At the 2024 BET Awards, the 'Power' actress, who served as the host, mistook fellow TikToker Jordan Howlett for Keith, who later appeared to express his frustration in a now-deleted TikTok video.
- July 4, 2024
AceShowbiz - Taraji P. Henson is addressing her mishap involving Keith Lee at the 2024 BET Awards. On Tuesday, July 2, the 53-year-old actress revealed her side of the story about the embarrassing mix-up while serving as the host of the award-giving ceremony.
Taraji offered her explanation in an Instagram comment on celeb news account MorningJuiceBox's post regarding the TikTok influencer's now-deleted video featuring him throwing the rose he got from Taraji to the ground. Keith appeared upset after Taraji mistook fellow TikToker Jordan Howlett for him.
In response to that, Taraji wrote in a comment, "Life really is too short for this behavior." She further explained, "He wasn't in his seat. They give celebrity assigned seats! I rehearsed all damn day to go hit my mark and that young man wasn't in his seat so HE MISSED HIS MOMENT!"
The "Power" star continued, "His ego is hurt. He will be fine. I cleaned it up at the end of the show. No love lost here."
Keith Lee, meanwhile, denied having ill feelings towards Taraji despite the shady post. "I am not upset at Taraji P. Henson by any stretch of the imagination," the former MMA fighter explained in a recent TikTok video. "And not only that, in my opinion, she smoked it last night."
"The reason I did this had nothing to do with Taraji P. Henson," the food critic added. "The reason I did this is that I wholeheartedly believe it wasn't my rose, it wasn't my moment. It was given to me, but it wasn't mine. I always say, I don't want nothing that wasn't mine."
The 27-year-old later added, "I am forever thankful for every room that I'm in. I was more than thankful and more than grateful to just sit there and enjoy the show." He also blamed the show's producers on the embarrassing mishap as he felt that the entire segment "felt extremely unprepared and unprofessional."
In the video, Keith also claimed that he's personally a fan of Taraji before gushing over "The Color Purple" star, "I've been for years, and I always will be. I love to see her get the recognition that she deserves."
