andPOP » BET Awards

Chris Brown Leads BET Awards Nominations

Christian Allaire — Wed, 18 May 2011 16:39:24 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Chris Brown is the top contender at the BET awards this year with six nominations, reports Billboard.

Brown is up for best male R&B artist, viewer’s choice and video of the year for ‘Look at Me Now.’ He’s also nominated twice in the best collaboration category for his No. 1 hits ‘Deuces,’ featuring Tyga and Kevin McCall, and ‘Look at Me Now,’ with Busta Rhymes and Lil Wayne.

Brown is also getting recognition for his acting, as he is nominated for best actor for his role in the heist thriller ‘Takers.’

Lil Wayne is nominated five times, three of them coming from his guest appearance on Brown’s ‘Look at Me Now.’

Kanye West, Drake and Rihanna are up for four awards each as well. Alicia Keys will perform and comedian Kevin Hart will host the award show. It airs live on June 26 from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Wow, can we call this a Chris Brown comeback? I personally still think he’s a douchebag, but Rihanna-related-events aside, I guess his music is pretty good. We’ll have to tune in to see how many awards he actually wins. I know he deserves to deal with the consequences of his actions, but its good to see him on some sort of path to recovery, both career-wise and personal-wise.

Chris Brown Cries During Michael Jackson Tribute at BET Awards

andPOP Staff — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:29:10 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Chris Brown broke down crying during a Michael Jackson tribute last night at the BET Awards.

Brown was performing a MJ inspired dance at the BET Awards when he was overcome with emotion. Nevertheless, if you like Chris Brown or not, it was still an awesome routine. He starts crying around 4:30 in the video below, in case you’re interested.

Soulja Boy in Studio with Kanye After Arrest

Stephen Baldwin — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:48:23 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

After a party at an abandoned Atlanta suburb house had Soulja Boy running from the police, the rapper told fans on Monday that he was in studio under the production of Kanye West, MTV.com reports.

The unusual pairing was enhanced by a previous rumour that West had fled to India after missing the BET hip-hop awards last weekend.

Soulja Boy was reportedly booked during the filming of the music video for his new track “Gangsta Muzik.” After spending a night in prison he was released on $550 bond.

The incident was characteristic of Soulja Boy’s immaturity. Creating music that hasn’t yet surpassed catchiness, the young rapper’s development and artistic respect lies in the hands of Kanye West. West has contributed to the careers of respected young artist like Drake, Kid Cudi and Lupe Fiasco.

What’s Up With Joe Jackson?

Robert Ostfield — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 13:40:27 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

So you would think with the recent death of your son and the fact the BET Awards were paying tribute to his son’s life, he would be a little bit more emotional. Apparently not. Here’s CNN’s interview with Joe Jackson last night at the BET Awards. My favorite part? When his business partner gets on camera to plug his next “project”. Check it out:

Kanye West, UGK Win Big At BET Awards

Eva Lam — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 22:56:58 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The BET Awards took over Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium Tuesday, with Kanye West and UGK emerging the night’s big winners.

The new school and old school hip-hoppers, respectively, took home two awards each at the annual ceremony, including best male hip-hop artist for West.

The outspoken musician brought fellow rapper Lil Wayne to the stage while accepting the award, saying, “This is my fiercest competition.”

He added, “Congratulations on selling over a million records. And they say hip hop is dead.”

West also won best collaboration for the track “Good Life” with T-Pain.

Meanwhile, UGK – who lost founding member Pimp C late last year to complications stemming from sleep apnea – claimed best group and video of the year for “International Player’s Anthem (I Choose You)” featuring OutKast.

“It’s hard to do this with my brother not being here,” said remaining UGK member Bun B, who was joined onstage by Pimp C’s widow.

“We want to thank y’all for supporting UGK all these years. It’s still UGK for life …. Long live Pimp C.”

Other winners at the awards show included Lil Wayne (viewers’ choice), Alicia Keys (best female R&B artist), Chris Brown (best male R&B artist), The Dream (best new artist) and Missy Elliot (best female hip-hop artist).

Hosted by comedian D.L. Hughley, the night also featured performances from Brown, Keys alongside girl groups SWV, En Vogue and TLC, Lil Wayne, Ne-Yo, Rihanna, T-Pain, Keyshia Cole, Nelly and Marvin Sapp.

Meanwhile, Al Green, who treated the audience to a performance of “Let’s Stay Together and “Love and Happiness,” was honoured with the lifetime achievement award, while Quincy Jones was presented with the humanitarian award.

T-Pain Scores Five BET Nods

Eva Lam — Sat, 17 May 2008 16:21:32 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

T-Pain has five nominations going into the upcoming Black Entertainment TV (BET) Hip-Hop Awards – all for collaborations with other artists.

The R&B singer-songwriter earned his nods, three of them in the best collaboration category, as a featured artist on recordings by Chris Brown, Flo Rida and Kanye West.

West himself received three nominations, as did Keyshia Cole. Coming in with two nods each were Mary J Blige, Alicia Keys and Flo Rida.

Meanwhile, soul singer Al Green will receive a lifetime achievement award at the ceremony, and Quincy Jones will receive an award for his humanitarian work.

Artists scheduled to perform at the June 24 gala in Los Angeles include Blige, Nelly, Lil Wayne and Mariah Carey.

BET Awards Announce Nominees

andPOP Staff — Tue, 16 May 2006 19:27:49 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

The lead-up to the sixth Annual BET Awards officially began Tuesday as the list of nominees was unveiled.

Busta Rhymes came out on top with four nominations, while Chris Brown, Kanye West, and Beyonce head into the competition with three nods each.

The two pre-determined awards ? BET?s Lifetime Achievement Award and BET?s Humanitarian Award ? will be presented to R&B singer Chaka Khan and calypso legend Harry Belafonte, respectively.

Damon Wayans will be hosting the festivities for the first time. ?I don?t know what I?m going to do, but I?m at my best when I?m unpredictable,? he said at the nomination ceremony. ?It?s gonna be balls to the walls. We?re gonna let it all hang out.?

The awards show airs live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on June 27.

Will Smith: Rap Needs A Makeover

andPOP Staff — Tue, 28 Jun 2005 14:09:36 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Tonight, actor-rapper Will Smith will be hosting the BET Awards alongside his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith. It will be a star-studded night of revelry with the biggest names in music – Mariah Carey, Ciara, John Legend, Missy Elliot, just to name a few ? all hitting the stage at Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre. But Smith doesn’t simply want to draw attention to the year’s hottest black entertainers. He’s also got a message for the show’s artists and audience: the impact of U.S. black culture is felt all around the world, with celebrity rappers being role models for today’s youth.

“The kids that are making these trends, making these songs, don’t understand the level of effect that black Americans have around the world,” Smith said in an interview with The Associated Press. ” … Black Americans are so elevated, it’s almost worship.”

Smith said he first noticed the trend while touring a village in Mozambique. He was surprised to find the name of slain rapper Tupac Shakur scrawled across a shack. When he asked the African children why it was there, “they were saying we want to dress like you dress, wear all the things you wear, talk how you talk,” he recalled.

Smith has brought up an important issue. But it’s clear that the children of Mozambique are not the only ones who look up to American rappers and who crave to imitate their way of life. Just take a walk on the streets of any major North American city and you’ll see mini-Eminems and mini-50 Cents everywhere ? teens wearing G-unit wifebeaters strutting down the street, bling flashing off necks, fingers, and ears.

Rappers are like royalty to today’s youth. So what happens when these rappers glorify violence, sexism, and drug use in their songs? Suddenly, it’s cool to have been shot five times like The Game ? or nine times if you’re 50. The more the better.

While I don’t deny that rap is infectious and hip hop is great music to dance to, it also can’t be denied that the genre doesn’t exactly have much depth. When was the last time you listened to a rap hit that had any sort of significant meaning? 50 Cent’s latest top 10 offering consists of him telling the ladies to “go shake that thang, yeah work that thang; let me see it go up and down.” Yeah, sure, I’ll get right on that. The kids who idolize these rap stars are only getting the impression that guns are cool and a woman’s sole asset is her ass.

Rap needs a makeover, and it looks like the “Fresh Prince” is on to something. Smith, one rare artist who doesn’t have so much as a parking ticket to his name, believes that youth strive for the gangster lifestyle because it’s “the image of survivors. What I’m trying to present and what a lot of other artists are presenting is a different approach to survival and a more sound approach to survival. It’s a more long-term approach based on intellect and skills that can’t be taken away from you: The smartest dude survives the best.

“It’s real important to have balance of the imagery. Yes, there are people who fire guns in the street, but there’s also doctors who go to work in those areas to feed their children.”