Before last night's BET Awards, there was some question about whether the show could go on as scheduled. In Los Angeles, near the site of the show, hundreds of Marines were deployed to shut down the protests against ICE and Donald Trump. The broadcast went on as planned, but ascendant phenom Doechii, winning her first BET Award, took a moment to acknowledge what was happening and to make a statement in solidarity with the protesters.
Last night, Doechii won the award for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist. After thanking BET and acknowledging the other nominees, Doechii had this to say:
As much as I'm honored by this award, I do want to address what's happening right now outside of the building. There are ruthless attacks that are creating fear and chaos in our communities in the name of law and order. Trump is using military forces to stop a protest. And I want y'all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our right to protest, the military is deployed against us. What type of government is that? People are being swept up and torn from their families, and I feel it's my responsibility as an artist to use this moment to speak up for all oppressed people -- for Black people, for Latino people, for trans people, for the people in Gaza. We all deserve to live in hope and not in fear, and I hope we stand together, my brothers and my sisters, against hate, and we protest against it.
Kendrick Lamar also won Album Of The Year for GNX. He showed up to accept it, but he didn't have any big statements to make.
Also on the show, Mariah Carey performed her new single "Type Dangerous" for the first time with Anderson .Paak and Rakim. Playboi Carti, Leon Thomas, GloRilla, Teyana Taylor, and Lil Wayne also performed. And BET paid tribute to the 25th anniversary of its countdown-request show 106 & Park with a nostalgic 20-minute all-star medley, featuring Ashanti, Jim Jones, Amerie, Mýa, Keyshia Cole, T.I., B2K, Bow Wow, and Jermaine Dupri, as well as a recreated version of the show's old set and a bunch of its old hosts. It's a very fun watch
