 

event in all of its actions. 

Every three years, a comprehensive 

review of policy and performance is 

undertaken to ensure that The BRITs 

is really achieving. Is there more to 

do? The answer is yes - always. But 

alongside sustainability charity partner 

Julie’s Bicycle, the nation’s biggest 

music event is progressing onwards. 

Achieving a carbon-free future 

requires significant behavioural and 

policy innovation, as demonstrated 

in every actions The BRITs takes. 

Planning for The BRIT Awards is a 

long-term commitment. That’s why, 

behind the scenes, eco-friendly ways 

of working are embedded day-to-day. 

Backstage and in the production suites, 

you’ll find no cutlery, straws or sachets. 

Everything is delivered in compatible 

or reduced plastic packaging. At 

food concessions, eco-friendly Stack 

Cups are now a familiar feature. Food, 

including backstage provision, is local, 

sustainable, and delicious (of course). 

Artists are of course driving their 

own demands, whether its eco 

packaging or vegan menus part 

of green riders. Tour buses are 

increasingly hydrogen-powered. 

Its recycled metal and FSC timber all 

the way when building BRITs stage sets. 

After use, many go back to storage 

while others are repurposed at the BRIT 

school or elsewhere. Even The BRITs 

signage, from red carpet markers to 

dressing room labelling, will find a new 

future - if a way can be found for The 

BRITs to reuse something, it surely will. 

The BRIT Awards’ biggest crime 

against carbon is in energy usage. 

That’s where the event looks to venue 

partner AEG, who own the O2 for help. 

Their initiative AEG 1EARTH takes 

a whole-site approach of energyefficiency 

and waste reduction. 

Since 2010, the venue has been 

successful in reducing CO2 emissions 

by an annual figure of 4%, and water 

waste by 4.4% also. None of that would 

be possible without in-built efforts to 

make it all happen. That’s why there’s 

an on-site wormery and eco-digester 

ensuring just 1% of venue waste is sent 

to landfill. Whether it’s signing a 100% 

renewable energy deal, using LED 

lightbulbs, investing in becoming a 

paperless venue, providing a place to 

charge electric cars, becoming a bulk 

buyer of eco toilet paper or finding a 

role as a recycler of everything from 

glass to grease from the kitchens, there 

is always a greener path to found. 

WHAT IS JULIE’S 

BICYCLE? 

Julie’s Bicycle is an unseen wheel 

in the arts scene. Its aim is to 

put environmental sustainability 

and climate action at the heart 

of every conversation. 

The charity mentors and inspires 

artists and creatives to have the 

knowledge and confidence needed 

to amplify the green message, 

knowing their influence sends the 

ethos ever-forward. This is vital to 

win the battle for hearts and minds. 

After launching specifically as a creative 

sector organisation, Julie’s Bicycle now 

mentors big business in a wide range 

of fields, including local government 

and planners. The aim is to ensure 

sustainable solutions are built into the 

core of day-to-day life as well as new 

and future schemes, This is done with 

the specific target of limiting global 

warming to 2 degrees, as per the 

Paris Climate Change Agreement. 

Julie’s Bicycle has grown its online 

outreach work in 2020, with a 

series of live webinars and events 

around the sustainability agenda, 

making it even more accessible. 

In 2017, Julie’s Bicycle held the inaugural 

Creative Green Awards to acknowledge 

the exemplary work now being done 

in the sector. The 2020 event took 

place online, and the energising and 

optimistic event was compered by 

Springwatch presenter Gillian Burke. 

Julie’s Bicycle has also launched a 

range of industry-standard tools to 

measure sustainability goals, such 

as the Creative Green Certification 

scheme for creative business. It also 

launched a programme alongside Arts 

Council England, which ties funding 

grant eligibility to commitment to 

embrace sustainability schemes. 

Information and resources are 

available from juliesbicycle.com 

73

OUR MEDIA PARTNERS 

THE SHOW MUST GO ON 

Learn how The BRITs will work to 

keep everyone Covid-safe 

The BRIT Awards 2020 was one of 

the final large scale events to take 

place in the UK ahead of the March 

23 Covid lockdown. Fifteen months 

and one postponement later, it is 

the very first music event to reopen 

its doors, perhaps against all 

the odds, to celebrate music again. 

The BRIT Awards has worked with 

the UK government and Public 

Health England at all levels of 

planning to ensure maximum 

compliance with current bestpractice 

safely measures. 

The Show’s aim in all things at The 

BRITs 2021 is to keep everyone 

attending - artists, workers and 

audience members - safe. 

BRITs guiding light and Event 

Director Maggie Crowe OBE reveals, 

“As with every BRITs, good practice 

is key to the smooth running of 

the event. Our health and safely 

expert Julian Bentley has diligently 

led from the front to protect the 

event and BRIT Awards Ltd. As a 

world class leader in his field of 

expertise, we are indebted to his 

dogged determination to ensure 

that every single person entering 

the O2 on May 11th and beforehand 

is safe. With that reassurance, the 

BRITs team is ready to deliver you 

one of the most spectacular, history 

making, events of the year”. 

That means, in consultation 

with the DCMS, BRIT Awards 

Ltd agreed to be part of the 

Government Pilot Scheme 

whereby the event would be part 

of a study. The research of the 

controlled grouping would evaluate 

audience movement, behaviour, 

ventilation, and compliance. 

Around 2,500 members of the 

public, comprising nurses, care 

home staff and other vital key 

workers, will join a much-reduced 

number of music industry and 

corporate guests. Each guest will 

have a three check points before 

entering the auditorium. The first 

check point will be to view their 

health data by checking their mobile 

SMS received from their local ‘In 

Person’ lateral flow NHS Trust test 

that shows they are ‘negative’. 

This test needs to take place 

24/36hrs before and in time to 

receive the result so the individual 

is covered for Tuesday 11th May. 

The second check point will be 

to review ID credentials, and the 

third will be to show their ticket 

and complete normal bag checks. 

Everyone will be advised how the 

scheme works, and should sign a 

consent form prior. The audience 

will not be socially distanced, 

but will be asked to wear a mask 

whenever they are not in their seats. 

Behind the scenes the production 

crews and set builders have 

been working in bubbles for 

months, either working from home 

or undergoing regular testing. 

Continuity plans are in place should 

someone ill, with their whole 

work ‘bubble’ swapped out. 

FOR THE CELEBS… 

We’re sure BRITs performers, guest 

presenters and nominees will look as 

glamorous as ever but management 

teams have a lot of work to do to ensure 

their all-important star ‘bubbles’ don’t pop. 

The BRITs has block-booked a nearby 

hotel ensuring social distancing is 

possible. Everyone on site must have 

a clearly defined and necessary role 

(no entourage please)! Our stars will 

be able to order food straight to their 

hotel or ‘day room’ doors, so there’s 

no need to go out and mingle. 

With on-stage performers likely to total 

around 200, it’s probably not the year 

to invite an orchestra. Or Stormzy. Even 

stage pyrotechnics have been tested to 

ensure no compromise in the oxygen 

levels and air flow inside the event. 

It’s definitely the year to be in a band 

because they are one of the few groups 

who will be able to remain together 

front of stage as we’re enjoying 

proceedings (everyone else will need 

to wait to get their hugs from crews 

enjoying the show from the Suites). 

Dress rehearsals and red carpet 

appearances are carefully timed to 

ensure chance encounters are minimal. 

And just like the audience requirements, 

all celebs, record company bods and 

production team members will be 

tested before and after the event. 

Even the BRITs photo ops and 

press calls for winners will be 

numbers-controlled and socially 

distanced. Hmmm… looks like 

you’re gonna need a longer lens! 

THE BRIT AWARDS 

COMMITTEE 2021 

Committee Co-Chairs Rebecca Allen, 

Selina Webb (Universal) 

Committee Jeff Bell (Partisan), 

Nick Burgess (Warner), Cassandra Gracey (Sony), 

Rob Pascoe (Universal), Geoff Taylor (BPI/BRITs), 

Maggie Crowe OBE (BRITs), Sally Wood (BRITs 

TV), Stuart Bell, Richard Dawes, Kate Etteridge 

(DawBell PR), Ged Doherty (BPI/BRITs) Digital 

Committee Co-Chairs Kate Wyn Jones (Universal), 

Giuseppe De Cristofano (BRITs) 

For The BPI, OCC & Voting Academy 

Kiaron Whitehead, Chris Austin, 

Cat Smyth, Chris Walker, MJ Olaore 

Mabel: The BRIT Awards 2020 

EVENT AND SHOW 

BAL Event Director Maggie Crowe OBE 

Event Manager Adrian Carter 

Director of Digital Giuseppe De Cristofano 

Business Development and 

Partnerships Manager Lucy Bannatyne 

Accreditation and Transport Co-ordinator 

Dina Van der Elst 

Event Assistant Hannah Denchfield 

Event Co-ordinators Ashley Read, Ollie Paxton 

Finance Dominic Thomas 

Legal Christy Whelan, Verity Hunter 

Technical Support Alan Brindley 

BRITs Digital Somethin’ Else 

Media Relations DawBell PR 

National TV & Radio Promotion 

LD Communications 

International TV Sales ITV Global 

Design & Photography JM Enternational 

Venue Danielle Kennedy-Clark, 

Octavia Harwood, Ash Olckers, Lauren Kiernan, 

Annelyse Paquet 

Mastercard Agnes Woolrich, 

Charlie Carrington, Andy Wise 

Television Show Produced by BRITs TV 

ITV Katie Rawcliffe, Lily Wilson 

ITV2 Gemma John-Lewis 

BRITS TV 

Executive Producer, Sally Wood 

Director, Julia Knowles 

Line Producer, Rebecca Hutchinson 

Band Production, Maggie Mouzakitis 

VT Producer, John Williams 

Presenter Producer, Hilary Whitley 

Award Presenter Producer, Mark Wagman 

Production Coordinator, Rob Foot 

Camera Supervisor, Phil Piotrowsky 

Programme Sound, Toby Alington 

OB Facilities, CTV 

ITV2 BACKSTAGE SHOW 

Senior Producer, Sophie Rogers 

Director, Tony Grech-Smith 

Production Manager, Natalie Truelove 

Assistant Producer, Rachel Helsby 

Production Coordinator, Georgia Bone 

OUR CHARITIES & INITIATIVES 

JM Enternational

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pantone 173 

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cmyk 10c 10m 10y 90k 

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OUR CONTRACTORS & CONTRIBUTORS 

STAGE PRODUCTION 

BRIT Awards Productions 

Kate Wright, Tony Wheeler, 

Lisa Shenton, Malcolm Birkett, 

Julie Chennells, Nancy Skipper, 

Keeley Robinson, Chris Caddy 

Yvonne Ryan, Mark Terry, Jordan Hall 

Dean Reynolds , Sarah Huberman 

Stage Management Mike Grove 

Production Design Es Devlin 

Art Director Robert McIntyre 

Lighting Designer Al Gurdon 

Lighting Crew Boss Richard Gorrod 

Lighting Company PRG Europe 

Rigging Outback Rigging 

Sound Designer Colin Pink 

PA Supplier 

Britannia Row Productions 

Crew Catering 

Intercontinental Hotel 

SHOW PROGRAMME 

Staging StageCo 

Set Diagon & Steel Monkey 

Screens Ogle Hog 

Local Crew Showstars 

Site Crew Bizmonkeys 

Stage Crew Stage Miracles 

Backstage Monitors 

Soundbite Productions 

Furniture & Backstage Lovely Things 

Draping Blackout Limited 

Health & Safety J-EMSS Limited 

Backstage Security 

Show & Event Security 

Power Templine 

Cabins Qdos Event Hire 

Structures Allspan 

GREAT 

MUSIC COMES 

FROM WORKING 

TOGETHER 

Editorial Helen Lamont (Editor), 

John Marshall (Art Editor), 

Will Amery (Design & Production) 

Jan Green (Proofreading) 

Advertising Leppard & Rivers Associates 

Judith Rivers 

Publisher JM Enternational 

Printer Fingerprint 

Please be reminded that you are not 

permitted to record or film any part of The 

BRIT Awards 2021 event without a specific 

licence from BRIT Awards Limited. 

LEWIS CAPALDI: The BRIT Awards 2020 


PPL and PRS for Music collect and distribute 

hundreds of millions of pounds each year for the 

public performance 

AD 

and broadcast of music. We 

help performers, songwriters, record companies and 

publishers be fairly rewarded for the use of their music. 

Congratulations to all the BRIT Award nominated 

performers and songwriters, and to the their respective 

record companies and publishers. 

LEPPARD 

& 

ASSOCIATES 

RIVERS 

@PRSforMusic 

@PPLUK 

Arlo Parks performing at The British Music Embassy Sessions. Photo by Thomas Jackson / TyneSight Photographic

Congrats winners 

and nominees. 

Thank you for the 

music that has kept 

us connected. 

Start Something Priceless ® 

Mastercard is a registered trademark, and the circles design 

and Start Something Priceless are trademarks of Mastercard 

international Incorporated. Photo: jmenternational.com

The BRIT Awards 2021 with Mastercard - Show Programme

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