The Brit Awards 2020 took place last night. It’s always been one of our fave events and we’ve been lucky enough to attend a couple of times, but the lack of equality was a bit of a bummer…

Big ups to WAM faves Foals for representing the indie scene and winning Best Group though!

We have done a round-up below of the key happenings and stand-outs from the evening.

 

1. Powerful political statements

Politics was on the mind at this year’s ceremony. Dave, who won the coveted Album of the Year award for his record Psychodrama , added a verse to this song ‘Black’ which saw him call Boris Johnson a “real racist”. The Streatham-born rapper also criticised the British media’s treatment of Meghan Markle in comparison to how they treated Kate Middleton.

He rapped: “And if somebody hasn’t said it / Equality is a right, it doesn’t deserve credit / If you don’t wanna get it, then you’re never gonna get it / How the news treats Kate versus how they’re treating Megan.

“It is racist, whether or not it feels racist / The truth is our Prime Minister is a real racist.”

Dave also paid tribute to Jack Merritt, who died in the London Bridge terror attack in 2019.

 

2. Lewis Capaldi and his speeches

The evening’s biggest winner may have veered away from politics when accepting his awards, but he still managed to make his mark. After winning Best New Artist at the start of the ceremony, Lewis Capaldi – beer in hand – made his way to the stage, said just a few words leaving everyone a bit perplexed. It’s clear the singer was playing the long game, though – and, sure enough, he was back on the stage at the end of the night after winning the Song of the Year trophy for “Someone You Loved”. it was here that Capaldi set a record straight – namely about the inspiration of the track.

“It is actually about my grandma,” he said, telling the crowd that she died two years ago. Referencing the fact that his ex-girlfriend, Paige Turley, is currently appearing on ITV2 show Love Island, he quipped: “I hope [they] don’t contact her to be on the show”.

3. Brilliant performances

It was not just the speeches that delivered at this year’s ceremony, but the performances. Mabel kicked things off with a stellar renditon of her hit song “Don’t Call Me Up” before a flurry of breathtaking performances, including Dave’s stirring rendition of “Black”, Harry Styles’s emotional “Falling” and a hugely entertaining medley from Lizzo.

No ceremony would have been complete without an appearance from Stormzy; his medley of tracks, including “Do Better” and “Wiley Flow” brought smiles to faces. Then there was Billie Eilish, who performed Bond theme No Time to Diefor the first time ever live accompanied by her brother Finneas, Johnny Marr and Hans Zimmer. It was as haunting as you’d expect.

4. Diverse winners – but lack of female representation

Mabel and her mother Neneh Cherry, who won the award 30 Year ago!

The 2020 Brits winners list is a diverse one, unlike its film award counterpart, the Baftas. While it should certainly be commended for this – although we can’t help but think this was because of the backlash of previous years’  it cannot be forgotten that this year’s nominations were dominated by men.

This year’s nominations were criticsed for being dominated by men, with only one British female artist nominated out of 25 available slots in mixed-gender categories. Mabel and Eilish were the evening’s sole female winners.

Come on BRITs! Do we REALLY have to tell you about these things? You should be flying the flag of equality by now!

2021, maybe you’ll get it bang on.