Kendrick Lamar wins big at BET Awards

Kendrick Lamar was the top winner at the BET Awards on Monday, an awards ceremony honouring Black actors, singers and sports stars. The 30 For 30 rapper won the best male hip hop artist award, best album of the year as well as the video of the year award for Not Like Us.

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Lamar and filmmaker Dave Free also took home the video director of the year award at the event, which was held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles and broadcast on the BET cable channel. “BET has always made sure they’re representing the culture right and always put me in the midst of the cycle of what we represent,” Lamar said on stage when accepting his award.

Host comedian Kevin Hart opened the ceremony by recognising the BET Awards’ 25th anniversary and all of the “history that has been made” on the stage. The ceremony traversed the evolution of Black music, starting with a performance by R&B artiste Ashanti that featured a compilation of songs, including her 2002 song Foolish. Additional performances included other 2000s songs Ballin’ by Mustard, 1 Thing by Amerie and Like You by Bow Wow.

Hart led with jokes while also highlighting the BET Ultimate Icon Award winners of the night, including Kirk Franklin, Mariah Carey, Jamie Foxx and Snoop Dogg.

Presented by Stevie Wonder, Foxx accepted his award and reflected on his recovery journey after having a stroke in 2023. Another honor included the best female hip hop artist award for rising rapper Doechii.