Music

Given that he also spent the night tributing Usher and sharing the official trailer for his forthcoming new film, it was difficult to know if Childish Gambino was serious in his impromptu lambast of BET and the awards.

The Emmy and Grammy-winning multi-hyphenate — whose new “Lithonia” single is due July 2 — quipped that he has more Grammys than Will Smith, but the same amount of BET Awards as Sam Smith. The Mr. and Mrs. Smith actor was correct in that assessment, highlighting some curious kinks in how the BET Awards honor and celebrate left-of-mainstream television, films and hip-hop music. There were some heads nodding along in the process, but the crowd wasn’t exactly jumping at the chance to agree with Gambino and ride for him. In fact, most people were preoccupied with the random jab at Sam Smith.

This wasn’t the only time a quip landed with a resounding thud during the telecast, but having a joke brick right before the album of the year winner was announced was clearly far from ideal. Nonetheless, the execution didn’t completely muddy Bino’s point, which plenty of audience members continued to chew on in individual conversations throughout the rest of the night.

A two-time winner at this year’s show (best new artist and best international act), Tyla would have had a near-perfect night even if she never performed on the stage. Again, this is Tyla we’re talking about. Of course, the amapiano/afropop queen with the infectiously inimitable choreography ended up performing.

Smartly leaving her eponymous debut studio album’s other singles in the dust, Tyla chose to perform her Afrobeats and dancehall-infused “Jump” for her BET Awards debut. Featuring dancers painted to look like life-size tigers, enormous stilt walkers, and a set with art direction that played on the earthiness of the Motherland, “Jump” was a feast for the eyes and ears.

A collaboration with America’s Gunna and Jamaica’s Skillibeng, “Jump” is a musical fusion of different sounds of the African diaspora, and South Africa’s Tyla smartly invited both of her collaborators to share the stage with her. When Skillibeng walked on the stage and began his intro, dancehall queen Spice and her crew were some of the first people to get up on their feet and show the 27-year-old artist some love. Conversely, when Gunna appeared for his verse, he got a noticeably more lukewarm reception than both Tyla and Skillibeng.

Although more than enough people had not a single care in the world about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock, enough people were sent into complete disbelief and tender that the Bady Boys: Ride or Die singer still thinks he needs to at least half-participate in a traditional apology tour. Enter Kirk Franklin and the Sunday Service Choir.

Just two days after releasing the Fridayy-assisted “You Can Make It,” the Oscar-winning actor took to the BET Stage to deliver the song’s live debut, swapping out Fridayy for five-time Grammy-winning gospel artist Chandler Moore. While the actual song is nothing groundbreaking — it unfavorably recalls Macklemore circa 2017 — it illustrated a moment much bigger. An anthem of determination and persistence, “You Can Make It” effectively served as Smith’s testimony for surviving the more turbulent period of his career and coming out on top with yet another box office-topping flick.

“We are not being punished; we are being forged,” he preached shortly after Kirk Franklin nearly blew out his mic sharing his own exaltations of praise and thanks. “Dance in your darkest moments.”

Between a salacious Sexyy Red set and a tribute to an artist with a three-decade career, the BET Awards aren’t really the place for kids. Nonetheless, VanVan and Heiress Harris, daughter T.I. and Tiny, brought every adult in the room back to their elementary school days. The two pint-sized performers rocked the crowd with “Be You,” effortlessly rapping, singing and dancing along to their anthem of individuality. It truly cannot be overstated just how enamored with VanVan and Heiress the crowd inside Peacock Theater was. Whether they were cheering or observing slightly incredulously, there was a smile plastered on every face in the crowd as these two Black girls carved out space for themselves — and all kids — in hip right before our very eyes.

Going into the 2024 BET Awards, whether or not Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” would be referenced was a no-brainer. The real question was how often people would call back to the Mustard-helmed banger.

Never one to be outdone, the night’s host, Academy Award-nominated actress Taraji P. Henson, began her emcee duties donning a replica of K.Dot’s Pop Out concert fit, complete with the light wash jeans and crimson hoodie. The Baby Boy actress rapped a BET-specific version of the track, while the crowd inside Peacock Theater continued to rap along to the original lyrics of Kendrick’s latest chart-topper. With her backup dancers riffing on Kenny’s Pop Out concert dance moves and a pitch-perfect of those final ad-libs, Taraji delivered the second-best thing to the real Kendrick Lamar.

If the numbers weren’t proof enough, Kendrick Lamar dropped the year’s defining anthem with “Not Like Us.” No other song — whether part of a skit, DJ set, or scheduled performance — enthralled the crowed that much.

Four years after Kane Brown became the first Black male solo male country artist to perform at the BET Awards, two rising country stars scored big looks at Culture’s Biggest Night.

For her performance on the BET Amplified stage, Tanner Adell — who featured on “Blackbiird” and laid background vocals for “American Requiiem” on Beyoncé‘s Billboard 200-topping Cowboy Carter earlier this year — delivered a medley of her breakthrough hit “Buckle Bunny” and “Cowboy.” Donning a lacy white dress reminiscent of a classic Southern belle, Adell showed off both her vocal prowess and onstage charism — both of which won over the crowd in Peacock Theater even though she was performing outside of the venue.

Shaboozey — who featured on Cowboy Carter’s “Spaghettii” (with Linda Martell) and “Sweet * Honey * Buckiin” — blew the roof off the venue with his smash hit “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” Despite the song’s eye-popping No. 3 peak on the Hot 100, it took a bit of time for the crowd to truly lose themselves in Boozey’s performance. By the time J-Kwon came out to perform “Tipsy” — which “A Bar Song” interpolates — on the honky-tonk-themed set, the crowd absolutely lost their minds. Once the two artists started going back and forth with “everybody at the club gettin’ tipsy” and “everybody at the bar getting tipsy” at the very end, they unlocked a level of hip-hop/country synergy that hasn’t been seen since peak Nelly.

If anyone had a case for owning the night outside of Usher, it’s Victoria Monét. The R&B powerhouse — who won three Grammys earlier this year and earned the Vanguard Award at the ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Awards last week — was practically glued to the stage between her victories and performances.

For her solo performance, she delivered a sweltering medley of “On My Mama” and her latest single “Alright,” which featured a surprise appearance from Kaytranada, who produced the house-infused track. Between an HBCU-nodding rendition of her breakthrough hit and an “Alright” performance that featured an outfit change, water-set choreography, and a literal jaguar outro, Victoria Monét mounted one of the most technically impressive performances of the night. Later in the show, Monét returned to the stage alongside Teyana Taylor for an unbelievably sexy recreation of Usher and Beyoncé’s iconic “Bad Girl” routine for the lifetime achievement award tribute.

Nonetheless, Monét’s most beautiful moments came during her acceptance speeches. When she won the BET Her Award for “On My Mama,” she accepted the award alongside her actual mother — who also appears in the track’s acclaimed music video — making for a priceless full-circle moment and a welcome coda to the saga of her quest to reunite with her birth father. When she closed the night as the victor of video of the year (“On My Mama”), Monét used her acceptance speech as an opportunity to advocate for dancers — the key players in the music industry who are often instrumental in breaking a song yet get paid in literal scraps. She even brought her longtime collaborator and “Alright” choreographer onstage with her while receiving her award. After all, it’s Monét’s impressive execution of Bankhead’s choreography that has helped elevate both her stage show and the commercial success of her singles.