Beyonce Knowles, Jay-Z, Ne-Yo, The-Dream and other BET performers are scheduled to pay tribute to Michael Jackson at the upcoming 2009 BET Awards.
- Jun 27, 2009
AceShowbiz - While P. Diddy, The Game, Usher, Chris Brown, Mario Winans and Boyz II Men recorded Michael Jackson tribute song, Beyonce Knowles and Jay-Z choose to remember the late singer on-stage when 2009 BET Awards is kicked off on June 28. Joining them to pay tribute to Michael at the event are other performers which include Ne-Yo and The-Dream.
Beyonce and the other BET musical acts actually have rehearsed their songs for weeks, but they are willing to change the numbers in a bid to honor Michael. "To change it up in three days is something that's not easy but they're all willing and looking forward to it," the awards' producer Stephen Hill told Associated Press. "There's a direct line from Ne-Yo to Michael Jackson. There's a direct line from Beyonce to Michael Jackson. There's a direct line from Jay-Z to Michael Jackson. I think they'll want to pay tribute in their own way."
Beside those singers, other musicians such as Usher and Justin Timberlake who didn't plan to attend the gala ceremony, are rushing their way to Los Angeles to join their fellow celebs for this tribute. "We're adding on. We're trying to do the numbers we had already planned and we're trying to add on, so it may be a longer show than we anticipated," Debra L. Lee, Chairman and Chief Executive of Black Entertainment Television (BET) promised.
"This is going to be the first gathering of people who really cared for and were influenced by him since his death. It's a tall order for us but we have every intention of paying respect to Michael Jackson," Stephen commented. Then, Debra added, "There's no artist that's going to want to get up there and talk about themselves. They're going to want to talk about Michael. We want to give out the awards, we want them to have their moment but it's going to be more geared toward Michael Jackson."
This year's BET Awards, which nominations list includes Lil Wayne and T.I., will be conducted at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles starting from 8 P.M. EST/PST with Jamie Foxx as its host. Beside Beyonce, Jay-Z, The-Dream and Ne-Yo, MAXWELL is also lined up to sing at the bash. After the event is wrapped, an after-party will be held and hosted by Queen Latifah.
