For a night that was supposed to be a tribute to the late Michael Jackson[click to read], the 2009 BET Awards[click to read] left more to be desired from the over three and a half hour long show.

The 2009 BET Awards opened with a lackluster performance of Jackson 5 classics by R&B group New Edition. Surprisingly, the group was joined by New Edition member Bobby Brown who is rarely seen with his fellow group members.

Before the day of the awards show the official BET Twitter page informed viewers that Chris Brown would open for the show, but the singer did not appear at the awards show.

HipHopDX | Rap & Hip Hop News | Ad Placeholder
AD

AD LOADING...

AD

Following New Edition’s performance Jamie Foxx, the host for the evening, made his entrance clad entirely in Michael Jackson attire and broke into a short dance performance to “Beat It”.

To make room for the Michael Jackson tributes BET chose not to announce the nominee’s. Instead only the category and winner were revealed leaving viewers to ponder over who was even nominated.

The audience was then treated to performances by R&B sensations Keri Hilson and Beyonce who had very differing performances. Keri’s performance was an energetic rendition of her single “Knock You Down” while Beyonce’s performance included an operatic recital of “Ave Maria”.

HipHopDX | Rap & Hip Hop News | Ad Placeholder
AD

AD LOADING...

AD

A handful of awards were handed out during the 2009 BET Awards and they included Ne-Yo for Best Male R&B Artist, Beyonce for Best Female R&B Artist, Lil Wayne for Best Male Hip-Hop Artist, and Keri Hilson for Best New Artist just to name a few.

Similar to Alicia Keys’ tribute to R&B girl groups of the 90’s at last years BET awards, Ne-Yo took the opportunity to highlight some of R&B’s most well known male artists including Keith Sweat, Guy, and Bell Biv DeVoe.

Ne-Yo
turned out to be the star of the night with his heartfelt musical tributes to Michael Jackson including a stirring rendition of “The Lady In My Life”.

The Lifetime Achievement tribute to The O’Jays seemed to liven up the crowd although the legendary groups tribute was preceded by a seemingly never-ending introduction by former Soul Train host Don Cornelius.

HipHopDX | Rap & Hip Hop News | Ad Placeholder
AD

AD LOADING...

AD

Maxwell returned to the stage after a hiatus of almost eight years to perform his new single “Pretty Wings”.

Jay-Z performed “D.O.A.” alongside a live band [click to watch] and the music video for “D.O.A.” [click to watch] premiered shortly after the awards. Earlier in the evening rapper Soulja Boy performed his hit song “Turn My Swag On” complete with oversized bed and an array of flashing lights.

One of the more bizarre performances of the night included Lil Wayne, Drake, and other Young Money artists performing “Every Girl” while Lil Wayne’s daughter and her friends danced on stage [click to watch]. Drake’s sit-down performance left some fans wondering if Drake was trying to channel Degrassi’s Jimmy Brooks for his first ever BET awards show performance. It was later revealed that Drake had in fact torn his ACL while playing basketball earlier that week.

HipHopDX | Rap & Hip Hop News | Ad Placeholder
AD

AD LOADING...

AD

The most moving moment of the show was an appearance by a grief-stricken, but composed Janet Jackson. Janet spoke on her older brother Michael Jackson and told fans “To you, Michael is an icon. To us, Michael is family. He will forever live in all of our hearts. On behalf of my family and myself, thank you for all of your love, thank you for all of your support. We miss him so much. Thank you so much.”

The show was then closed by a somber performance of the Jackson 5’s “I’ll Be There” by Jamie Foxx and Ne-Yo.