In place of gendered awards, the new BRIT Awards 2022 categories will be open to public vote via TikTok. Find out more about this pioneering move here!

Earlier this year, organisers of the BRIT awards announced they would be scrapping gendered awards. Joining the likes of the MTV Video Music Awards and the Grammys, Britain’s biggest music awards made a bid for inclusivity. Instead of male and female artists being awarded for their achievements separately, they will now vie for top spots as equals.

Replacing the gendered categories of British Male & Female Solo Artist and International Male & Female Solo Artist will be four genre-focussed categories. These include awards for best alternative/rock act, pop/R&B act, dance act, and hip-hop/rap/grime act.

TikTok & the BRIT Awards 2022

In a move never before done in British music awards history, the winners of these new categories will be voted for by the public. This is instead of the panel of industry experts who usually make the call. The BRIT awards 2022 will see the introduction of social media as a means of choosing winners.

Voters will be able to access a dedicated BRITs hub on TikTok, where voting opened today (20th January) at 12pm. Voting will then close on the 3rd February at 6pm. Exclusive content from BRITs nominees can be found on the Discover page under the new hashtag #BRITsTok. Some of these nominees include Joel Corry, Joy Crookes, Wolf Alice, Griff, and A1xJ1.

TikTok users can cast 10 votes per category each day, with vote allowances reset at midnight. This is great news for artists with a strong, dedicated hometown fan-base. Sam Fender, who is up for three trophies at this year’s BRITs, will be relying on fans in order to bag the Best Rock/Alternative award. Meanwhile, his fate for the Artist and Album awards will remain in the hands of the traditional panel.