Sabrina Carpenter and Charlie XCX’s Brit Awards Performances Receive Backlash; 825 Complaints Registered

Sabrina Carpenter’s sensuous performance and Charlie XCX’s revealing outfits at the Brit Awards have caused a stir. A UK media watchdog has received several complaints over the issue. Deets!

Written by Shreya Patnaik , Entertainment Journalist

Published on Mar 08, 2025 | 06:21 PM GMT | 63K

Charlie XCX and Sabrina Carpenter (Getty)

A whopping 825 complaints over the 2025 Brit Awards have been filed with the UK media watchdog Ofcom. According to BBC News, the complaints especially targeted the music ceremony’s performers, Sabrina Carpenter and Charlie XCX.

People did not appreciate the Espresso singer’s raunchy performance and criticized the Speed Drive singer for wearing revealing outfits. Apart from performing, Charlie was a big winner of the night, sweeping music five awards in major categories.

Ironically, her remarkable achievement wasn’t the topic of discussion among netizens or the headlines of media outlets, it was her see-through black dress. Well aware of the uproar she’s been causing with her scandalous outfit choices, the 365 singer addressed it at one point during the ceremony.

“I heard that ITV were complaining about my nipples. I feel like we’re in the era of ‘free the nipple’ though, right?” she told the audience at the Brit Awards last weekend.

Carpenter, who bagged the international artist award, performed a medley of her hits Espresso and Bed Chem. She also added the British marching anthem Rule Britannia into the mix. She had her background dancers dress as royal security and kept the theme of the show red, an homage to the UK.

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However, her sensuous performance gathered significant outrage. One Ofcom spokesperson told the outlet that they have been assessing the complaints “to decide whether or not to investigate.” On the other hand, the watchdog often received complaints over the Brit Awards for one reason or another.

In 2020, it was rapper Dave’s performance that generated over 300 complaints. Most of the complainants alleged that the rapper’s show was racist against white people. The complaints were rejected by the watchdog later.

Similarly, in 2018, the target was Kendrick Lamar, and in 2015, it was Kanye West who faced the heat over alleged use of offensive language and racial discrimination.