BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra head of music Chris Price has announced the return of the Brit List, an initiative aimed at supporting the best emerging UK talent.
Launched at the start of 2017, the Brit List guarantees each of the six selected artists three consecutive Radio 1 playlist appearances, vaulting them to the A-list if they haven’t previously appeared there.
The submission window is now open for a further three Brit List acts, with a further three to come in the autumn. Price (pictured) has announced revised guidelines for entrants.
"We have dropped the requirement that artists must not have an album in the market," he said in his BBC blog. "All new British artists are now eligible as long as they are not widely known to the UK general public."
Anne-Marie, Declan McKenna, JP Cooper, Sampha, Stormzy and The Amazons were the first six acts to grace the initial list, which came in for criticism in some quarters, amid claims that most of the artists were already well known.
"Brit List aims to supercharge the campaigns of emerging British artists at just the right early tipping point in their career," said Price. "Rather than propelling them from nought to 20, as BBC Introducing or the Sound Of poll do, Brit List is about accelerating emerging artists from 20 to 100. To that end, the next three successful applicants – like the first six - will have enjoyed some success already."
He added: "Launching Brit List was not just about committing to the artists themselves, but also about giving confidence to the wider market, in the hope of encouraging other radio, TV, streaming services and retailers to add their support. I’m happy to report that many of the six acts selected have seen just that - commercial radio going bigger and sooner than would otherwise have been the case, as well as TV and streaming editorial following suit."
