Music Gripes: BET Awards, Chris Brown, Prince, and Everybody Else

Award shows, and the BET Awards in particular, know that in order to keep viewers coming back you have to give them something to talk about the next day. However, about an hour into the 3-hours long show, I thought that the BET Awards Show had missed the memo this year and was quickly on its way to becoming a snooze fest. Despite leading with heavy hitters like Kanye West, Usher, Alicia Keys, and T.I. the energy level was noticeably low to this blogger. No doubt, Kanye West’s opening of the show with a performance of Power while standing on a mountaintop a la Moses and special effects cranked way up was something magical to watch. But did it blow me away? Not really. Added to this, Usher’s follow-up slow number and Alicia Key’s compilation of her various hits did not impress. The show was going nowhere fast. Thankfully, the performances featured in the second hour kicked things up a notch and reminded me of why I continue to watch the BET Awards Show year after year (especially after the disaster that was last year’s show).

As the host, Queen Latifah gave it a good effort. In her opening, she shouted out popular rappers and other entertainers, performed a rap to the beat of Drake’s Say Something and throughout the rest of the evening, she paraded some of the characters that she played in various movies and series (Hairspray, Set It Off, Just Wright) onstage. She’s certainly not the best host the Show has ever seen but it was a good effort nonetheless. However, the real highlights of the show came via the performances. There were quite a few "good" performances throughout the evening but the ones that stood out for me were the various tributes, the gospel medley (although Kirk Franklin is better at directing than he is at singing), and the Diddy-Dirty Money (why do we keep indulging him with these silly name changes) collaboration with Rick Ross, T.I. and Nicki Minaj. I have to admit that I was a little worried when Queen Latifah first announced him because as we all know, Diddy-whatever is not at his best when he is performing by himself. But then the beat dropped and the energy level skyrocketed and I scaled back on the low expectations that I had fostered since I first heard his name. The man definitely knows how to put the right combination of people together.

Singer Tyrese’s tribute to the late Teddy Pendergrast was nothing to sneeze at either. Crooning to an audience of women waving panties in the air, Tyrese’s smooth moves and rich mellow tones did Teddy proud. He wasn't too hard on the eyes either. And then there was the Prince tribute. The camera continually returned to capture Prince’s reactions throughout performances of some of his hits by Trey Songz who bordered on cheesy, Janelle Monet who is a new hot one to watch, Esperanza Spalding who had a nice fro but was not otherwise memorable, Alicia Keys who scared me for a minute when she climbed on top of the piano with her pregnant belly but who gave a great performance and Ms. Patti LaBelle. Patti Labelle was clearly Prince’s favorite. He did not seem moved or even amused by most of the other performances but when Patti sang Purple Rain, he was on his feet, laughing and clearly enjoying the diva. Apparently, a divo giving a diva her due! I got the sense that Prince would not have made it to the BET Awards Show if he wasn’t the guest of honor. From what I was able to piece together from his short speech, he stayed in his hotel room for much of the show and only arrived just in time for his tribute. And, he didn’t even perform any of his hits. Has Prince really gotten too big for the likes of BET? I think that would be a fair assessment!

At each award show, BET has been known to dig through its closets and drag out entertainers who hadn’t been in the spotlight for years, some of whom (in the months following the show) saw new life breathed into their flat-lining careers. Maxwell was one such entertainer a few years ago although I dare say, his comeback was inevitable. El Debarge was clearly this year’s artist in need of a recharge but was last night also Chris Brown's second chance at redemption? No doubt, CB will be forever associated with the beating that he gave ex-girlfriend Rihanna. We’ve seen his efforts to offer up apologies fall flat and we’ve heard news of declining records sale. We’ve seen spoofs like this one that make it clear that CB was tried and found guilty in the court of public opinions. He was definitely feeling the consequences of his actions, as well he should! But could that all be at an end after last night?

Last year, I was very disappointed in the obviously hasty performances that were meant to honor the King of Pop. This year, Chris Brown did a much better job of honoring Michael Jackson when he sang some of his more memorable hits (The Way You Make Me Feel). However, after a dance sequence, CB became choked up when he attempted to sing the lyrics to Man in the Mirror. Publicity stunt? That’s certainly the sentiment spreading across the net, a sentiment that is supported by the fact that by the end of the show, CB was awarded the Fandemonium award, an award chosen by the fans. What better confirmation does he need that he still has a thriving fan base? Whether it really was a publicity stunt or not CB played it just right. Who can help but soften up at the sight of a man-boy crying and being overcome by his emotions, expressing remorse? And with that single act, he did what his appearance on Larry King Live and numerous tired apologies couldn’t; Chris Brown resurrected his music career! I believed him when, while accepting his award, CB promised his fan that he wouldn't let them down again. I believe that, or rather, I believe that he won’t let himself get caught next time.

The Alicia Keys Situation: My Two Cents

Ok, so I’m super late to the party. But that’s never stopped me from putting in my two cents. G. just happened to mention that Alicia Keys was pregnant which led to a discussion about the ex- Mrs. Swizz Beatz and the open letter to A. Keys that she posted on twitter. Apparently, this was posted about two years ago and I somehow missed it. First, I must make it clear that I don’t condone anyone who enters into a relationship with someone else who they know to be married, celebrity or not. I do not abide cheating on the part of any of the parties involved. Still, I took issue with some of what Mashonda had to say.

First, this “open letter” is not something that I nor anyone else needed to see. I don’t know why she thought that A. Key’s tweets had anything to do with her but since she did and it’s out there, I also take issue with that fact that she seems to make this an issue solely between herself and A. Keys. Where is Swizz Beatz’ responsibility in all this? He was the one who made vows to Mashonda but yet, all of her ire is directed to the so-called other woman. As women, we sometimes seem to think that it’s the other woman who should bear the brunt of our pain and while I feel that they do have some responsibility, the man who committed themselves to us has even more so. Unless some woman drugged him, tied him down and raped him, any man can open his mouth and tell a trifling woman to back up off of him.

I also take issue with the fact that Mashonda seems to think that she and A. Keys need to get along in order for Swizz to be involved in his son’s life. In a perfect world, that would be peachy but I just don't think that she should make that a condition for them to be able to raise their son together. She has no right and who really knows if A. Keys will still be in his life 5 years from now anyway? If things do not work out, someone else will take her place. If Swizz is good to his son, he has a right to be in his life. It has nothing to do with anyone else, not A. Keys or anyone else who might take her place.

I get that in light of her personal situation the types of songs that Alicia Keys sing about seem to paint her a as hypocrite. But apparently, I have a much easier time of separating the artist from the person. Earlier this year, I went to see A. Keys in concert and thoroughly enjoyed myself. And yes, I admit to being titilated when Swizz made a brief appearance on stage. What can I say? I centainly didn't spend the three hours being mad at A. Keys for whatever's going on in her personal life. But I have friends who said that they no longer like Alicia Keys' music because she is a trifling broad. Hmm, I can’t remember what they said about R. Kelly and his penchant for peeing on teenage girls. We have this tendency to put celebrities on a pedestal and when they dare to fall, we give it to them hard! And maybe, rightly so. We like to think that they maintain their celebrity status because of us, the fans, and that we have rights to that image. I don’t think it’s worth arguing that point but I will say that we have no rights to the person underneath it all. At the end of the day, we answer only to ourselves and to God.