Adele Wins Big At Brit Awards, Vocalizes Support For Kesha

A tearful Adele was crowned queen of the British music scene – and banished memories of Grammy Awards sound glitches – with four prizes and a soulful performance at the Brit Awards on Wednesday.

“Not bad for a girl from Tottenham that don’t like flying,” said the North London-born singer as she accepted the Global Success Award.

The world-conquering diva also took trophies for British female solo artist of the year and British single of the year, for lovelorn ballad “Hello.” She’s up for album of the year for global chart-topper “25.”

Adeles-Return-To-Grammy-Stage-Marred-By-Sound-Problems
(Getty Images)

London-born Adele was cheered to the rafters by a hometown crowd and sent a shoutout to “Tik Tok” singer Kesha, who is fighting to get out of a contract with record producer Dr. Luke, who she says sexually assaulted her.

“I’d like to take this moment to publicly support Kesha,” Adele said as she accepted her statuette.

MORE: Taylor Swift Donates $250,000 To Kesha As ‘Show Of Support’ For Legal Fight Against Dr. Luke

Adele has seen “25” — her first album in almost five years — sell millions of copies around the world, though her performance at last week’s Grammy Awards was unsettled when a microphone fell into a piano during the tender song “All I Ask.”

The singer choked up as she accepted the Global Success award at the Brits.

“I got really lost for a while — I didn’t know if I’d ever come back,” she said. “And for you all to be so kind to me…”

Adele is set to sing at Wednesday’s ceremony at London’s O2 Arena, which also featured performances from Coldplay, Justin Bieber and Rihanna — joined onstage by Drake for a sultry “Work.”

PHOTOS: Brit Awards 2016

Singer-songwriter James Bay was named best British male solo artist, while Justin Bieber was named best international male artist. The 21-year-old Canadian star, who has endured some wayward behavior and scrapes with the law, thanked his fans, saying “everybody has their own journey. Everybody has their ups and downs.”

The prize for best British group went to dependable crowd-pleasers Coldplay. Singer Chris Martin dedicated the award “to all the young men and women musicians in refugee camps around the world. We could be them and they could be us.”

The awards — which celebrate international as well as British acts — have been accused of failing to represent the industry’s ethnic diversity, in an echo of the debate raging around the Academy Awards. All the British nominees this year are white.

Singer Jack Garratt, who has already been named winner of the critics’ choice prize, said “there are a lot of people who are not here who should be here.”

“It is a shame that half of U.K. music has been somehow forgotten about which is a bit disappointing and a little bit embarrassing to be honest,” he said on the red carpet.

Brit Awards organizer the British Phonographic Industry has promised to look at how nominees and winners are selected, “to ensure they reflect the full range of engagement with recorded music.”

The organization has also announced a new advisory committee made up of black and ethnic minority music-industry figures.

U.S. band Eagles Of Death Metal, whose concert was targeted in the November Paris attacks, lost out to Australia’s Tame Impala in the international group category.

MORE: Eagles Of Death Metal Return To Paris Attack Site

Before the show, Eagles singer Jesse Hughes thanked everyone who had supported the band, which returned to the Paris stage last week, three months after Islamic extremists massacred 89 people during the band’s show at the Bataclan theater.

“The reception we’ve received since coming back to Europe has truly been humbling and has helped us get back to doing what we do — playing kick-ass butt-shaking rock ‘n’ roll music,” he said.

The Brits were once renowned for chaos, enlivened by incidents including a 1992 stunt in which British band the KLF left a dead sheep at the after-show dinner.

The ceremony has been transformed in recent years into a slick, often predictable, talent showcase — though Madonna gave audiences a shock last year when she got tangled in her flowing cape and tumbled off the stage mid-performance.

This year’s show was short on surprises but strong on spectacle, with an opening number featuring dozens of dancers in red helmets and skirts that suggested flamenco centurions.

Jets of flame erupted liberally during Bieber’s performance of “Sorry.”

“I thought you were going to set us all on fire, Justin,” said Adele.

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