The Charlatans’ Tim Burgess paid tribute to The Stone Roses and Primal Scream bassist Mani at the BRIT Awards. Watch the moment below.
READ MORE: Gary “Mani” Mounfield, 1962-2025: baggy bass hero whose melodies made the Madchester movement
The Manchester music icon passed away from respiratory issues in November at the age of 63. He was laid to rest the following month at a funeral at Manchester Cathedral, which was attended by Liam Gallagher, Paul Weller, Ian Brown and more.
During the In Memoriam section of last night’s (February 28) ceremony, Burgess gave a speech about the late musician, telling the audience: “I’m here tonight to pay tribute to a good friend of mine.
“I know he was loved by so many of you here tonight and many more watching on TV,” he continued. “Mani was a kid from a few miles up the road. He changed music and inspired generations ahead of him. These songs he recorded will be his legacy, along with his unforgettable smile and uncontainable enthusiasm.
“He was truly one of the phenomenal ones, and they are far and few between. So, I just want you to think about Mani for a moment,” he said as the crowd cheered.
“We can cherish the thought that we got to experience our time and his time together. Let’s take a few moments to remember Mani and some of the people who we lost in the music industry, who we’ve lost in the last year.”
Ahead of his speech, Burgess spoke to NME on the red carpet and told us: “I think it’s important to recognise Mani. I mean, his legacy’s in the songs, but it’s great to be able to do that here.
“The records that he played on inspired generations,” he added. Watch the full interview below.
The annual awards show went down at Manchester’s Co-op Live on Saturday night, marking the first time it has ever been held outside of London.
Another tribute to Mani last night came from Geese, with the band’s Max Bassin saying in their speech for winning International Group of the Year: “I just want to say, free Palestine, fuck ICE, RIP Mani, let’s go Geese.”
In a tribute to Mani, NME described how the late musician “held a rare place in the world of bass heroes” and “defined a scene with some of the most infectious and hypnotic basslines ever recorded.”
“Both weighty and melodic, Mani’s bewitching basslines became the bedrock and, often, the driving force of The Roses’ breakthrough tracks ‘Elephant Stone’, ‘Made Of Stone’ and ‘She Bangs The Drums’, and underpinned the band’s low-slung funk development on ‘Fools Gold’ – arguably a four-minute encapsulation of the entire late-’80s dance rock scene,” it read.
Among those who paid tribute to the bassist were My Bloody Valentine, who dedicated their first tour in seven years to him, Oasis, who played ‘Live Forever’ in his honour, and Richard Ashcroft, who played a cover of ‘She Bangs The Drums’.
In January, Manchester United paid their respects ahead of an Arsenal game, with players wearing custom jackets reading ‘Mani 1962-2025’ alongside artwork reminiscent of the first Stone Roses album.
Since then, a crowdfunder has been launched for a permanent tribute mural to Mani in Manchester.
As for the BRITs, it was Olivia Dean who ended up dominating this year, winning four awards, including Artist of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year. See the full list of winners here.
The post Tim Burgess pays tribute to “phenomenal” Mani at BRITs 2026: “He changed music and inspired generations ahead of him” appeared first on NME.
