The BRIT Awards 2023: Fashion Highlights

We are well and truly in award season. Whilst the Grammy’s took centre stage a couple of weeks ago, the spotlight moved across the pond last weekend for the 2023 BRIT Awards – the biggest night in the UK’s music industry calendar. Stars flocked to London to celebrate everything music. Songs that rocked the year, chart-topping albums and promising new talents – but it would be a lie to say the excitement ends here. From Dua Lipa’s momentous Vivienne Westwood minidress to the iconic Ginger Spice Union Jack dress, the BRITS have always been an opportunity for celebs to dust off their most outrageous, glamorous and daring outfits and 2023 was no exception.  

I’ll start with *that* look on everyone’s lips. It’s no award show without that one utterly outrageous and impractical ensemble (think Lady Gaga’s infamous 2010 meat dress), and this year, Sam Smith squeaked their way across the red carpet and up to first place in this category. Whilst they failed to win any music award, the singer certainly turned heads in their inflatable black latex suit by designer HARRI. Allegedly, it alludes to their past struggles with body dysmorphia, creating a look that exaggerated certain body parts and experimented with dramatic shapes and sizes.   

Photo Credits: @samsmith on Instagram

Talking of body-positive celebs, queen of self-love and inclusivity Lizzo dazzled in both looks of the evening. A vision of opulence and glamour, she graced the red carpet in a striking Robert Wun gown, featuring dark metallic fabric, head-to-toe ruffles, and a statement gold earring. Her sophisticated style was swiftly replaced by a more playful yet equally as impressive pink silk Act No.1 ensemble for her live performance, and if her insane talent and magnetic stage presence weren’t already enough, the giant pink fluffy headboard attached to the back of her dress attracted plenty of attention. 

Photo Credits: @lizzobeeating on Instagram

Other celebs to stun on the red carpet included country legend Shania Twain in bright yellow Saint-Laurent, rising stars Wet-Leg with their take on denim-Steampunk and actress Jodie Turner-Smith in a shimmering 70s-style gown. Singer Jessie J also impressed on the fashion front, focusing her outfit around her baby bump, which she proudly displayed whilst strutting down the carpet in an entirely red lace co-ord and ruffled coat. Little Mix’s Leigh-Anne Pinnock was another leading lady of the evening, dressed in a draping orange gown, matching platform heels and a futuristic hairstyle.  

Photo Credits: @jessiej on Instagram

Of course, I would not be doing the 2023 BRITS any justice if I did not mention this last fashion entry. Besides taking home 4 awards in every category he was nominated for, rather drunkenly interacting with Stanley Tucci onstage and paying tribute to his former bandmates in an acceptance speech, Mr. Harry Styles unsurprisingly excelled in the fashion department too. Unlike his notorious harlequin jumpsuit at the Grammy’s a few days prior, he toned things down for his BRITS red carpet look in a custom black velvet Nina Ricci suit- a stark contrast to the vibrant and colourful costumes usually associated with the British star. He then blessed the stage in a cropped red sequinned blazer and black flared trousers for his performance, before changing into a simple tailored blue suit and satin shirt for the rest of the night. 

The BRITS never change. Daring dresses, over-the-top fashion statements, colour, glitter, glamour and the outright laughable- all of which 2023 delivered. There’s something about it- perhaps the celebration of music, as something so central to British culture, or the congregation of new talents and musical legends (and certainly the open bar)- that make it an exciting and truly iconic event in both the music and fashion worlds, and as long as the celebrities continue to have fun and be slightly insane with their outfit choices, I will be there for years to come.