London singer Dua Lipa dominated the Brit Awards ceremony on Tuesday evening by winning both the title of “best singer” and that of “best album”, during this 41st edition which distinguished almost only women in the mixed categories. Postponed for three months because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the final ceremony of the prestigious competition took place at the London stadium of the O2 Arena, in the presence of 4,000 unmasked spectators maistested. It is indeed the first major musical event with an audience in the United Kingdom since the start of the pandemic. With her album “Future Nostalgia”, Dua Lipa, who had already won three Brit Awards in previous editions, narrowly beat the other nominated artists, including soul singer Celeste, songwriter and poet Arlo Parks as well as the rapper J Hus, the only man competing in this mixed category. Criticized in the past for very masculine nominations, the mixed categories have been devoted this year almost exclusively to women. The title of “best hope” was thus won by the young Londoner with French, Nigerian and Chadian roots Arlo Parks, while that of best international group was won by the three American sisters making up HAIM. The title of “best British group” was awarded to Little Mix, a trio of women, becoming the very first female group in the history of the Brit Awards to win this title. The opening of this edition to the public is part of pilot tests conducted by the government to authorize mass events in favor of the decline in Covid-19 contaminations. Another test concert also brought together 5,000 people in Liverpool last week, without masks or social distancing. Participants in this event, held in an open-air park, were allowed to attend after testing negative for Covid-19 and agreed to be tested again after five days. Their data will be used in a research program launched by the British government to study the effect of such gatherings on the spread of the virus.
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