
Singer Charli XCX Wins Top Prizes at BRIT Awards
"Brat", which inspired fans to film themselves dancing to its tracks and whose lime green cover look was adopted by US presidential hopeful Kamala Harris' campaign on social media after the singer referenced her in a post, won the coveted album of the year category.
Charli XCX, who had led nominations, was also named artist of the year and best dance act. Her single "Guess", featuring Billie Eilish, won song of the year beating tracks including the Beatles' "Now and Then".
The 32-year-old pop star had won her first BRIT, songwriter of the year, earlier this week.
"I've always felt like an outsider in the industry but particularly in the British music industry and so it feels really nice to be recognised on this album," she said as she received the album of the year award.
"I would just like to share this with all artists who have ever felt that they need to compromise to be recognised and to have their moment in the sun because I think I'm living proof that maybe it takes a long time, but... you don't need to compromise your vision."
The singer released her debut studio album in 2013. "Brat" was her sixth and she said she would "probably never make a record like this again".
"It's so in my instinct to just like not do the same thing twice... I will probably reject it completely and do something completely different," she said.
Jazz quintet Ezra Collective was named group of the year.
"This moment right here is because of the great youth clubs and great teachers and the great schools that support young people playing music," drummer Femi Koleoso said in one of several of the night's acceptance speeches that called for more support for young musicians and grassroots venues.
US singer Chappell Roan won international artist of the year while her track "Good Luck, Babe!" won international song of the year.
"Espresso" singer Sabrina Carpenter was named as the first international recipient of the global success award, which recognizes artists with "phenomenal global sales", following in the footsteps of One Direction, Adele, Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith.
The ceremony also featured a tribute dedicated to late One Direction singer Liam Payne, who died in October after falling from a third-floor hotel room balcony in Buenos Aires, shocking fans of the boy band, one of the most popular of all time.
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