Photo Credit: BET
Regina Hall hosted the 2019 BET Awards and being a DC native, she took the opportunity to make the show about DC culture. From jokes that only natives would understand to gentrification which all of us get to having performances by Sugar Bear and Johnny Gill, as a DC resident myself, I’m definitely glad I tuned in. She even took some time to teach some lessons. There’s 14th Street which she said used to be the h*e stroll where the ladies of the evening used to get their cardio in so you could say it was the city’s first 24 hour fitness center. Mind you, Regina’s been out of the city for some time but it sort of still is that stroll. It just isn’t as prevalent as before. And there was gogo! Regina Hall opened up the show in a parody of Beyonce’s Beychella but with gogo. I didn’t think I would see the day that would play at the BET Awards. Next is the Grammys. She went on to say she was inspired by the black billionaire who was paying for the tuition of Morehouse graduates and said she too would be offering to pay the tuition of some viewers, but with stipulations. They have to be left handed with a clubbed foot, and a virgin. She also said she would be checking. (I’m sure it was a lot funnier when she said it.)
Now let’s get to the show. Cardi B performed despite her saying she would be resting to recover from her surgery but did an amazing job just the same. Sidebar: Anytime Cardi B decides to give a lap dance on stage is a good day. She and her hubby Offset performed their latest hits Clout and Press. Fantasia is a guaranteed win when performing and proved this yet again as true when she performed her new song Enough. Also, it wouldn’t be 2019 without Lil Nas X performing Old Town Road alongside Billy Ray Cyrus. The judges from Sunday Best performed including Kelly Price which was necessary because while Snoop won a gospel award, (yes that really happened), we needed a reminder what actual gospel vocals are. My generation grew up on Kelly Price and not this 3 note R&B and gospel nonsense we hear today. Real singers will always be respected.
Nipsey Hussle’s mother went on an extended rant about her son’s death that seemed to never end and as predicted while it was happening… no one said a single word or lifted a finger to try and stop her. Just like her son, she deserves all the respect. The BET offices would’ve regretted anything less.
One of the biggest takeaways of the night was Tyler Perry’s acceptance speech for the Ultimate Icon Award. He said that while others were fighting for a seat at the table, he was building one. He went on to say that he built his studio in the poorest part of Atlanta once owned by Confederates to show children that a black man did that. And lastly, Mary J Blige won the Lifetime Achievement Award. Of course she performed her own tribute because who can do Mary J better… than Mary J herself?
