Dua Lipa will go down as the last ever winner of the British Female Solo Artist award
The BRIT Awards has announced that it will be scrapping its 'male' and 'female' categories from next year's event, instead giving out awards for Artist of the Year and International Artist of the Year.
The BRITs, which celebrate the great and the good of British music every year, will move from gendered categories - such as British Female Solo Artist and British Male Solo Artist - to the gender neutral Artist of the Year.
This will "celebrate the achievements of artists irrespective of their gender."
In a statement, organisers said: "The BRITs confirm that for the 2022 show they will move away from the Female and Male categories, and will launch new awards for Artist of the Year and International Artist of the Year, celebrating artists solely for their music and work, rather than how they choose to identify or as others may see them as part of The BRITs’ commitment to evolving the show to be as inclusive and as relevant as possible."
Tom March, the BRIT Chair, said: "It is important that The BRITs continue to evolve and aim to be as inclusive as possible.
"It feels completely the right time to celebrate the achievements of artists for the music that they create, and the work that they do, irrespective of gender."
The change means that the likes of Sam Smith will once again be eligible for some of the awards after being excluded from the gendered categories last year due to the fact they identify as neither male nor female.
Last year, Dua Lipa was named British Female Solo Artist of the Year, with J Hus taking home the award for British Male Solo Artists. They will now both go down as the last winners of these awards.
It has also been announced that Mo Gilligan will be hosting the 2022 ceremony, taking over from Jack Whitehall. Meanwhile Clara Amfo and Maya Jama will be joining up to present the show announcing the 2022 nominations later this year and the red carpet show on the night of the awards next year.
The 2022 BRIT Awards will also feature four new genre awards to be voted for by the public. These will be Alternative/Rock Act of the Year, Hip-Hop/Grime/Rap Act of the Year, Dance Act of the Year and Pop/R’n’B Act of the Year.
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