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Bristol Post
Bristol Post
Entertainment
Maisie Lillywhite

BRITs 2022: Adele accused of being a 'TERF' after after winning gender-neutral award

Over six million people tuned into the BRIT Awards last night (February 8) as the biggest night in British music made a strong comeback.

Millions watched as Adele stole the show, impressively picking up three gongs for various categories - Song of the Year, Album of the Year and Artist of the Year.

The 33-year-old appeared to be in high spirits following a rocky start to 2022 - the 'Easy On Me' songstress had to cancel her Las Vegas residency, tearfully telling fans in January: "I'm so sorry, but my show isn't ready.”

Read more: BRITs 2022: How Maya Jama kept chasing her dreams despite tragic childhood

And although the Tottenham native dazzled fans during her performance of 'I Drink Wine' from her new album, some viewers were left disappointed by one of her acceptance speeches.

The BRIT Awards 2022 marked the abolishment of gendered categories, and the launch of two new ones in their place - Artist of the Year and International Artist of the Year.

After receiving Artist of the Year, Adele took to the stage to give an acceptance speech. She said: "This is amazing, I really wasn't expecting this one at all. I love being an artist, I really do, and I genuinely can't believe it's my job," as she praised some of the other nominated artists.

"I understand why the name of this award has changed but I really love being a woman."

Whilst the move to gender-neutral categories was hailed by many, including Sam Smith, who uses they/them pronouns, some people criticised the shake up.

Around the time of the announcement, former GMB presenter Piers Morgan slammed the changes, saying: "What a load of woke garbage. Won't be long before it's illegal to call yourself a man or woman."

A few Twitter users have suggested that Adele is a TERF, which stands for trans-exclusionary radical feminist.

Cal McFab said on Twitter: "So did Adele just throw shade at the Brits decision to make awards gender neutral? Not the smartest move"

Ariel commented "I’ve always found Adele to be off putting and I could never put my finger on what it was, After her little statement complaining about gender neutral catagories (sic) at the BRITs, I think I figured out at least part of it."

Meanwhile, some fans came to Adele's defence, with presenter Ellie Philips praising the star: "Speaking about the #BRITs becoming gender-neutral as she wins Artist Of The Year… “I understand why the name of this award has changed, but I really *love* being a woman and being a female artist, I do” - YES Adele"

Adele seemed to cause her fair share of controversy last night with her speeches, as viewers claim that ITV muted the wrong part of one of her speeches, meaning the F-bomb was broadcast to millions of viewers at home.

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