First Performers Confirmed
The first live acts for The BRITs 2018 have been confirmed and we are so excited to share the huge line-up of British talent with you. 2017 has been a year of incredible success for Ed Sheeran, Stormzy, Sam Smith and Dua Lipa, the first four acts to secure a performance slot on the main BRITs show on 21 February.
Ed Sheeran’s history-making third album ‘÷’ is the fastest-selling album by a male artist, ever, in the UK. When Ed released ‘÷’ in March it dominated the UK singles chart with all 16 tracks charting in the UK Top 20. It is the fastest-selling album of all time and to date, 10 million copies have sold worldwide. The three times BRIT Award winner will play to over one million people in the UK alone in his stadium tour next year.
No stranger to The BRITs stage – Stormzy made a surprise appearance with his mate Ed Sheeran at 2017’s ceremony and was part of Kanye’s squad in 2015 - this will be his first solo performance. Stormzy made history this year when his debut album 'Gang Signs & Prayer’ became the first grime album to reach No. 1 in the UK. He is also the fourth act ever to have every single track from his album enter the Top 100 UK Singles Chart simultaneously, including seven songs in the Top 40.
Sam Smith – multiple BRIT, GRAMMY and Oscar winner – bagged his second Number 1 album with ‘The Thrill Of It All’ earlier this year, topping the US and UK Album Chart. This followed the success of his debut ‘In The Lonely Hour’ which sold 15 million copies worldwide. Sam will be returning to the BRIT Awards stage for the first time since his 2015 performance of ‘Lay Me Down. The year he also won ‘British Breakthrough Artist’ and the ‘Global Success’ Award.
Dua Lipa, the ‘most-streamed’ woman of 2017, became the first female solo artist to top the charts since Adele's ‘Hello’ in 2015 with her summer release ‘New Rules’. Dua has sold over 8.5 million singles and 1.2 million albums worldwide. The British female breakthrough star of the year and 2017 BRITs Critics’ Choice shortlisted artist will make her debut on the BRITs stage in February.
BRITs Chairman and Chairman & CEO of Sony Music UK & Ireland, Jason Iley said: “I’m very excited to confirm such a strong British line-up as our first four live acts for the main show in 2018: Ed Sheeran has had an exceptional year, across the world and we are thrilled to have him back on the show. Then we have previous Critics’ Choice winner Sam Smith returning to our stage following the incredible success of yet another No.1 album this year. Stormzy has had a phenomenal 2017, putting grime firmly on the map with his No. 1 album ‘Gang Signs & Prayer’ and Dua Lipa has been the biggest British female breakthrough story of the year.”
Tune into ITV at 5:45pm on 13 January for ‘The BRITs Are Coming’ to find out who is nominated for a 2018 BRIT Award with Clean Bandit, J Hus, Jorja Smith, Liam Payne and Paloma Faith performing live.
Mastercard holders can buy tickets to The BRIT Awards 2018, during an exclusive priority booking period between 15 – 27 December at www.priceless.com/London.
The BRIT Awards 2018 with Mastercard – Celebrate BRITs on 21 February 2018!
