The Brit Awards are the U.K.’s version of the Grammys. And the stunning whiteness of all of this year’s nominees has caused an uproar that lead to the #BritsSoWhite hashtag last month (inspired by the #OscarsSoWhite, which has been dogging the Academy Awards since the contenders were announced on January 14).
Organizers of the U.K. awards show were mum until recently, reports The Independent. However, British grime artist Big Narstie spoke about the issue on a TV news show earlier this week, saying, “The only diversity in the Brits is with the Americans. I’ve been saying this for a while, for our country to do good, we need to embrace our country,” he said.
Reps from the Brits Awards issued a statement saying: “There are no individual awards for specific genres however, and since only a small number of BRITs are awarded every year, the artists who are honored tend to be those who have achieved the very highest levels of chart success. Given the rapidly changing landscape of music consumption, it may now be time to take a fresh look at the metrics around the BRIT Awards to ensure they reflect the full range of engagement with recorded music.”
You can see the U.K. i-D features director Hattie Collins speaking passionately to Channel 4 News about the issue of lack of diversity here.
Credits
Text Laura Vogel
Photo Olivia Rose