Brit Award for International Artist

The Brit Award for International Artist of the Year is an award given by the British Phonographic Industry, an organisation which represents record companies and artists in the United Kingdom. The accolade is presented at the Brit Awards, an annual celebration of British and international music. The winners and nominees are determined by the Brit Awards voting academy with over one-thousand members, which comprise record labels, publishers, managers, agents, media, and previous winners and nominees.
First presented at the 3rd Brit Awards in 1983 to Kid Creole and the Coconuts, the award has been presented with various names over its tenure. Including his win with The Revolution, Prince has the most wins in this category, with three, while Madonna has the most nominations without a win, with five. Michael Jackson is the only other artist with multiple wins in this category. Only eleven non-American artists have been nominated for the award; Spanish singer Julio Iglesias in 1983, Australian band Men at Work in 1984, Swedish singer Neneh Cherry, who became the only non-American winner in 1990, Canadian musician Bryan Adams in 1992, Irish singer Enya in 1992 and 1993, Canadian singer k.d. lang in 1993, Nigerian singers Burna Boy in 2023 and 2024 and Asake in 2024 and 2025, Irish singer CMAT in 2024 and 2026, Australian singer Kylie Minogue in 2024 and Spanish singer Rosalía in 2026. As of 2025, the current holder of the award is Chappell Roan.

History

The award was first presented in 1983 as International Artist, where both groups and solo artists of any gender could be nominated. From 1986 to 1988, in 1990 and again in 1992 and 1993, it was presented as International Solo Artist while groups were honored with the newly created Brit Award for International Group from 1986 onward. The accolade was not handed out at the 1989 and 1991 ceremonies and has been defunct as of 1993.
In 2021, it was announced that the category had been revived and returned to its original name Best International Artist of the Year following the removal of gendered categories, and combines the International Male Solo Artist and International Female Solo Artist categories. This new iteration of the award was first presented at the 42nd Brit Awards. The number of nominees in the category was increased from five to ten in 2024.

Winners and nominees

International Artist (1983-1985)

Year	Recipient	Nominee
1983	Kid Creole and the Coconuts	Julio Iglesias Barry Manilow
1984	Michael Jackson	Hall & Oates Billy Joel Men at Work Lionel Richie
1985	Prince & The Revolution	Michael Jackson Lionel Richie Bruce Springsteen ZZ Top

International Solo Artist (1986-1988, 1990, 1992-1993)

Year	Recipient	Nominee
1986	Bruce Springsteen	Madonna Lionel Richie Tina Turner Stevie Wonder
1987	Paul Simon	Anita Baker Whitney Houston Madonna Bruce Springsteen
1988	Michael Jackson	Whitney Houston Madonna Prince Luther Vandross
1990	Neneh Cherry	Bobby Brown Gloria Estefan Prince Tina Turner
1992	Prince	Bryan Adams Michael Bolton Enya Madonna
1993	Prince	Tori Amos Enya k.d. lang Madonna Curtis Stigers

International Artist (2022-present)

Year	Recipient	Nominee
2022	Billie Eilish	Doja Cat Lil Nas X Olivia Rodrigo Taylor Swift
2023	Beyoncé	Burna Boy Kendrick Lamar Lizzo Taylor Swift
2024	SZA	Asake Burna Boy Caroline Polachek CMAT Kylie Minogue Lana Del Rey Miley Cyrus Olivia Rodrigo Taylor Swift
2025	Chappell Roan	Adrianne Lenker Asake Benson Boone Beyoncé Billie Eilish Kendrick Lamar Sabrina Carpenter Taylor Swift Tyler, the Creator
2026		Bad Bunny Chappell Roan CMAT Doechii Lady Gaga Rosalía Sabrina Carpenter Sombr Taylor Swift Tyler, the Creator

Multiple nominations and awards

Awards	Artist
5	Madonna Prince Taylor Swift
3	Michael Jackson Lionel Richie Bruce Springsteen
2	Asake Beyoncé Billie Eilish Burna Boy Chappell Roan CMAT Enya Kendrick Lamar Whitney Houston Olivia Rodrigo Sabrina Carpenter Tina Turner Tyler, the Creator

Awards	Artist
3	Prince^{#endnote A\|}
2	Michael Jackson

A ^ Including his win with The Revolution.