Last night, the network held it’s 13th Annual Awards Show and took us on a musical journey. They gave us a blast from the past with Charlie Wilson, they took us to church with gospel singer Tamela Mann [I almost did the praise dance up in there!], and they even took us to the Islands with a reggae medley performed by Beanie Man, Elephant Man and more.
Huge highlights of the night included an opening performance by Chris Brown, who sang his newest singles, “Fine China,” and the Aaliyah-assisted “They Don’t Know.” He was also joined by Nicki Minaj, who floated over the audience while rapping her verse to their “Elevate the Game” collab. Robin Thicke, Pharrell and T.I. had everyone on their feet and two-stepping to their #1 hit song “Blurred Lines” while Kendrick Lamar and Erykah Badu (or shall we say Badonk) gave an incredible performance of “B-tch Don’t Kill My Vibe.” Miguel, who is definitely winning right now, hit the stage three times for a performance with J. Cole, Mariah (who is being accused of lip syncing) and Kendrick Lamar.
BET took us down memory lane while providing us with the biggest highlights of the night: R. Kelly and the Charlie Wilson tribute. R. Kelly was definitely there to remind us of his “King of R&B” status as he performed 30-second snippets of hit after hit after hit, while the Charlie Wilson tribute seemed to never end as folks like Justin Timberlake, Snoop Lion, Pharrell , Jamie Foxx and Stevie Wonder performed songs like “Beautiful,” “You Dropped a Bomb on Me,” “Signs,” “Outstanding” and “You Are.” Everyone was on their feet.
To round out the show, Ciara performed “I’m Out” with Nicki Minaj, followed by “Body Party” [Read our earlier post here] and Janelle Monae closed the awards with a high energy performance of “Q.U.E.E.N.” She brought the music video to life with Erykah Badu, who brought a huge poodle out on stage, and a clan of dancers dressed in suspenders.
Overall, BET really stepped their game up this year with the selection of performances, which was well rounded, but they also did a good job of showing the contrast in music of yesterday versus today. The generational gap was evident, with the younger crowd on their feet during the performances of 2 Chainz, Jeezy, Chris Brown and Ciara, and the older folks were on their feet and singing the lyrics to every song during the R. Kelly and Charlie Wilson tributes.
As far as Chris Tucker as the host, he had a few good moments [like impersonating Michael Jackson, and poking fun at his IRS drama] but at times it seemed as though it was hard for him to connect with the audience. He was under a lot of pressure with last year’s host Kevin Hart sitting in the audience. TURN UP!
What was the most memorable moment of the night for you?
Catch a few of the performances below :
[Just a little warning: Video players may take some time to load and they feature multiple ad spots -_- ugh!]
Kendrick Lamar & Erykah Badu perform ‘B-tch Don’t Kill My Vibe’
Janelle Monae & Erykah Badu perform Q.U.E.E.N.
Beenie Man, Elephant Man & More perform a Dancehall Medley
Chris Brown performs “Fine China,” “They Don’t Know” and “Elevate The Game”
J. Cole & Miguel perform ‘Crooked Smile’ & ‘Power Trip’
Miguel & Kendrick Lamar perform “How Many Drinks (Remix)”
Mariah Carey performs “Beautiful (Remix)” with Miguel and Young Jeezy
Robin Thicke, T.I. & Pharrell perform “Blurred Lines”
Charlie Wilson Tribute with India.Irie, Stevie Wonder, Justin Timberlake, Snoop Lion, Pharrell
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