Rosalia steals the night at the Brit Awards and Germany’s Next Topmodel heats up

rosalia dominated headlines after a theatrical Brit Awards set that paired elaborate staging and a live orchestra with a surprise guest, and she left the ceremony as International Artist Of The Year. The same weekend, Germany’s Next Topmodel delivered an episode of contrasts: an angel-themed shoot, falling ratings and a high-pressure male-model challenge that surfaced candid personal stories.

Rosalia’s Berghain performance: Lux, orchestra and an unbilled Björk

Rosalia brought material from last year’s theatrical album Lux to the Brits stage with a flawless performance of the album’s lead single, Berghain. The show fused the album’s merger of classical and operatic influences with hip-hop and more traditional Spanish-infused sounds, and featured elaborate sets, a live orchestra and Rosalia’s central vocals.

The Spanish star also secured an unbilled appearance from Björk, who joined to perform her Berghain verse live; the moment marked Björk’s first time on the Brits stage in more than 30 years. Commentators urged viewers to take a moment to watch what one called a moment of “pure excellent, ” saying the performance “blew us away. ”

International Artist award and Rosalia’s acceptance speech

Rosalia capped the night by winning the International Artist Of The Year prize, beating nominees Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Bad Bunny, Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga. On stage she said, “I was so grateful just to be here tonight, just to perform, so this is insane. ”

She added a call for open celebration of diversity: “Let’s keep celebrating the ‘other’-ness. Let’s keep celebrating different music, different cultures and different languages. ” Later in the evening Jack Whitehall heaped praise on her performance during a lighthearted segment between the two of them.

GNTM episode six: angel wings, Nadja Auermann and a Peter Lindbergh homage

Most contestants on Germany’s Next Topmodel welcomed the episode-six assignment: a shoot with angel wings. The outfits were black or white wings that made the contestants look, the coverage noted, like “Victoria’s Angels with Pink-Allergy. ” Not everyone understood the brief: eighteen-year-old Vanessa opened the sequence with the line, “Ich freue mich auf das Shooting, weil ich da Face serven kann!” and at times seemed puzzled by the white wings, her expression prompting the thought, “Weiße Flügel? Lernen wir jetzt Klavier, oder was?”

There was a brief hope that pianist Igor Levit might appear as a guest juror, but that lasted only a few seconds before Heidi Klum announced she had invited two fashion icons. Nadja Auermann and Armin Morbach entered the model loft and Auermann declared, “Heute geht es um eine Hommage an Peter Lindbergh. ” Aside from the forty-seven-year-old Bianca and the fifty-four-year-old Ursula, most contestants had no idea who Peter Lindbergh was.

Vanessa’s recap of the concept—“Einer davon war ein Fotograf und eine ein Model, und die haben darüber gesprochen, dass ein anderer Fotograf gestorben ist und wir jetzt ein Shooting in seinem Stil machen!”—served as the working definition of the shoot. Morbach took the pictures while Auermann and Klum observed; Klum repeatedly rendered Morbach’s name in the show as “Ahmiiiehn” when introducing his guidance. The text of the episode ends after noting Morbach’s first “Jahrhunderttipp” went to Bianca.

GNTM ratings slump and past makeover fallout

The franchise’s early-season audience figures painted a worrying picture: the first ratings after three weeks were described as mau, with the premiere episodes drawing significantly fewer viewers than the prior year. A companion documentary called On & Off the Catwalk by Heidi Klum failed more thoroughly than a notorious forced makeover of former contestant Zoe Saip.

Zoe Saip, an ex-candidate from 2018, arrived in the villa billed as a young version of Abbey Lee, was then reportedly transformed by a forced makeover into what the coverage called a Dolly-Buster clone and was shortly thereafter cut. Heidi Klum’s TV-family reunion with her children Leni and Henry Samuel was labeled a fiasco after it drew just 590, 000 viewers, leaving the broadcast behind RTL 2; even about the 250th repeat of the comedy Wir sind die Millers attracted more viewers than Klum’s patchwork format. The piece suggested Klum needs models she did not give birth to if she is to revive the show’s ratings.

Male-model week on the Spree: early restyling, personal struggles and a water catwalk

Heidi Klum announced an early GNTM restyling as the male models faced their first major photoshoot. “Ich werde heute schon mal auf das komplette Paket achten, ” she said with a giggle before the chosen male models posed in short shorts on a boat: “Ich will ja wissen, was ich hier mitnehme auf Reisen. ” Photographer Andreas Ortner was assigned to shoot the retro 1950s-style swimwear on the Spree.

Contestants voiced a mix of confidence and vulnerability. Yanneck said, “Ich habe einen recht ansehnlichen Körper. ” Hyan admitted, “Ich schäme mich schon so ein bisschen über meinen Körper, ” explaining he had been thin before and then gained weight: “Es fällt mir sehr schwer. ” The trans man Jill spoke of past suffering and newfound agency: “dass ich da jetzt überhaupt Bock draufhabe, ” and recalled, “Ich habe wirklich sehr, sehr versucht, das gute, schöne Mädchen zu sein und das Frausein zu akzeptieren. ” He said the pressure became unbearable: “Irgendwann war es so schlimm vom Leidensdruck, dass ich mich bewegen musste, weil sonst hätte ich das nicht überlebt. ”

Testosterone treatment had thinned Jill’s hair; he hid it with hats but had to shoot without one because the hat cast too much shadow. “Ich hätte gerne bisschen volleres Haar, ” he sighed. Klum offered to address the insecurity with a hair system: “Ich finde es natürlich schon bisschen traurig, dass er sich schämt, dass er so starke Geheimratsecken hat. ”

Alexavius revealed a large birthmark on his leg that he hides because “Leute machen sich darüber lustig. ” Klum replied, “Das macht dich aber auch einzigartig, ” and Alexavius said, “Das zu hören, war ganz krass. ” The photographer praised him: “Fand ich sehr gut. ”

Experienced contender Godfrey called photoshoots his strength—“Shooting ist meine Stärke. Das ist für mich wie ein Universitätsabschluss, den ich abgeschlossen habe. ”—and insisted, “Fotoshootings ist mein Zuhause. Da muss mich erst mal jemand hier besiegen. ” Still, he struggled under critique and noted, “Dann kam schon mal die erste Ohrfeige. ” Ortner coached with, “Nicht so hart, ganz locker, 50er-Jahre, sehr relaxt. Entspann dich ein bisschen, ” and Godfrey reflected that the pressure was new: “Das war schon eine große Drucksituation für mich, weil ich es auch nicht gewohnt bin, als Model kritisiert zu werden. ”

Models later navigated a water catwalk with a Berghain backdrop where guest juror Baptiste Giabiconi taught catwalk technique. A following segment mixed futuristic 80s clothing, rave beats from a live DJ and ankle-deep water. Klum closed the sequence celebrating broader representation with, “Es wird Zeit für mehr Plus-Size-Männer, ” and the text breaks off after praise for Carstens c.