BET Awards 2012 Recap; Stars light up the stage.
The BET Awards took place in Los Angeles on Sunday, and big winners included Nicki Minaj, Kanye West, and, of course, Jay-Z and his wife Beyoncé.
The show opened with Spike Lee joining host Samuel L. Jackson on the stage to deliver a hilarious rendition of Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “N*ggas in Paris”—except theirs was called “Negroes in Paris.”
Kanye West and Jay-Z won for Best Group and when Kanye went onstage to accept the award, apparently unaware that Jay-Z was in the house, he appeared shocked when Jay walked out to join him.
One of the funniest and surprising moments of the night came when Kevin Hart won for Best Actor, beating three of the most talented actors in the world—Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle and Idris Elba—and pretended at first that he knew all along that he was going to win because he obviously was more talented than the others. Hart’s performance in Think Like a Man, based on the book by Steve Harvey and Denene Millner, helped propel that movie to gross nearly $100 million.
An ongoing skit during the show was a continuation of the Kevin Hart version of “The Real Househusbands of Hollywood,” which he began during last year’s BET Awards. This one featured Samuel L. Jackson inviting himself over to Hart’s house, cooking food on his grill, denying plates to Hart’s overweight friend, comedic actor , and Hart being afraid to make him leave.
As she won the award for Best Gospel Artist, Yolanda Adams issued a plea to her artist friends in the crowd: “Please make sure you use your gift responsibly. Our babies are watching.”
And of course there was the long-awaited return of D’Angelo, who thrilled the crowd by sliding through offerings of his inspired soul brilliance, both new and old selections. There was a decidedly female slant to the audience members standing up and grooving to D’Angelo, including Beyonce and Solange Knowles (though nearby Kim Kardashian, with Kanye West on one side of her and Nicki Minaj on the other, stayed in her seat).
After D’Angelo was done, Samuel L. Jackson came back onstage and cracked, “Let’s take a break so some of you ladies can change into dry panties.”
Maze featuring Frankie Beverly won the Lifetime Achievement Award, as Beverly sat in the crowd and watched his songs performed by such acts as Joe, Tyrese, and Faith Evans.
As they kept cutting to Beverly, we saw Rev. Al Sharpton—fresh off his speech at Rodney King’s funeral yesterday—standing behind Beverly and clapping joyously. Beverly came onstage to accept the award joined by his family, including his grandkids.
The night also featured an extensive Whitney Houston tribute, which brought out a long list of guests to commemorate the late singer, including: Monica, Brandy (who sang “I’m Your Baby Tonight” and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”), Whitney’s mother Cissy Houston (singing “Bridge Over Troubled Water”), and none other than Chaka Khan, who took us home with “I’m Every Woman.”
Check out the full list of winners below:
Best Group: The Throne (Kanye West & Jay-Z)
Best Actor: Kevin Hart
Best New Artist: Big Sean
Best Male R&B Artist: Chris Brown
Best Collaboration: Wale ft. Miguel
Best Gospel: Yolanda Adams
Best Female R&B Artist: Beyoncé
Best Female Hip-Hop Artist: Nicki Minaj
Lifetime Achievement Award: Maze featuring Frankie Beverly
Video Of The Year: “Otis,” The Throne (Kanye West & Jay-Z)
BET Humanitarian Award: Rev. Al Sharpton
Viewers’ Choice Award: Mindless Behavior
Video Director Of The Year: Beyoncé & Alan Ferguson
AOL Fandemonium Award: Chris Brown
Source 1: Atlanta Black Star Source 2: EW
