BRIT Awards 2023: Harry Styles and Wet Leg lead controversially male-dominated nominations

Nominations for the BRIT Awards 2023 have been announced, with big names including Harry Styles, Beyoncé and Stormzy securing nods.

Harry Styles and Wet Leg picked up the most nominations with four each, including in the prestigious Mastercard Album of the Year categoy, while Stormzy, Fred Again. The 1975 and Arctic Monkeys each picked up three.

Other British artists up for multiple nominations include rappers Aitch, Central Cee and Dave, as well as singer-songwriter George Ezra and breakthrough dance act Eliza Rose. British pop sensation Dua Lipa also managed to pick up a nod.

The best new artist category showcases some of the biggest artists to emerge in the last year, with names including Eurovision Song Contest runner-up Sam Ryder, Mimi Webb, Cat Burns and Rina Sawayama.

In response to her nomination, Sawayama revealed she almost missed out on consideration due to not having a British passport – the artist moved to the UK from Japan aged four. A rule change from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in February 2021 means that artists who have resided in the UK for more than five years are able to be shortlisted for British categories.

London rapper Kojey Radical received his first ever nomination in the Best New Artist category after a breakthrough year.

In response to the news, he tweeted: “ It’s taken a long time to get here, but what a journey! Grateful for all the recognition we’ve received since the release of Reason To Smile.

“When I started working on this album, it was never about numbers or awards. I wanted to put out an album I was proud of, something that was reflective of all the hard work we’ve put in over the years. I knew the music would speak for itself and reach whoever it needed to. “

The Artist of the Year category has already proven to be controversial, with no female artists named among the nominees. The reaction online has been scathing. One user tweeted: “No female artists? What a joke.” Another said: “where are the female artists…”

The international awards were dominated by huge names including Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Lizzo, who all picked up two nods each in both International Song of the Year and International Artist of the Year.

K-pop also received recognition in this year’s shortlist, with girl group BLACKPINK receiving a nomination for International Group of the Year, fresh off the back of their Coachella headline slot announcement.

The four fan voted categories for this years awards are Best Pop/R&B Act, Best Rock/Alternative Act, Best Dance Act and Best Hip Hop/Rap/Grime Act.

Fans across the world have the chance to vote to determine the winners of the four awards using TikTok to submit their votes. A dedicated TikTok voting hub will launch at midday on 19 January and close at midday on 2 February (GMT).

Presenter Vick Hope and radio broadcaster Jack Saunders announced the nominations during a 30-minute stream entitled Bring On The BRITs, which was broadcast on official BRIT channels, including on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

During the stream it was also announced that BRIT nominees Sam Smith and Kim Petras will perform at the award ceremony, along with Wet Leg.

Reaction to the nominations on social media has been mixed - with the Artist of the Year category receiving the most criticism.

Despite this, fans of nominated acts have been showing their excitement for their favorite artists, with posts involving Styles and BLACKPINK receiving huge amounts of engagements on the BRIT Awards official Twitter page.

The nominations follow a successful year for British artists in the music industry, with Styles dominating the charts worldwide with his smash hit As It Was.

Last year’s BRIT nominees Glass Animals also had a huge year, with their track Heat Waves topping the charts in the US and becoming the biggest song of 2022 stateside, as well as clocking over 2 billion streams on Spotify.

Here is a full round-up of all award categories and artists nominated:

MasterCard Album of the Year

The 1975 - Being Funny in a Foreign Language

Fred again.. - Actual Life 3

Harry Styles - Harry’s House

Stormzy - This Is What I Mean

Wet Leg - Wet Leg

Song of the Year

Aitch & Ashanti - Baby

Cat Burns - Go

Dave - Starlight

Ed Sheeran & Elton John - Merry Christmas

Eliza Rose & Interplanetary Criminal - B.O.T.A (Baddest of Them All)

George Ezra - Green Green Grass

Harry Styles - As It Was

Lewis Capaldi - Forget Me

LF System - Afraid To Feel

Sam Smith & Kim Petras - Unholy

International Song of the Year

Beyonce - BREAK MY SOUL

David Guetta & Bebe Rexha - I’m Good (Blue)

Fireboy DMX & Ed Sheeran - Peru

Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz and cast of Encanto - We Don’t Talk About Bruno

GAYLE - abcdefu

Jack Harlow - First Class

Lizzo - About Damn Time

Lost Frequencies & Calum Scott - Where Are You Now

OneRepublic - I Ain’t Worried

Taylor Swift - Anti Hero

Artist of the Year

Central Cee

Fred again..

George Ezra

Harry Styles

Stormzy

Best Pop/R&B Act

Cat Burns

Charli XCX

Dua Lipa

Harry Styles

Sam Smith

Best Rock/Alternative Act

The 1975

Arctic Monkeys

Nova Twins

Tom Grennan

Wet Leg

Best Dance Act

Becky Hill

Bonobo

Calvin Harris

Eliza Rose

Fred again..

International Artist of the Year

Beyonce

Burna Boy

Kendrick Lamar

Lizzo

Taylor Swift

Best Group

The 1975

Arctic Monkeys

Bad Boy Chiller Crew

Nova Twins

Wet Leg

Best New Artist

Kojey Radical

Mimi Webb

Rina Sawayama

Sam Ryder

Wet Leg

Best Hip Hop/Rap/Grime Act

Aitch

Central Cee

Dave

Loyle Carner

Stormzy

International Group of the Year

BLACKPINK

Drake & 21 Savage

First Aid Kit

Fontaines DC

Gabriels

The BRIT Awards, hosted by Mo Gillighan, will take place at The O2 on February 11 and broadcast on ITV and ITVX platforms.