It’s that time of year again for the BET Awards and 2015 marks the 15th anniversary of the annual ceremony.
This year the award show will be hosted by Anthony Anderson and Tracee Eliss Ross of the ABC comedy Black-ish. The show will also feature performances by Chris Brown, Meek Mill, Nicki Minaj, Ne-Yo, Kendrick Lamar and the cast of Empire. As for the nominees, Brown and Minaj lead the way with six nominations apiece while Beyoncé is just behind them with four. We’ll certainly be tuning in to see who takes home the hardware and watch our favorite artists hit the stage this year.
Over the past decade and a half there have been some truly great performances, tributes and surprises at the award show and TheCelebrityCafe.com is counting down the top 15 moments of all time ahead of this year’s ceremony.
The BET Awards will air on Sunday, June 28 at 8 p.m.
Image courtesy of INFphoto.com
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15. Missy Elliott performs “Lose Control” with Ciara & Fatman Scoop
A performance by Missy Elliott featuring Ciara and Fatman Scoop takes our No. 15 spot. Elliott and company gave a high-energy performance of the song “Lose Control” in 2005 and nearly had audience members “lose control” as everyone got up out of their seat and danced.
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14. Mariah Carey sings “We Belong Together”
Mariah Carey was on a sort of hiatus for a few years but in 2005 she recorded the mega hit “We Belong Together.” At the award show that year the diva gave a powerful performance to answer any questions from doubters about if she could still carry a tune and hit the high notes.
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13. Silk performs “Freak Me Baby”
The R&B group Silk dropped by the BET Awards show in 2014 and sang the song that put them on the map. Suddenly, it felt like 1992 all over again as everyone in the crowd sang along to “Freak Me Baby.”
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12. Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Eminem’s Up in Smoke performance
In 2000, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Eminem brought their Up In Smoke tour to the BET Awards. Ice Cube and Dr. Dre sang the N.W.A hit “Straight Outta Compton” before Dre and Snoop sang “Nuthin' but a ‘G’ Thang” and “Still D.R.E.” Eminem capped it all off for the finale with “Forgot About Dre”.
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11. R. Kelly sings old school melody of hits
The Chicago native took everyone down memory lane in 2013 with some of his biggest hits. After an intro of “Contagious”, Kelly treated everyone to a melody of his classics including “When a Woman’s Fed Up,” “Bump and Grind,” “Ignition,” “Seems Like You’re Ready” and of course, “Your Body’s Callin.”
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10. Fugees reunite
No one saw this coming, but for fans of the Lauryn Hill, Wyclef Jean and Pras it was a dream come true when the Fugees reunited on stage at the BET Awards in 2005. The trio picked up right where they left off and sang “Ready Or Not,” “Fu Gee La” and “Killing Me Softly.”
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9. Beyoncé and Jay Z “Crazy in Love” duet
Bey and Jay are veterans when it comes to performing at the award show. Whether they take the stage together or solo they make every time memorable just like back in 2003 when Jay Z came out to rap his verse of Beyoncé’s hit “Crazy in Love.”
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8. Cissy Houston’s tribute to daughter Whitney Houston
In 2012, the world mourned the loss of one of the greatest voices of all time when Whitney Houston passed away. Her mother, Cissy, gave a moving tribute to her daughter during the BET Awards and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house as she sang a rendition of “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”
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7. Usher’s dance moves to “You Don’t Have To Call”
Not too many artists can match their lyrical talent with dance moves, but Usher Raymond is one artist that certainly can. There are a number of BET Award show performances that he has done over the years to choose from. With every performance he gives we are memorized by his amazing moves as was the case with his 2002 performance of “You Don’t Have To Call.”
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6. Busta Rhymes, DMX, Eminem and others perform “I Love My Chick” and “Touch It” remix
In 2006, Busta Rhymes brought down the house when he performed “I Love My chick” and the remix of “Touch it” alongside Lloyd Banks, Mary J. Blige, Remy Ma, Missy Elliott, Eminem and even DMX via video.
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5. Destiny’s Child gives Magic Johnson, Nelly and Terrance Howard lap dances
At the 2005 BET Awards Michelle, Kelly and Beyonce took the stage and sang “Cater 2 U.” The performance followed the announcement that they would no longer be a trio as they were going to focus on solo projects. They of course made the performance one to remember and picked Magic Johnson, Nelly and Terrance Howard out of the audience to enjoy lap dances.
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4. Alicia Keys takes the stage with SWV, En Vogue and TLC
Alicia Keys certainly brought the girl power in 2008 when she was joined on stage by some of the biggest female groups of the 90s. Keys sang “Weak” with SWV, “Hold On” with En Vogue and “Waterfalls” with TLC.
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3. Jamie Foxx’s tribute to Michael Jackson
After the world lost one of the greatest entertainers of all time in 2009, Jamie Foxx hosted the BET Awards and gave a tribute to Michael Jackson. Foxx donned a red leather jacket similar to the one Jackson wore in the “Thriller” video. He also wore white sequined gloves and delighted the crowd when he moonwalked across the stage.
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2. Chris Brown’s tribute to Michael Jackson
Not to be outdone, Chris Brown also paid tribute to MJ the following year. Brown wasn’t at the 2009 show due to the domestic violence incident with his ex-girlfriend Rihanna so in 2010 he honored the King of Pop with a show-stopping performance. He too dressed in clothes similar to Jackson’s attire as he danced and moonwalked on stage. He also sang some of Jackson’s biggest hits and got extremely emotional during “Man in the Mirror.”
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1.Tupac spotted in audience
Taking our No. 1 spot was a sighting last year that had the Internet and live audience buzzing. Since his untimely death in 1996, there have been countless apparent sightings of Tupac Shakur, but the sighting at the 2014 award show had fans and celebrities alike doing double takes. The pics that were quickly shared all over social media looked a lot like the greatest rapper of all time was just calmly sitting in the audience.
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