Buried beneath the underwhelming crop of Oscar nominees announced this morning and the next-day reports of People’s Choice Awards winners, the BRIT Awards also unveiled it’s yearly list of hopefuls.
Among them, Mumford & Sons, Alt-J, and Emeli Sandé lead the pack with three nominations apiece. Mumford and Alt-J will face off in two categories: British Group and Mastercard British Album of the Year (for the Worst New Music’d Babel and the Mercury Prize-winning An Awesome Wave, respectively). Rounding out the Album of the Year nominees is Emeli Sandé (Our Version of Events), Paloma Faith (Fall To Grace), and Plan B (Ill Manors); also vying for the British Group statue is Muse, the xx, and One Direction.
To claim British Live Act, Mumford must outmaneuver Coldplay, Muse, the Vaccines, and the sure-to-tour-the-entire-world Rolling Stones, who were last nominated for a BRIT back in 1996 (Best Video, for “Like a Rolling Stone,” which went to Oasis for “Wonderwall’). The Stones are the only act eligible for a BRIT on February 20 that was also nominated for the first ceremony in 1977 (where they lost Best British Group to the Beatles). In the British Breakthrough Act category, Alt-J will square off with Jessie Ware, Jake Bugg, Ben Howard, and Rita Ora.
Emeli Sandé is up for the British Female Solo Artist distinction — against Bat For Lashes, Jessie Ware, Paloma Faith, and the late Amy Winehouse — and the award for British Single, which has a total of 15 tracks in the running. Sandé’s “Next to Me” is in the same company as Ora’s “R.I.P.,” Adele’s Oscar-nominated “Skyfall” theme, Coldplay and Rihanna’s “Princess of China” collaboration, Jessie J’s “Domino,” Florence + the Machine’s “Spectrum,” and several other songs. If you count Sandé’s feature on Labrinth’s “Beneath Your Beautiful,” then she ends up with a total of four nods, more than anyone else.
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Frank Ocean, Bruce Springsteen, Jack White, Gotye, and Michael Bublé each earned a mention in the International Male Solo Artist group, while Rihanna, Cat Power, Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys, and Lana Del Rey (who won last year‘s International Breakthrough Act trophy) ended up bunched together in the International Female Solo Artist race. Rihanna won this title in 2011 and 2012, so she could be looking at a threepeat next month. International Group, meanwhile, is a toss-up between the Killers, the Black Keys, fun., Alabama Shakes, and the Script.
Performances are expected from Mumford, Muse, One Direction, Emeli Sandé, Ben Howard, and Robbie Williams, according to the Guardian. The 2013 BRIT Awards are scheduled to take place at London’s O2 Arena on February 20. Check out the full list of nominees below.
Mastercard British Album of the Year:
Alt-J, An Awesome Wave
Emeli Sandé, Our Version Of Events
Mumford & Sons, Babel
Paloma Faith, Fall To Grace
Plan B, Ill Manors
British Female Solo Artist:
Amy Winehouse
Bat For Lashes
Emeli Sandé
Jessie Ware
Paloma Faith
British Male Solo Artist:
Ben Howard
Calvin Harris
Olly Murs
Richard Hawley
Plan B
British Group:
Alt-J
Mumford & Sons
Muse
One Direction
The xx
British Breakthrough Act:
Alt-J
Ben Howard
Jake Bugg
Jessie Ware
Rita Ora
British Live Act:
Coldplay
Mumford & Sons
Muse
Rolling Stones
The Vaccines
International Female Solo Artist:
Alicia Keys
Cat Power
Lana Del Rey
Rihanna
Taylor Swift
International Male Solo Artist:
Bruce Springsteen
Frank Ocean
Gotye
Jack White
Michael Buble
International Group:
Alabama Shakes
Black Keys
fun.
The Killers
The Script
British Single:
James Arthur, “Impossible”
Jessie J, “Domino”
Rizzle Kicks, “Mama Do the Hump”
DJ Fresh (Feat. Rita Ora), “Hot Right Now”
Emeli Sandé, “Next to Me”
Florence + The Machine, “Spectrum”
Adele, “Skyfall”
Alex Clare, “Too Close”
Coldplay and Rihanna, “Princess of China”
Labrinth (Feat. Emeli Sandé), “Beneath Your Beautiful”
Olly Murs (Feat. Flo Rida), “Troublemaker”
Rita Ora (Feat. Tinie Tempah), “R.I.P”
Robbie Williams, “Candy”
Rudimental (Feat. John Newman), “Feel the Love”
Stooshe, “Black Heart”
Brits Global Success Award:
The Winner of this award will be announced at the show on Wednesday, February 20
British Producer of the Year:
Damon Albarn
Jake Gosling
Paul Epworth
Critics’ Choice
Tom Odell
Special Recognition Award:
War Child
