What We Learned At The 2016 BET Hip Hop Awards

HipHopWired was in the building at the taping of the 2016 BET Hip Hop Awards. Here’s what we saw.

HipHopWired had some good*ass seats at the BET Hip Hop Awards. Of course we don’t want to spoil the show for you since it doesn’t air until October 4. But, we made some observations and wanted to share them with you.

1.) It’s Way Past Time We Start Mentioning Big K.R.I.T With Kendrick Lamar And J. Cole

Big K.R.I.T. wasn’t up for any awards but he stole the show with his spoken word piece on police brutality and white supremacy. He started the piece dressed as a cop, barely raising his Mississippi tone above a whisper. Halfway through he threw off the officer hat on the ground and raised his voice to a more aggressive tone, much like the officers who have been caught on camera shooting and killing unamred, non-threatening Black men. By the end of the piece he was screaming and almost spitting from anger and pain as he shouted orders, simultaneously evoked the cold-hearted emotions of the killer cops and the frustrated feelings of those effected by their actions. Lecrae would latter appear to give a similar performance, but from the police shooting victim’s perspective.

Now that K.R.I.T. off of Def Jam records and completely independent, we can look forward to more performances like this as well as songs like his joint with Kenneth Wahlum.

2.) Somebody really likes Kent Jones

DJ Khaled hosted the awards show this year. Kent Jones is signed to his We The Best record label. So naturally, Jones was featured in one of the cyphers this year. Jones was featured in a cypher with fellow newcomers Kur, Russ and Nick Grant and he literally stole the show. As in he completely hi-jacked it and hogged the mic. It’s become common knowledge that the BET cyphers get recorded dozens of times to be edited later. So to have Jones rap for as long as he did, leaving Grant with just seconds to go in, it’s obvious that a fix was in. We can’t really blame Jones for this, he’s just a guy that’s taking advantage of the hand that he’s been dealt. But c’mon BET. The only person who’s rapped as long as this was probably Eminem.

3.) Gucci Mane Thinks He’s 1999 D’Angelo

Gucci Mane is feeling good, as anyone should when they’re let out of prison. He made sure that everyone in the building knew how good he was feeling by walking around shirtless for the entire show. He opened the show performing his welcome home anthems “First Day Out” and “First Day Out The Feds” before handing it over to Travis Scott after they performed “Last Time.” During his set he removed his floor-length fur coat to show off his new physique and that’s how he stayed for the rest of the show. He sat in his seat shirtless, walked down the aisles shirtless and also congratulated other artists, shirtless.

4.) O.T. Genasis Is An Entertaining Performer

O.T. Genasis has definitely taken some notes from his label boss Busta Rhymes on how to work a crowd. His performance of “Push It” and “CoCo” was one big fire ball of energy. He jumped, he danced, he strutted and even shimmied at one point. While his lyrics may not make you want to dance, watching him perform force you to find something to like about him.

5.) We Miss State Property

State Property reunited on camera (without Young Chris) to remind people how at one time they were the illest crew in Hip Hop. Peedi Crack opened the set with Neef, Oschino Sparks and Freeway taking the baton after him. Right when you thought it was over, crew leader Beanie Sigel emerged from the shadows to end it.

6.) Quavo Is Definitely Going Solo

Much like how people are trying to make Swae Lee from Rae Sremmurd go solo, it seems like those same fans want Quavo to split. If how he was promoted during the BET Hip Hop Awards is any indication, it’s happening. As the names of feature artists and performers were read off, Quavo was mentioned alone. He also shined as a solo artist when he joined Travis Scott and Young Thug to perform “Pick Up The Phone.”

That’s all we can share with you for now. Make sure you check out the 2016 BET Hip Hop Awards when they air on October 4.