The 2023 BET Awards celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip-hop in a major way. The half-century commemoration of the genre brings a time of reflection for many to understand the impact of the topic people are celebrating.
“I think the come up and the evolution of Black artists is amazing to see, and it’s amazing to be a part of,” Renée Downer of FLO told rolling out.
For most people, their favorite memories are their first ones.
“My favorite memory is probably the first time I heard LL Cool J, ‘I’m Bad,'” actor Thaddeus J. Mixson told rolling out.
“Seeing Run DMC on TV for the first time,” rapper Mad Skillz said. “I think it might have been on ‘Soul Train,’ and that was it for me. It was one of those things that spoke to me directly because I can’t sing, but when I saw them talking over a beat, I was like, ‘maybe I could do that.'”
For others, it can be a performance. Actress Cynthia Kaye McWilliams said her favorite moment was the 2016 BET Awards when Kendrick Lamar and Beyoncé performed. For Flau’jae Johnson, it was when Nicki Minaj, Drake, Lil Wayne and Young Money performed at the show when she was a child.
For other fans, their favorite moments could be represented by an album that holds sentimental value.
“I think my favorite memory is being in high school listening to the Drake Take Care album,” Toosii told rolling out. “I was going through it with my ex, and I know she’s a little hurt now because look at where I’m at today.”
A moment can even be as simple as a song.
” ‘Ether,’ ” Rich The Kid told rolling out. “Nas, ‘Ether.’ Yeah, that was hard.”
For some of hip-hop’s curators, their favorite moments are standouts from their careers.
“Oh, there are so many moments, man,” Kid Capri told rolling out. “I remember when I did Yankee Stadium for Nelson Mandela when he came out of jail, me and KRS-One. That was a big, big time. Something really big to see. I did a lot of things, but that was one of the big ones.
“Helping Aaliyah on her tour. It was probably the best concert I’ve ever done at Madison Square Garden, which I performed five times, but that was probably one of my best concerts, helping Aaliyah before she passed, so I’m glad I did that.”
Kaliii’s favorite moment is now when she made the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time in May with her single “Area Codes.”
Some people’s favorite moments are entire artists’ careers. NLE Choppa pointed to Tupac’s career, Finesse2tymes shouted-out 50 Cent and Daisha “The Rap Girl” McBride looked to Missy Elliott. For Derek Minor, there were many moments from the time Kendrick Lamar was passed the torch to continue the West Coast’s legacy to Outkast’s “The South Got Something to Say” as well as the arrival of Eminem and DMX’s 1999 Woodstock performance.
“Just watching the progression of it,” Minor told rolling out. “There’s something for everybody because we are the culture.”
