Silliness, sincerity at BET Awards
Diddy dropped it like it’s hot at the BET Awards — figuratively and literally.
The entertainer fell during an exciting performance Sunday that celebrated Bad Boy Records’ 20-year anniversary, one of the night’s highlights. Lil’ Kim, Mase, Faith Evans, 112 and The Lox joined Diddy as they performed a medley of past hits.
BET Awards co-host Anthony Anderson brought on the laughs when he dressed as singer Sam Smith, who won best new artist but didn’t attend the awards show.
“Sam Smith isn’t here tonight because he’s white and he didn’t think he would win at the BET Awards,” Anderson said as the audience at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles burst into laughter. “But we showed him that we love him, too.”
The show Sunday brought a mix of funny and serious moments. Rapping on top of a police car with a large American flag waving behind him, hip-hop prince Kendrick Lamar kicked off the awards with a dose of seriousness, but also brought a fiery energy thanks to his charisma and his song’s beat.
“This is for Compton, this is for Watts,” the rapper said.
Janelle Monae and Jidenna also brought a serious vibe to the stage when they performed “Classic Man”: The singers and their background dancers wore large “I’m a Classic Man” signs around their necks, a reference to the historic “I Am a Man” civil rights-era protest signs.
Anderson and fellow “Black-ish” actor Tracee Ellis Ross followed Lamar’s performance with a hilarious song poking fun at pop culture, including Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” case, Pharrell’s signature hat and Rachel Dolezal, the former president of the Spokane chapter of the NAACP.
Smokey Robinson received the Lifetime Achievement Award, performed a medley of his hits and earned a standing ovation from the audience when he spoke about Hollywood and humility.
Nicki Minaj, who won her sixth consecutive best female hip-hop artist award, brought her mom onstage. She gave a shout-out to fellow nominee and rising rapper Dej Loaf, as well as her rapper-boyfriend Meek Mill, who sat next to her at the show (and whom she later joined onstage for his performance).
The BET Awards is celebrating its 15th anniversary.