BET Awards

Angel Reese just keeps stackin' up trophies ... the LSU hoop star and 2023 NCAA champ just won a BET Award -- and she was hyped!

The annual ceremony went down Sunday at the Microsoft Theatre in downtown Los Angeles ... where some of the top rappers, singers, and entertainers won awards.

That included 21-year-old Reese, whose squad won the 2023 NCAA championship, beat out female stars like Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, and Candace Parker, for the Sportswoman of the Year award.

"Thank you BET!" Reese said on Twitter after the announcement. "So sad I couldn’t be there but I really appreciate this! This means a lot!"

The 21-year-old forward couldn't be in L.A. to receive her award in person ... 'cause what else -- she was hooping.

"I’m at USA basketball right now trying to win a gold medal when I could be at the BET awards," Reese tweeted to a fan.

Reese was named to the Team USA roster for the 2023 women's FIBA AmeriCup, a tournament held every two years with top female players from around the globe.

The US women's first game is against Venezuela on July 1.

When it comes to male athletes, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts took home BET's Sportsman of the Year award, beating LeBron James, Patrick Mahomes, Steph Curry, Aaron Judge, Gervonta Davis, and Bubba Wallace.

Tina Turner got the tribute treatment at the BET Awards from Patti LaBelle -- but it seems the R&B legend didn't know the late icon's own lyrics onstage ... and it played out live.

The singer was doing an homage to Tina Sunday night during the broadcast ... undoubtedly a huge moment in the show considering TT passed away last month. Patti was a natural choice to sing her songs -- but in the middle of her performance, she stumbled.

Check it out ... while PLB was cranking out Tina's classic hit "The Best," she paused for a bit and said she couldn't see the words. It got a laugh from the crowd, and Patti carried on as best as she could. However, her confession definitely spurred a lot of head scratches.

On its face, it looked like Patti was reading the lyrics somewhere off in the distance ... and hadn't actually memorized them. That was later confirmed to be true by BET itself.

A rep for the org says, "It was an extraordinary privilege to celebrate the life and legacy of Ms. Tina Turner at BET Awards 2023. Having the incomparable Ms. Patti LaBelle on our stage honoring one of her contemporaries was an equal privilege."

They tried covering for her, adding ... "Due to the crowd's enthusiasm, the teleprompter was obstructed, obscuring Ms. LaBelle’s view of the lyrics. Nonetheless, we couldn’t be more grateful to Ms. LaBelle for lending her incredible talent to this moment."

Like we said, no true harm or foul -- and it ended up being a funny moment big picture. But, truth be told, some were kinda disappointed in Patti for not being better prepared ... especially in a big tribute to another musical great on such a grand stage.

BTW, this ain't the first high-profile mishap Patti's suffered ... remember back in the '90s when she was singing for the Clinton White House, and her whole "backup singers" fiasco??? Yeah, that one wasn't really her fault ... but this sure does have echoes of that.

A woman trying to make her way into Diddy's BET after-party was arrested outside the mogul's house after she allegedly flashed a gun at other partygoers.

LAPD sources tell TMZ ... the woman was in her car near Diddy's house and a security checkpoint for the event very early Monday morning, and got pissed off that other cars weren't clearing out of her way fast enough. We're told she pulled out the weapon and waved it at folks she believed to be causing the delay.

Police were called and they rushed to the scene, where they found the 30-year-old woman had already been detained by Diddy's security team. Cops searched her car and found a loaded handgun.

A source at the party tells us the woman was not invited to the party, and more importantly -- never made her way inside the event. We're told she was trying to make her way past the first security checkpoint when the incident occurred.

She was taken into custody and booked for possession of a loaded firearm -- she was later released on her own recognizance. Thankfully, no one was injured in the dust-up.

Diddy had a lot to celebrate following the 2022 BET Awards, but turned his celebration into work as well -- shooting a project with Mary J. Blige and Yung Miami.

TMZ Hip Hop obtained video from inside the after party -- at Diddy's L.A. mansion -- where he appeared to be directing a music video ... most likely something for his upcoming R&B album on Motown Records.

You can even hear Mary singing over the smoothed-out track as Miami raps ... a fitting kick-off to the new Love Records movement.

The backdrop for the shoot looks mighty familiar -- reminiscent of one Diddy used for his iconic "Mo Money, Mo Problems" music vid.

At one point, Diddy told onlookers to refrain from filming as he was trying to get the set-ups correct with Miami's Quality Control manager Pierre “Pee” Thomas.

It wasn't all work, though -- it's a Diddy after-party, after all -- as Chris Brown, Tiffany Haddish, Wiz Khalifa, Tyga, Bobby Brown, Karrueche Tran and many others showed up at his crib for the festivities.

Earlier on Sunday, celebs packed into L.A.'s Microsoft Theater to see Diddy receive a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards.

If you saw Babyface and Chance The Rapper all buddy buddy at the BET Awards and thought ... "Hmm!! That's interesting" -- you're spot on, because it turns out that was more than just a photo-op, it was quite intentional.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ Hip Hop Chance and 'Face have been collaborating in the studio with hopes to use the record as part of Babyface’s upcoming project.

BF has written loads of hits with the likes of Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, Bobby Brown and many, many more … and we hear he keeps up with all waves of music and genuinely took a liking to Chance. It's similar to how he and Ella Mai got together for their recent track, "Keep On Fallin" … which they performed Sunday at the BET Awards.

Kanye West popped up for a rare appearance ... this time at the 2022 BET Awards ... to pay tribute to his favorite artist -- Diddy.

Kanye made a surprise appearance Sunday night, at L.A.'s Microsoft Theater ... dressed head to toe in black.

Ye took the stage to honor Sean "Diddy" Combs, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Kanye gave a lengthy speech ... calling Diddy his favorite artist and talking about the impact he's had on his own life.

Kanye said, "I go to him for advice to this day. He inspires so many of my choices, so many of my life choices. My wife choices". He also let folks know he's taking a hiatus and wanted to "declare myself dead" .... but says, he wanted to make sure he was there for Diddy.

Of course, Kanye has mainly been off the grid, since April ... after pulling out of Coachella.

Moments after the intro from Kanye and Babyface, Diddy took the stage. He dedicated the moment to his ex, Kim Porter, who died back in 2018. He said, "I just want to say thank you to Kim."

Jussie Smollett is back in the limelight just 3 months after getting released from prison ... after attending the BET Awards and getting incredulous reactions online.

The actor showed up at Sunday night's ceremony in LA, all smiles ... telling ET he's excited to be "expanding his empire."

He was asked how he feels about working his way back into Hollywood, but Jussie doesn't see it that way -- he says this has always been the plan.

Twitter was on fire as JS walked the red carpet and took his seat ... memes were created in his name, while some called out BET for allowing "race-baiting liars" in its space.

Sunday night's host, Taraji P. Henson, has been a vocal supporter of Jussie -- they both worked on "Empire" ... but she was silent about her co-star during the ceremony.

Jussie still insists he did not lie about what he says was a homophobic and racist attack, because IF he had lied he'd be a total piece of s**t -- and he claims everyone knows he's not that.

The BET Awards are going off tonight, but what TV cameras can’t show you is how hyped the celebs are behind the scenes.

The audience is full of big names at the Microsoft Theater in LA Sunday night ... Lena Waithe, Cynthia Erivo, Billy Porter, Janelle Monáe, Ari Lennox, Ella Mai, and Lucky Daye -- to name a few!!!

Everyone from the front to the back had good vibes all night with Taraji P. Henson hosting ... and those A+ performances kept them on their feet.

Lizzo kicked the night off in all gold, performing one of her hits -- and you know it was "About Damn Time" for a flute solo.

Jack Harlow brought out Lil Wayne and Brandy for his debut performance ... this coming after the guy got in a little heat -- he recently admitted he wasn't aware of the impact she made in the R&B game.

Latto's W was one of the biggest of the night -- she took home the award for Best New Artist, and the crowd clearly had her support.

Rapper Shyne is jumping back into the music scene in a big way ... he's set to join a ton of artists at the BET Awards to honor one of the biggest names in the game.

The Belizean rapper-turned-politician is gearing up to take the stage for Sunday night's ceremony ... in recognition of Diddy's Lifetime Achievement Award.

Shyne's going to be performing one of his classics from 2000, "Bad Boyz" ... the guy hasn't done the song live much -- once in a lifetime opportunity for fans to witness.

Shyne's been getting into politics since laying down track after track in the industry ... he currently lives in Belize where he serves as Leader of the Opposition and the Ambassador of Music. He's also in Belize's House of Representatives.

Add Lil Wayne to the list of superstar rappers taking the stage for the 2022 BET Awards ... TMZ Hip Hop's learned he'll be performing Sunday.

Weezy F. Baby is a late addition to the award show's lineup, but you can expect nothing short of an uproar performance -- and it's a big treat for his fans after a few mishaps.

Wayne recently had to bow out of a couple of festival shows -- the Governor's Ball in NYC, and Strawberries & Cream Fest in the U.K.

But, now he'll bring his infinite bag of hits to the BET Awards.

The show will be live from the Microsoft Theater in L.A. ... where Taraji P. Henson will throw down as host, and Roddy Ricch, Jack Harlow, Lizzo, Chance the Rapper and many more will perform.

As for the actual trophies, Doja Cat leads all artists with 6 nominations ... followed by Drake and Ari Lennox, Kendrick Lamar and several others.

It appears Lil Nas X isn't going to let the 2022 BET Awards skate after snubbing him of any nominations this year ... to the point, he's created a diss track going after the network.

A topless Lil Nas X posted a snippet of an upcoming new song on Tuesday we'd be surprised is called anything but "F*** BET."

After starting the song off with the disrespectful phrase on repeat, LNX goes into an auto-tuned flow where he brags about his riches and even proclaims he has "100 sticks" at his disposal.

Following the announcement of nominations last week, LNX went haywire when he realized he missed the Best Male Hip Hop and Pop Artist categories and no mention of his hit singles "INDUSTRY BABY" or "MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)."

He blamed discrimination and Queen Latifah even agreed he should have been nominated for at least something.

LNX's gripes feel a bit heavy-handed seeing he was nominated in 2020 and got primetime exposure in June 2021 when he kissed his boyfriend.

But, there's no putting the genie back in the bottle … apparently it's "F*** BET" if you're Team Montero until further notice.

Lil Nas X unloaded on BET over his 2022 BET Award nom snubs earlier this week ... and he's got at least one royal supporter in Queen Latifah.

We caught up with the legendary rap star promoting her new flick "Hustle" outside "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and while she feels LNX's talent is literally "amazing," it doesn't appear she agrees with his complaints his sexuality caused the snub.

The "Industry Baby" was a couple dynamite sticks short of nuclear on Wednesday when he accused the network of sharing into the world's problems — by excluding Black gay artists from top recognition.

His complaints were only amplified when it was discovered Jack Harlow, (yep, the White guy) was nominated for Best Male Hip Hop Artist alongside Drake, Future, Kanye and more ... causing fans on Twitter to have a field day.

It's not like LNX hasn't been on the BET Awards' radar. In 2020, he earned a Best New Artist Award and last year, went viral by kissing his ex-boyfriend Yai Ariza during his performance on live TV.

Lil Nas X triggered a wave of online criticism for kissing a male dancer during the BET Awards, but over at the FCC ... it was basically crickets. Sooo, sign of progress?

TMZ's obtained the complaints filed to the Federal Communications Commission and there were merely 3 of them made in after Lil Nas' much-talked about performance of "MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)" ... which he buttoned with the kiss.

One viewer from the Bronx wrote to the FCC around 1 AM ... "I was very disturbed to see 2 men practically having sexual in the stage when the awards show is supposed to be a family show. It’s ridiculous and children and adults are being forced to endure this. Unacceptable and I will be unsubscribing from BET network. DISGUSTING AND DISTURBING!!!!!!!!"

Another pissed off viewer wrote, "During a performance 2 gay men kissed. Why are you showing this on tv. It is disgusting and wrong for kids to see because it’s unnatural." #Ugh.

The third gripe cam from a guy in Philly, but it was mostly about satanism than the kiss.

That's it. Just the 3. For comparison, Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion's Grammy performance of "WAP," and J Lo and Shakira's Super Bowl Halftime show each inspired more than 1,000 FCC complaints.

As we reported ... Lil Nas delivered a stunning performance at the BET Awards ... not only with his hit track but also with a tribute to Michael Jackson's "Remember the Time."

Of course, the rapper saw way more than 3 people sounding off on social media -- so many, in fact, that Lil Nas clapped back at the haters ... particularly one who called him out for using "AFRICAN CULTURE FOR S***S LIKE THIS!!!!!!!"

The incredibly low number of FCC complaints might have more to do with a lower number of viewers -- at least compared to the Grammys or a Super Bowl -- but one can hope part of it is also about tolerance.

Kirk Franklin's not down with ranking the greatest gospel artists of all time, because he says there's only one name that matters ... and no, it's not Kanye West!!!

The iconic choir director and gospel singer wasn't throwing any shade at Kanye -- quite the opposite -- but making a bigger point about the genre of Christian music ... telling us anybody can do it because it's for all of God's children.

With that mindset, Kirk says there shouldn't be a Mount Rushmore of gospel music -- notwithstanding he's considered to be a candidate -- because it's all about glorifying the man upstairs.

As for Kanye ... Kirk says he's tight with his "brother" and heaps praise on his musical talent ... calling him one of the greatest artists of all time.

Cardi B and Offset are looking pretty damn excited, and maybe a little overwhelmed, after letting the world know baby No. 2's on the way, but someone else is even more excited by the news.

We got Cardi and Offset leaving BOA Steakhouse in WeHo where they hit up a BET Awards after-party. Quavo and Taraji P. Henson were some of the other attendees, but fans and photogs, went wild when Cardi stepped out of her ride showing off her baby bump.

The couple got peppered with dozens of baby-related questions -- really, you'd think they were walking into a family reunion. One question our guy asked was about Kulture's reaction to the news she's gonna be a big sis.

We also asked Offset if he'll be in a giving mood when the baby arrives -- and the answer's yes! He's got a Cuban celebration in mind.

We tried to get some other deets about Cardi's pregnancy ... like how far along she is, cravings, baby names??? They're not ready to spill all that just yet, but they couldn't look happier that their family's expanding.

As we reported, Cardi revealed the huge surprise Sunday night during the BET Awards. She didn't have to say a word ... her baby bump was on display and it did all the talking.

Offset had his hands full announcing baby #2 with Cardi B on Sunday, but he wasn't TOO busy to keep an eye on his Atlanta Hawks ... telling TMZ Sports his beloved team WILL bounce back from their Game 3 loss!!

Of course, it was a huge night at the BET Awards for Migos -- the trio put on one hell of a performance with the "Up" MC as she set social media on fire with her baby bump.

But, even with all the chaos surrounding the baby news, Offset was able to check in on Trae Young and co. as they fell 113-102 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Sunday ... and the dude's pretty optimistic.

"We gon' bounce back," Offset told us outside BOA. "That was some bulls**t. We bouncin' back."

But, if 1/3 of Migos having confidence in the Hawks ain't enough, we also spoke with Quavo ... and he's just as confident Young will lead the squad to the Finals -- and WIN IT ALL!!!

"We gon' get that ring," Quavo told us outside the Highlight Room. "It's the year."