In Part 2 we discuss what happened backstage and who had some pretty unkind words about the awards and the industry...

The Ying Yang Twins spoke about their Chemically Imbalanced album coming up and Kane also stated that he has a solo album on the way called Champion. Does this mean Ying Yang are breaking up? Probably not, but Kane did let everyone know that he’s been waiting a very long time to strike out on his own.

When Jay-Z won “Hustler Of The Year”, word began spreading that Jay-Z has chosen to give up rocking excessive “bling” in favor of educating those on the pitfalls of materialism and living outside of ones means. If this is true it proves that Jay has truly grown up in this business and everyone should take note. If you don’t know how grown Hov has become just check out “30-Something.”

Snoop showed up and took a little time to promote his album. When someone asked a political question, Snoop took a long pause and belted out “Fuck Voting!” which brought a little laughter out of the journalists. Another asked what was the last album you enjoyed from beginning to end and Snoop scratched his chin before cleverly stating “Curtis Mayfield…these newbies just ain’t doing it right.” So there’s Snoop’s observation of the industry.

When Remy Ma hit the media room we all knew something was about to go down given the nature of how Remy speaks her mind and never holds back. When a female journalist inquired about the state of females in Hip Hop today, Remy went OFF. She clearly showed her disdain with how BET didn’t have a single female nominated or asked to perform. Another asked what she’s up to and she went off on a tangent about the industry. She shed light on how “dirty” the biz is and her disdain for how her album was handled. She cited the fact that there was no video for “Feels So Good” f/ Ne-Yo being the proverbial nail in the coffin. She also stated she was a free agent and spoke some stiff words for her former cohorts, mentioning that “The one who put me on didn’t really want to see me make it.” Could she be talking about Fat Joe? As far as how much money the artists make, “This business has me on a strict weed and blow pop diet.” She also mentioned how important it was for artists to go independent and that female emcees need to step their game up. But was also quick to note that there are dope females but they aren’t showing enough “T&A” for the labels to want to deal with them. Her tirade left the rooms collective jaws dropped.

Slim Thug also echoed Remy Ma’s sentiments of how there is no money at a major label and that his Boss Hogg Outlawz have signed a deal with Koch and Slim is happy with the deal they got. He noted that “getting $8 per album is much better than what these majors are throwing at us.” He also stated how album sales don’t mean anything to him as long as he is getting his money. It is beginning to become interesting how many artists are going the indy route and understand that a major doesn’t mean major money.

Flavor Flav and London “Deelishis” Charles took to the media room next as Flavor grinned from ear to ear with his woman on his arm. When asked about Public Enemy and his shift in stardom between the past two decades, Flav explained how different and “more violent” Hip Hop is today while making a call for the industry to tone down on the negativity and the violent ways. He continued by saying that he and Chuck D are back in the studio working on another Public Enemy album which garnered applause. When another journalist inquired about his view on politics, Flav paused and said “I never really cared yo!” and broke into his trademark laughter before putting back on his serious face and saying “But I will say this…how the fuck is Bush going to try to clean other people’s backyards when his is dirty!”

When Big Tigger entered the room and the question was posed “Do you think BET really values you as a host”, the room fell silent as many wondered if anyone at the network truly recognized how powerful Tigger had been to the network’s aesthetic. Tigger pondered the question for a few moments as the though crossed his mind and he tried to find a politically correct way to answer. “I can’t say…” Tigger breathed into the microphone. He said he was thankful of all the opportunity BET gave to him but it was visible that Tigger was taken off guard by the question.

Jermaine Dupri came to the room and everyone instantly wondered about his next job. JD simply stated “There will be a press conference on my next label move coming very soon.”

The “I Am Hip Hop” Icon Award winner, Grandmaster Flash, took much of his time explaining how the power has been taken out of the DJs hands to break records and new artists. He noted that program directors should not be able to do what the DJ has done for years and that all new music should go to DJs first and let them figure out whether or not they want to break a new song. He also echoed Slim Thug and Remy Ma’s sentiments about going the indy route and this has become the theme of the evening.

T.I. let everyone know that T.I. Vs Tip is on its way and could possibly be around early next year. He also noted that DJ Drama’s album is coming as well as PSC’s Big Country.

Chamillionaire has got to be the most humble artist walking the earth right now as his gratefulness poured from his diamond studded grill. He spoke of how hard he worked to crack platinum sales as well as the fact that he hit the road with the goal that he wouldn’t stop performing until he went platinum. He spoke of how he had to take his destiny into his own hands and how the slick talk of his beef with Paul Wall painted him as the bad guy and gave him a chip on his shoulder which motivated him to work hard toward his goals. He also let it be known that he made a killing off of ringtone sales (“Ridin” did about 3 million sales) and that artists need to make sure their ringtone deals are straight.

Last but not least, BET’s own Jeff Johnson fielded questions about the recent elections and if the Democrats seizing both the House and the Senate translated into a victory for African Americans. “No…” Jeff exclaimed, “We need to stop putting our worth into these political groups and look out for our best interests no matter what the political alignment.” He also let it be known that “nothing is really going to change” and we still have a long way to go in terms of gaining any political clout in the African American community. One journalist inquired that since actors and wrestlers have won elections, would it be too far off if an old school hip hop artist ran for and won a seat? “Only if they are competent” Johnson stated.

So that wraps it up. Hopefully this gave you some insight on the 1^st Annual BET Hip Hop Awards. If you are wondering if it will be in Atlanta again, the answer was delivered to us “if Atlanta hip hop is hot then that’s where it will be at.”