At this year’s Brit Awards, the annual showcase for the UK music industry, there were five nominees in the British hip-hop, grime and rap act category: Central Cee, Dave, Ghetts, Little Simz and Stormzy. It’s an award voted for by the general public, rather than the 1,200 music industry figures who make up the Brits’ voting academy.
When Stormzy was announced as the winner, he took to the stage to claim the award should instead have gone to Central Cee (real name Oakley Caesar-Su). It was a move reminiscent of Adele’s 2017 Grammy’s acceptance speech. Adele won the album of the year award for her record, 30, but said the gong should have gone to the “artist of my life” Beyoncé, for Lemonade.
