Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) is a leader in music-rights management that has advocated for songwriters, music publishers, composers and more than 78 years.
The 2019 BMI R&B/Hip Hop Awards was nothing short of a star-studded event. The awards show took place Thursday night, Aug. 29, 2019, at the Byers Theatre at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center in Atlanta.
The artists who graced the red carpet included DC Young Fly, LaTocha Scott, Gunna, Zaytoven, the BMI President’s Award recipient Brandy Norwood, and many more.
This year, the event was hosted by the BMI President Mike O’Neill and Vice President Catherine Brewton.
The BMI Awards kicked off with a tribute to the late rapper Nipsey Hussle. Everyone in the auditorium stood as a video compilation played honoring Hussle’s legacy.
Rappers Gunna and Lil Baby kicked off the first performance with their song “Drip Too Hard.” After their performance, Gunna was awarded a plaque for attaining more than 1 billion streams on the popular song.
Norwood, a multiplatinum, Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter and actress, was honored with the 2019 BMI President’s Award for making her mark in the entertainment industry.
Before Norwood was presented with the award, singers Jade Novah, Samoht, Kierra Sheard and Eric Bellinger performed a series of tributes. Norwood’s brother, Ray J, closed out the tributes with a touching performance of her song “Best Friend.”
After accepting the BMI President’s Award, Norwood took the stage and gave the crowd an unexpected performance of her hit songs “I Wanna Be Down” and “Almost Doesn’t Count.”
