Ged Doherty pledges overhaul for Brits after widespread criticism of event for ignoring black British artists



The event had been widely criticised for ignoring black British music, with a series of artists – including Lily Allen and Laura Mvula – complaining about the failure to recognise the achievement of black British artists.

"Britain always prides itself on being one step ahead musically. The most innovative and exciting sounds have come from our shores, from the very birth of pop to the emergence more recently of grime. Britain has led the way and that’s because we’ve always celebrated and loved what’s different. This was not adequately reflected at this year’s Brits.

The awards should, first and foremost, reward the very best and most popular British music, but the playing field for that judgment must also be even. Everyone, regardless of background, should have an equal opportunity to impress.

The transparent Brits voting academy is made up of 1,100 people from across the music industry, but, in truth, it needs to be updated. The basis on which people were invited to join was their music expertise. But while this remains a prerequisite, we recognise this is no longer enough, and that facets of diversity such as age, ethnicity, gender and regionality must also be taken into account. We are therefore surveying its makeup, which, I suspect, is largely white and with a bias towards older men. This does not mean that there is an underlying prejudice at play, but the unintended consequence is that emerging music genres may not be properly recognised.

There is a second issue. Currently, to be nominated you must have achieved Top 40 success – but we must now go further. There are performers, including grime artists, who may not have achieved major chart success but who have attracted large followings, including through social media. This level of engagement is at present not part of eligibility and this, perhaps more than any other factor, has caused nominations to be seen as unrepresentative by some."