BRIT Awards 2021: female artists take it all

The event took place on May 11 at London's O2 Arena and was hosted by Jack Whitehall. Here's the full list of winners from last night BRIT Awards.

At the BRIT Awards 2021, female artists stole the show from their male colleagues. Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, Little Mix, Arlo Parks and HAIM were amongst the winners of this year’s ceremony marked by women.

The event, hosted by Jack Whitehall for the fourth time, took place yesterday night at London’s O2 Arena. An hilarious sketch featuring Line of Duty stars Martin Compston and Vicky McClure joining viral sensation Jackie Weaver kicked the night off.

BRIT Awards 2021: The winners

Little Mix made history being the first all-female group awarded as the Best British Group. During their acceptance speech, the group members, Perrie Edwards, Jade Thirlwall and Leigh-Anne Pinnok, thanked the former member Jesy Nelson, who left Little Mix last December because of mental health issues. Then they paid tribute to their forerunners, especially Spice Girls, who later congratulated Little Mix on Twitter.

Pinnock said: “It’s not easy being a female in the UK pop industry. We have seen white male dominance, misogyny, sexism and lack of diversity. We are proud of how we have stuck together, stood our ground and surrounded ourselves with strong women and are now using our voices more than ever.”

Dua Lipa won for the second time in a row the award as the Best female solo artist. During her speech she urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson to raise NHS workers’ salaries since there’s a “massive disparity between gratitude and respect for frontline workers”. She said: “It’s very good to clap for them, but we need to pay them. I think what we should do is we should all give a massive, massive round of applause and give Boris (Johnson) a message that we all support a fair pay rise for our front line.”

Then she announced she would share her prize with Dame Elizabeth Anionwu, the emeritus professor of nursing at the University of West London.

Dua Lipa’s star shone brighter than ever as her latest album Future Nostalgia won the award for the Best album. She dedicated the prize to Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole, known as Jimi, the boy who died while trying to save a woman from the Thames a month ago. The singer also paid tribute to Amy Winehouse on the red carpet. She showed up in a yellow Vivienne Westwood mini dress with a long train and Winehouse’s signature hairdo.

Taylor Swift was the first woman and the first non-British artist to win the Global Icon award. Accepting the prize, she said: “I’m really, really proud to be part of this musical community, especially in a year when we all needed music so much.

“But what we needed even more was the help and support that we got from the NHS and the key workers who are here tonight. Thank you for everything that you have done for us.”

Billie Eilish was honored as the best International Female solo artist. She beat the competition of Ariana Grande, Cardi B, Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift.

HAIM beat BTS, Run The Jewels and Foo Fighters, winning the prize for the best international group.

Arlo Parks, who won the prize “Breakthrough artist“, closes the list of victorious female artists.

Harry Styles‘ hit Watermelon Sugar triumphed in “British Single” category. The “British male solo artist” category honored J Hus, while The Weeknd won the corresponding prize for international artists.

The performances

Olivia Rodrigo, Dua Lipa, The Weeknd, Headie One, Parks and Griff performed on the stage of 2021 BRIT Awards.

Years & Years’ Olly Alexander and Sir Elton John brought on the stage a new spectacular version of the Pet Shop Boys’ 1980 hit, It’s a Sin, from the homonymous series. Sir Elton’s husband David Furnish introduced the performance, explaining the great work of the Elton John Aids Foundation.

Coldplay sang their new single Higher Power from a pontoon on the River Thames. Orange and purple were the backdrop for hologram dancers that featured the band’s performance.

4,000 people attended the show live. They weren’t requested to respect social distancing or wear face masks, as they had to test negative to Coronavirus right before the entrance.