Sam Smith, the pop singer with a non-existent gender identity, was banned from the sex categories at the 2021 Brit Awards.
The awards system has adhered to the usual categories of artists, with awards for British solo men and British solo women. That means there is no place for Smith, who will be using them and their representatives since they came out as non-existent in September 2019. They said at the time: “ after a life of war with my gender I have decided to embrace myself for who I am, inside and out. “
Their album Love Goes deserves the British record of the year award. It reached No. 2 in the UK chart when it was released in October 2020, and remained in the top 40 until last week.
In an Instagram statement, Smith said: “Brits have been an important part of my career… Music for me has always been about unification and not separation. I look forward to a time when awards ceremonies can reflect the society in which we live. Let us rejoice in all, regardless of gender, race, age, ability, sexuality and class. ”
Smith is one of the most successful British pop artists of the last decade. Their debut album in 2014, In the Lonely Hour, ranked No. 1 in the UK and they spent 69 consecutive weeks in the top 10; His 2017 sequel also reached The Thrill of It All also No. 1. Smith has seven UK No 1 singles including the host of other artists, and won an Oscar in 2016 for James Bond Writing’s topic on the Wall.
They have previously won three Brit awards, from 12 nominations: the Critics’ Choice Award (a rising star now) in 2014, and Britain’s breaking action and global success award in 2015. Before becoming a as a non-biologist, they were twice nominated for a British male solo artist, in 2015 and 2019.
In a message to Brit award voters today, the Academy wrote: “Looking to the future we still have a lot of work to do in the coming years to develop the Brits. The change process cannot be set in just one initiative and we are committed to working with the industry to change the presentation to be as inclusive and relevant as possible. ”
The awards have made changes to the eligibility criteria this year, allowing non-British citizens to be named in British regions as long as they have lived permanently for more than five years.
The change means that pop singer Rina Sawayama, who has Japanese citizenship but has lived in the UK for more than 25 years, is eligible, and has been nominated for a joint promotion star award. to rapper Pa Salieu and pop singer Griff. She was deemed invalid for the 2020 Mercury award on citizenship grounds, a decision she described as “genuinely upset”. Mercury Award has now updated their eligibility criteria according to the Brits.
This year’s Brit awards ceremony will be held on May 11, after being postponed from the usual month in February with the pandemic coronavirus infection.