Brit Award for International Artist
The Brit Award for International Solo Artist is an award given by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), an organisation which represents record companies and artists in the United Kingdom.[1] The accolade is presented at the Brit Awards, an annual celebration of British and international music.[2] The winners and nominees are determined by the Brit Awards voting academy with over one-thousand members, which comprise record labels, publishers, managers, agents, media, and previous winners and nominees.[3]
Brit Award for International Solo Artist
First presented at the 3rd Brit Awards in 1983 to Kid Creole and the Coconuts, the award has been presented with various names over its tenure. Including his win with The Revolution, Prince has the most wins in this category, with three while Madonna has the most nominations without a win, with five. The award has been won eleven times by artists from the United States and once by an artist from Sweden. As of 2024, the current holder of the award is SZA.
History[edit]
The award was first presented in 1983 as International Artist, where both groups and solo artists of any gender could be nominated. From 1986 to 1988, in 1990 and again in 1992 and 1993, it was presented as International Solo Artist (given to a male or female artist) while groups were honored with the newly-created Brit Award for International Group from 1986 onward. The accolade was not handed out at the 1989 and 1991 ceremonies and has been defunct as of 1993.
In 2021, it was announced that the category had been revived and returned to its original name Best International Artist of the Year following the removal of gendered categories, and combines the International Male Solo Artist and International Female Solo Artist categories. This new iteration of the award was first presented at the 42nd Brit Awards.[4] The number of nominees in the category was increased from five to ten in 2024.[5]