Drake was conspicuously absent from Sunday night’s BET award show, despite being nominated for twelve awards and being the recipient of the Viewer’s Choice Award and Best Collaboration.
A rumour leading up to the show was that Drake had decided to not to attend for fear of running into Chris Brown, with whom he has a high-profile feud. However, the Canadian took to Twitter to thank the fans for his award and to dispel the rumour.
According to Drake, he has an album to finish up and also needed to spend time with family before heading out on tour. He added his congratulations to Kendrick Lamar for winning Best New Artist and Best Male Hip-Hop Artist.
At the gala event, Stevie Wonder, Jamie Foxx, Pharrell, Snoop Dogg and India.Arie were also part of the tribute to 60-year-old Charlie Wilson, who earned the Lifetime Achievement Award.
“Charlie Wilson is soul music. His impact colours the work of many artists, which is basically my nice way of saying I and a lot of other artists have stolen from him,” Justin Timberlake said when presenting Wilson the award. Wilson’s lively stage presence was the arguably the night’s top moment.
Nicki Minaj picked up her fourth consecutive win for best female hip-hop artist.
“Every time I win it’s a humbling experience,” she said. “My fans are amazing people.”
Minaj performed with Chris Brown, who opened the awards show with a medley of new songs. Mariah Carey was angelic as she belted her latest hit, “(hash)Beautiful,” with help from Miguel and Young Jeezy, and an excited R. Kelly sang snippets of a dozen of his hits. An energetic Robin Thicke was joined by Pharrell and T.I. when he sang his international No. 1 hit, “Blurred Lines.” There were also notable performances from Erykah Badu and Wayne Brady.
Away from the music industry, Jamie Foxx, wearing a shirt that featured a picture of gunned down teenager Trayvon Martin, won best actor, and Olympic gold medallist, gymnast Gabrielle Douglas won sportswoman of the year and the Young Stars award.
Host Chris Tucker performed a tribute to Michael Jackson almost exactly four years since his death.
