Every year since 2001, the Black Entertainment Television network (BET) has been honoring and celebrating African Americans and other minorities in sports, music, movies and more. The awards are live and are usually hosted by a popular or familiar face. These hosts have ranged from from Jamie Foxx to Samuel L. Jackson. The BET Awards show is known for its unique awards and honoraries. This award show never loses sight of what it's like to reach milestones as a person of color in America. BET is glorified in highlighting cultural contributions with its unique Lifetime Achievement award. The award has been presented to Charlie Wilson, Lionel Richie, Smokey Robinson and many other greats. Both living and deceased icons are honored by the BET. This award show is always front and center with the best tribute performances.
Alongside of a mini-documentary, the BET Awards organizes for suitable artists to pay tribute to the present year’s honorees. Last year, "A Rhythm Nation" was formed by Jason Derulo, Tinashe and Ciara in order to pay tribute to the living Janet Jackson. In 2012, Cissy Houston, Monica, Gary Houston, Brandy and Chaka Khan delivered heartfelt performances in honor of Whitney Houston. Since the beginning of the new year, 2016 has been claiming many BET cultural icons. It has been interesting deliberating about which icons will be honored and who will have the honor of doing so.
On April 21, the eclectic Prince passed away. Surely he was, and still is, a legend to this world and, especially, to the black community. Known for his flamboyant stage presence and impressive vocal range, Prince was an actor, producer and seven Grammy award winning superstar. The "Rolling Stone" has deemed him to be one of the most influential artists of the rock and roll era. Apart from his talent, his androgynous dress and attitude gave leeway to a cultural revolution within the black community, with his last publicized speech at the Grammy’s being: “Albums still matter, like books and black lives.” Following his death, this year’s Billboard Music Awards have assembled Stevie Wonder and Madonna for pay tribute to Prince. This performance has challenged BET to organize a better one.
Sadly, Prince isn’t the only icon we’ve lost so far. Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest passed away this March, shaking the hip hop world. Not only is A Tribe Called Quest a cultural staple for hip hop, but beloved Phife aided in creating landmark albums and shined a light on the music industry’s most talented producers, writers and contributors. Phife Dawg’s death meant that their first televised performance on "The Tonight Show" would be their last.
To top it all off, the “fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee” champ who fought for his people and walked amongst other heroes of Black American history like Malcolm X and Nelson Mandela, passed away June 4, 2016. Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., was the first and only three time lineal World Heavyweight Champ. He was an avid believer of racial justice and religious freedom, thus separating him from his contemporaries. The life of Muhammad Ali will definitely be celebrated at this year’s BET Awards and many awards to follow. However, viewers should also put into perspective that this year’s ceremony may be less jubilant as we have many fallen BET heroes to remember.
