Woo-Hah!
BET honored the year’s best in music, TV, film and sports at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, June 25. This year’s event celebrated 50 years of Hip Hop and awarded Busta Rhymes with their annual Lifetime Achievement Award.
Following a playful roast by actor and comedian, Marlon Wayans, a tribute video by Busta’s long-time collaborators Diddy, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliott, and Pharrell among others, kicked off the celebration of “Hip-Hop’s mayor”.
“I just am grateful that the blessing that has been bestowed upon me and this gift that I’ve been given and this fire that continues to burn as a passion in my soul that allows me to get in any situation from the stage to collab and with whoever,” the emotional 51-year-old rapper said during his acceptance speech.
“We gonna stop these little petty beefs that we be doing in rap.. Y’all messing up the bag,” he later addressed in regards to the beefs in Hip Hop. “Y’all messing up the energy. I don’t like when I talk to these dudes that run these streaming platforms and they’re talking about, ‘You know, we turning the consumer off because there’s so much little this and little that going on with you rappers.’ We’re gonna stop that. We’re gonna love each other, and we gonna get to this money. We’re gonna stop this narrative like we don’t love each other, this divide thing. It’s corny. It’s tired. It’s wack.”
Busta then hit the stage with Swizz Beatz and kicked off his electrifying performance with MOP’s “Ante Up”, his A Tribe Called Quest’s “Scenario” remixes, “Look At Me Now”, “Break Ya Neck,” “Give It To Me,” “New York Shit,” and “Touch It”. He also brought out members of his Flipmode Squad.
Bus also performed his “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See”, and brought out Coi Leray for their “Players” remix before he gave the first televised performance of his new single, “Beach Ball” with BIA.
Other highlighted performances throughout the evening included Offset and Quavo reuniting as the Migos for their tribute to Takeoff and a series of performances of 50 years of Hip Hop. Redman, Keith Murray and Erick Sermon’s brought the golden era of 90’s, Kid Capri, MC Lyte, Big Daddy Kane, and the Sugarhill Gang celebrated the ’80s, and The Ying Yang Twins, Chief Keef, and Bobby Shmurda visited the generations of trap rap.
Elsewhere, Fat Joe and Remy Ma took it back to the early 2000 in NYC, while Warren G, Yo-Yo, E-40, YG, and Tyga repped the West coast. T.I. Jeezy, Trina, Trick Daddy, and Uncle Luke brought viewers down to the Dirty South and Mad Lion and Patra brought Jamaica to the theater for their dancehall tribute. Other performances throughout the night included Lil Uzi Vert, Latto, Ice Spice, GloRilla, Doechii, Trillville, Davido, Crime Mob, Rae Sremmurd, and many others.
This year, the ceremony awarded a couple of ties including SZA’s S.O.S. and Beyonce’s Renaissance for Album Of The Year. SZA also took Best Female R&B/Pop Artist and Video of the Year for “Kill Bill,” while Beyonce’s “Break My Soul” received both the Viewers Choice Award and the BET Her Award.
Chris Brown and Usher were also tied for Best Male R&B/Pop Artist and Coco Jones was honored this year’s Best New Artist.
Kendrick Lamar and Latto were both crowned this year’s Best Male and Female Hip Hop Artist, Drake and 21 Savage earned Best Group, and Future’s “Wait For U” featuring Drake and Tems earned Best Collaboration.