Katy Perry’s skeletal effigies of Donald Trump and Theresa May stood out, as Little Mix, Drake and Emeli Sandé all win awards

Drake, Beyoncé, Emeli Sandé and hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest were all honoured at the Brit awards on Wednesday night, a year after organisers were heavily criticised for not featuring a single black nominee in a UK category, nor any black winners.

However, wins from both Beyoncé and A Tribe Called Quest passed by with barely a flicker of recognition – neither act had a video message played, and viewers who turned their attention from their TV screens for a moment would not have noticed they had won. Grime artists were again passed over, despite being nominated in both the best album and breakthrough act categories.



The late David Bowie was one of the biggest winners of the night, taking two of the biggest awards for British male solo artist and MasterCard British Album for Blackstar.

Brit awards winners 2017 – the full list Read more

American actor Michael C Hall, star of Bowie’s musical Lazarus, accepted the first award on the singer’s behalf, saying it was a “testament to a man beholden to nothing but his own boundless imagination and daring”. The second award was collected by Bowie’s son, the director Duncan Jones, who said: “I lost my dad last year but I also became a dad. After getting over the shock I spent a lot of time trying to work out what I’d like my son to know about his grandad ... he’s always been there supporting people who think they’re a little bit weird, a little bit strange, a little bit different. This award is for all the kooks and all the people that make the kooks.”



There was a tribute montage to other musicians who died in 2016, including Prince and Leonard Cohen, and Coldplay’s Chris Martin sang along with a recording of George Michael on a cover of the late Wham! star’s song A Different Corner.

However, perhaps the most striking image of the night was during Katy Perry’s performance of her latest single Chained to the Rhythm, for which she was accompanied not only by Bob Marley’s grandson Skip Marley, but also two giant skeletons apparently representing Theresa May and Donald Trump.

They were dressed as the US president and the prime minister were on her visit to the White House, and the effigies even seen holding hands as the leaders had done.

Elena Cresci (@elenacresci) I relate to the house falling off the stage during Katy Perry's BRITs performance so much pic.twitter.com/BT2zFeXXUr

Oliver Jones (@I_Skream) Katy Perry's performance is what I imagine playing monopoly on acid would be like....

Other performances came from Little Mix, Emeli Sandé, Bruno Mars, and the 1975. Last year Bowie was given the Brit icon award, which this year went to Robbie Williams, who closed the performance with a medley of songs before returning for an encore of Feel, presumably unplanned because the speakers had to be turned on halfway through the song.

However, it was the more diverse mix of winners that was the most notable feature of the evening. The 2016 shortlists prompted a viral campaign dubbed #Britssowhite as well as condemnation from artists including Laura Mvula and Stormzy, who performed on Wednesday night in a duet with Ed Sheeran.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Emeli Sande with her award for best British female solo artist. Photograph: Ian West/PA

In response to the furore, organisers instituted a new voting system that improved the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities and women. This year’s Brits had an unprecedented 45% of nominees from BAME backgrounds. But while grime, the genre born in the council estates of east London 15 years ago that has grown to dominate British subculture, was finally represented by multiple nominations for Stormzy, Skepta and Kano, no grime artist won an award.

International male solo artist and international female solo artist went to Drake and Beyoncé respectively, and A Tribe Called Quest won in the international group category.

The award for best British group went to the 1975, who beat Bastille, Biffy Clyro, Radiohead and Little Mix. The latter picked up an award for best single for Shout Out to My Ex, which debuted at No 1 in the charts last year.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Grime star Skepta performing at the Brits on Wednesday night. Photograph: Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

Meanwhile, Rag’n’Bone Man won British breakthrough act, a category that also included Stormzy, Anne-Marie, the band Blossoms and Skepta. Skepta won the Mercury prize for his fourth album, Konnichiwa, in 2016, at the time prompting Tory culture minister Matt Hancock to claim that he and his team listened to grime in their ministerial car. Rag’n’Bone Man’s success marks the first time the breakthrough award has been won by the critics’ choice winner.

To address concerns with the voting system, the awards’ organisers announced a new voting method that would be more inclusive of BAME communities as well as ensuring a more balanced gender ratio. The committee this year was made up of approximately 17% BAME voters and 48% women.

It was a move that followed continuous criticism of the industry from artists and critics alike, who have pointed to a disconnect between what audiences are listening to and what is celebrated at big awards.

This year’s Brit awards were hosted by Dermot O’Leary and Emma Willis after Canadian singer Michael Bublé pulled out due to an illness in the family.





