Anohni is the first artist to be nominated for Brit Award in both male and female categories
By Darren Mew
Transgender singer Anohni has been nominated for the Best of British award at The Brits.
The Mercury Music Prize-winner was nominated for Best British Male 11 years ago as Antony Hegarty, from Antony and Johnsons, before she went public as transgender. She started working under her new name last year when she released the album Hopelessness in March.
The Chichester-born singer, 45, told the Bognor Regis Observer that she has idenitfied as transgender since she was a child but “shame” stopped her from asking people to refer to her as “she”.
“I was never going to become a beautiful, passable woman and I was never going to be a man,” she said.
“It’s a quandary. But the trans condition is a beautiful mystery; it’s one of nature’s best ideas.”
Hopelessness was named one of Attitude’s best albums of 2016 along with Beyoncé’s Lemonade and Christine and The Queens’ Chaleur Humaine.
She is up against Ellie Goulding, Emeli Sandé, Lianne La Havas and Nao for the Best Female award at The Brits. The winner will be announced on 22 February. Check out the rest of the nominations here.