Hip Hop Awards ‘20: 7 Of The Coolest Performances From The Vault
The BET Hip Hop Awards have always been about awarding the brightest talent in hip hop of any given year. But another of its integral aspects is connecting voices across rap’s generations with show-stopping cyphers and live performances. There’s fourteen years of BET Hip Hop Awards shows in the vault that feature magnificent stage performances from your favorite artists.
With the 2020 BET Hip Hop Awards right around the corner (Oct. 27 to be exact), we thought that it would be only right to recap some of our favorite performances over the years. Check out this walk down memory lane
Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug had a moment
In retrospect, the Rich Gang musical movement was legendary. If you need a reminder of just how great it was, check out their performance of “Lifestyle” at the 2014 BET Hip Hop Awards where Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug connected on stage for a one-of-a-kind spectacle. Their breakout joint hit is the jolt you need to realize that these guys could have accomplished something special together.
DMX relived the past
DMX was the hottest rapper in the late 1990s and the early 2000s, and if you weren’t around to witness his run, you missed out on one of rap’s most mythical eras. The rapper took fans back to the past at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards when he performed “Ruff Ryders Anthem,” “Party Up,” and “Get At Me Dog” while joined on stage with Swizz Beatz.
YG and A$AP Rocky led their own school
YG and A$AP Rocky really know how to make a memorable show together. That’s just what they did at the 2018 BET Hip Hop Awards when they performed “Handgun.” They were sergeants at Kamp Drip and controlled a unit of guys to march to the step of the beat. The guys, and the crowd, were equally energetic throughout the militant spectacle.
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T.I. proved a point
T.I. was responsible for an important and needed moment at the 2016 BET Hip Hop Awards. Bringing a group of people on stage holding protests for justice from police brutality, he performed “We Will Not” to penetrate the hearts of everyone in attendance, to reiterate to the people not in the community that change has to come soon. The fight still continues to this day.
Birdman and Lil Wayne’s stunted together
The two-man team of Birdman and Lil Wayne were unstoppable prior to their falling out. That’s best exemplified in their hit 2006 single “Stuntin Like My Daddy” which they performed at the first ever BET Hip Hop Awards. They hit the stage together, arm-in-arm, for a festive familial show that’s still hard to forget.
Kanye West’s mystical show
No matter what show on what stage, Kanye West goes all out with his spectacular performances. At the 2007 BET Hip Hop Awards, he brought out the steam and an array of mysteriously dressed ladies to perform “Can’t Tell Me Nuthin.” Though it's impossible to find a publicly available video of the performance, you can see the mysterious nature of it through this screenshot.
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French Montana brought out the stars
French Montana’s epic performance of “Ain’t Worried About Nothin” at the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards was already out-of-this-world when he performed his verse surrounded by towers of fire. But the intensity kicked up to a dangerously amped level when Diddy, Rick Ross, and Snoop Dogg joined him on stage to get the audience to their feet and join in on being not afraid of anything.
