Harry Styles among first winners, winning Britain's pop music honour at BRIT

A shadow has been cast over the BRIT Awards' introduction of gender-neutral categories by an all-male nominee list for the artist of the year award, which included Harry Styles and Beyonce among the inaugural winners on Saturday.

Styles, who shared the most nominations with the indie rock band Wet Leg (four each), was named best pop/R&B act.

One of two gender-neutral categories introduced last year after organisers did away with female and male differences was won by chart-topper Beyonce.

The other is the artist of the year award, whose nominees are all men (rappers Stormzy and Central Cee, singers Styles and George Ezra, DJ and producer Fred Again, and vocalists Styles and George Ezra), which has displeased many in the industry and on social media.

A report on the BRIT Awards' website said the gender-neutral categories had been presented so artists were judged "solely on the quality and popularity of their work, rather than on who they are, or how they choose to identify."

But it added that organisers "acknowledge and share in the disappointment" of no women making the list. "A key factor is that, unfortunately, there were relatively few commercially successful releases by women in 2022 compared to those by men."

"Of the 71 eligible artists on the longlist, only 12 (17%) are women. We recognise this points to wider issues around the representation of women in music that must also be addressed."