Beyonce, J-Hud, Gnarls Winners at BET Awards

By Quibian Salazar-Moreno

      The BET Awards went off without a hitch last night, is probably being considered one of the best yet. Some of the highlights of the show included Jennifer Hudson uniting with Jennifer Holliday to sing the “Dreamgirls” favorite, “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going”. Holliday was the actress/singer who played Effie on Broadway during the 80’s.

      Another moment that‘ll be talked about was the tribute to Gerald Levert, who died last year. Gerald’s father, Eddie was joined by Gladys Knight, Patti Labelle, and Yolanda Adams for a tear-jerking performance of “Wind Beneath My Wings.” Erykah Badu also gave a memorable performance of “Love Hangover” in a tribute to Diana Ross, who received a lifetime achievement award, plus kind of took a shot at 50 Cent for cursing during his performance. Making headlines this week was T.I. getting into a scuffle with members of Ludacris’ management, but T.I. squashed it on national television apologizing for his part in the fracas. Anyway, we’re sure you’ll catch the re-runs. For now, here’s the list of winners:

VIDEO OF THE YEAR

Beyonce – "Irreplaceable"

BEST GROUP

Gnarls Barkley

BEST ACTOR

Forest Whitaker

BEST ACTRESS

Jennifer Hudson

BEST HIP-HOP ARTIST
T.I.

BEST COLLABORATION
Ludacris f/ Mary J. Blige – "Runaway Love"

BEST NEW ARTIST

Jennifer Hudson

BEST MALE ATHLETE

LeBron James

BEST FEMALE ATHLETE

Serena Williams

BETJ COOL LIKE THAT

Gerald Levert

BEST GOSPEL ARTIST

Kirk Franklin

BEST MALE R&B ARTIST

Ne-Yo

BEST FEMALE R&B ARTIST

Beyonce

VIEWERS CHOICE AWARD

Birdman and Lil Wayne "Stuntin’ Like My Daddy"