Rina Sawayama isn't eligible for a Mercury Prize or a BRIT award, because xenophobia

Rina Sawayama has made the news in regards to the Mercury prize and the BRITs, but not for the celebratory reasons that she should be.

When the list of nominees for the Mercury Prize award went out, Rina wasn't one of them, despite being widely seen as a contender for her critically acclaimed debut album Sawayama.

The reason? Rina doesn't have a British passport and therefore isn't 'British', which makes her ineligible for a Mercury prize. Or a BRIT award.

'bUt ThE uK iSn'T rAciSt'.

Sure babes.

Every time I hear somebody say that the UK isn't racist of xenophobic, I just roll my eyes and sip my mug of Milo.

When Rina first wrote "STFU" I'm sure she had no idea the song would apply to the constitution from which she wanted to win awards for her artistry. But it goes to show that xenophobia and racism is an ever relevant topic and is the 'Told you so' moment that nobody wants to have to make.

Rina Sawayama was born in Japan, but has lived in the UK for 25 years. But because Japan does not allow dual citizenship, Rina opted not to give up her Japanese citizenship. By law Rina isn't 'British'. But she is is by virtue of having lived in this country for as long as she has. In my eyes, as far as Rina is concerned and in the eyes of most, Rina is British. But...the law innit. So, no Mercury Prize or Brit awards.

Ever.

At least not for now.

Rina has since said that the BPI are looking into their rules of eligibility and gave a really vanilla and templated response which featured the keyword 'inclusive', which I'm over at this point; because inclusive has become nothing but a buzzword. Few organisations that spout it have any intention of doing the work to actually be inclusive.

I'mma need organisations to say less and do more. The fact that nobody in the British Phonographic Industry saw that maybe their rules need to account for immigrants who have lived in the UK for most of their lives and are all but by law British speaks volumes.

In a year where xenophobia in the UK runs its rifest in the wake of Brexit, where immigrants whoa re the pillars of British society are being shat on and the Black Lives Matter movement smoking racists out of corners, you would think that the BPI would take a look at itself. But no. It took Rina's team to put this issue right in front of their noses and for #SAWAYAMAISBRITISH to trend on Twitter for them to do say they are going to look into their eligibility parameters.

It's also makes me disgusted at the BRITs too. A music award show which celebrates music which a lot of the time is written and produced by European or US producers, and has international acts perform. The BPI is just so British in that regard. In that it's an institution which prides itself on being British, when it relies on so much which isn't British at all in order to exist. A country which prides itself on things which have no origins here. Tea. Fish and chips. Genres of music.

It's all a mess.

Hopefully Rina Sawayama and her album gets the recognition she deserves. No shade to Charli XCX or Dua Lipa, whose albums have been shortlisted for a Mercury Prize, but Sawayama dragged Charli and Future Nostalgia by their necks. At this point, I think Rina and her team should set their sights on the Grammys.

fuck-this-world.mp3.

📰 Rina Sawayama says BPI are reviewing the Mercury Prize’s eligibility rules @ NME
📰 'It's Othering' – British-Japanese Artist Rina Sawayama Can’t Enter British Awards @ Vice, by Zing Tsjeng