BET Recognizes the Achievements of Alicia Keys, Tyra Banks, Richard Parsons, the Honorable Maxine Waters, Dr. Cornel West and CEO Janice Bryant Howroyd at 'The BET Honors'
Premiering Friday, February 22 at 8:00 P.M. ET/PT
Hosted by Cedric 'The Entertainer,' Stevie Wonder, John Legend, Gladys
Knight, Wyclef Jean, Jill Scott, Brian McKnight, Ne-Yo, Raheem DeVaughn,
Blair Underwood, Danny Glover, Kerry Washington, Idris Elba, Hill Harper
and Vivica A. Fox Delivered Powerful Performances and Inspirational
Messages to the Honorees
NEW YORK, Feb. 19 -- It was an evening full of glamour,
hope and inspiration, as BET presented its inaugural celebration of THE BET
HONORS at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, January 12.
Hosted by the always hilarious and charming Cedric "The Entertainer," the
show, which recognizes African American luminaries across a broad range of
achievements, will premiere on BET on Friday, February 22 at 8:00 p.m.
ET/PT.
The night kicked off with R&B queen Jill Scott's powerful rendition of
"The Real Thing" to honor Dr. Cornel West, University Professor in the
Center for African American Studies, who received the Award for Education.
Hill Harper of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation was on hand to present Dr.
West with his award.
Wyclef Jean got the audience on their feet during his performances of
"The Sweetest Girl" and "Bad Mama Jama," and Idris Elba of The Wire spoke
about the trailblazing media mogul Tyra Banks, who was recognized for her
contributions in Media. Next up came Vivica A. Fox and Brian McKnight, who
honored CEO Janice Bryant Howroyd for the Entrepreneur Award with "Win" and
"Back at One."
Dirty Sexy Money star Blair Underwood introduced Entertainment Award
honoree Alicia Keys, who was left speechless by Stevie Wonder's
jaw-dropping performance of "Ebony Eyes" and "As." Time Warner Chairman
Richard Parsons was presented with the Corporate Citizen Award by Danny
Glover, and John Legend paid tribute to Parsons with crowd favorites
"Ordinary People" and "We're a Winner." The legendary Gladys Knight then
performed "The Need to Be" and "(Just My) Imagination" to honor The
Honorable Maxine Waters (Public Service Award), who was presented with her
award by Kerry Washington.
Other performances of the night included Raheem DeVaughn singing "Lift
Every Voice & Sing" and Ne-Yo with a rendition of Michael Jackson's "Lady
in My Life."
Each honoree gave an emotional and uplifting acceptance speech,
thanking their families for support and noting that this event not only
highlighted the diversity of achievement in the Black community, but also
the potential for future generations to achieve their dreams.
Stephen Hill, BET's EVP, Entertainment Programming, Music & Talent and
Lynne Harris Taylor, VP of Specials are the show's executive producers,
along with John Cossette of John Cossette Productions.
About the Honorees
TYRA BANKS - Tyra Banks is a supermodel, host and judge of the reality
television show America's Next Top Model, and is currently hosting her own
Daytime Emmy Award-nominated talk show, The Tyra Banks Show.
JANICE BRYANT HOWROYD - Janice Bryant Howroyd is the chairman, chief
executive officer and founder of ACT*1, a personnel servicing company that
provides staffing, human resources and management solutions to Fortune 500
companies in many industries.
ALICIA KEYS - Alicia Keys is a nine-time Grammy Award-winning R&B and
soul singer, songwriter and pianist, who has sold more than 25 million
records worldwide.
RICHARD PARSONS - Richard Parsons is Chairman of the Board of Time
Warner Inc., whose businesses include filmed entertainment, interactive
services, television networks, cable systems and publishing.
THE HONORABLE MAXINE WATERS - Maxine Waters (D-CA) was elected in
November 2006 to her ninth term in the House of Representatives, serving
the 35th District of California, which represents a large part of South
Central Los Angeles, the communities of Westchester and Playa Del Ray, as
well as the diverse cities of Gardena, Hawthorne, Inglewood and Lawndale.
DR. CORNEL WEST, UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR IN THE CENTER FOR AFRICAN
AMERICAN STUDIES -Dr. Cornel West is a professor of religion and African
American studies at Princeton University, and is considered one of
America's most gifted, provocative and important public intellectuals. He
has won numerous awards, including the American Book Award, and has
received more than 20 honorary degrees.
About BET Networks
BET Networks, a division of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is the
nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public
affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The
primary BET channel reaches more than 87 million households according to
Nielsen Media Research, and can be seen in the U.S., Canada and the
Caribbean. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a
diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading internet
destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; BET Digital
Networks - BET J, BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for
cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Event Productions, a full-scale
event management and production company; BET Home Entertainment, a
collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs
and video-on-demand; BET Mobile, a service venture into the lucrative world
of ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET
International, an extension of BET network programming for global
distribution.
SOURCE BET Networks
http://www.bet.com
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