BET Awards 2017: What to expect from the awards show

New Edition will receive the BET Awards Lifetime Achievement honor.

By
CANDACE SMITH
June 25, 2017, 4:35 AM ET
3 min read

— -- The 2017 BET Awards will be held Sunday at Los Angeles' Microsoft Theater, with a ton of A-list talent to perform and present trophies, including Mary J. Blige, DJ Khaled, Chris Brown, Migos and Future.

One of the honorees, Johnny Gill, along with his New Edition bandmates, will receive the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, which he says he just can't believe.

"All the guys are truly excited that we've done this 34 years and to finally be acknowledged for the long history of work that we've been putting in ... No words can explain or describe this," he says. "This whole year has just been insane."

Insane sounds about right, as New Edition, who first burst onto the scene in 1983 with their debut album, "Candy Girl," are enjoying a resurgence in popularity thanks to the release of their super-successful BET biopic, "The New Edition Story."

Gill says of the biopic, "We were beyond surprised because we had a feeling it would do well. But we just didn't have an idea it would do what it did. Almost 30 million viewers. Unbelievable."

Hosting the BET Awards will be "Saturday Night Live" comedian Leslie Jones, who predicts the gala will be "crazy" and says she is "looking forward to seeing" and meeting New Edition herself.

"I'm looking forward to seeing all of the performers, actually, that they have on there," she says.

As for the nominees, Beyoncé has the most nods: seven in all. Bruno Mars has five, followed by Solange, Chance the Rapper and Migos, who each have four. In addition, Chance the Rapper will receive the Humanitarian Award.

Tune in to find out who wins at the BET Awards, live this Sunday, June 25 at 8 p.m. ET on BET.

BET Awards: Complete list of nominations

Here’s a complete list of the nominees:

Best female R&B/pop artist

  • Beyoncé
  • Kehlani
  • Mary J. Blige
  • Rihanna
  • Solange

    • Best male R&B/pop artist

  • Bruno Mars
  • Chris Brown
  • The Weeknd
  • Trey Songz
  • Usher

    • Best group

  • 2 Chainz & Lil Wayne
  • A Tribe Called Quest
  • Fat Joe & Remy Ma
  • Migos
  • Rae Sremmurd

    • Best collaboration

  • Beyoncé Ft. Kendrick Lamar -- "Freedom"
  • Chance The Rapper Ft. 2 Chainz & Lil Wayne -- "No Problem"
  • Chris Brown Ft. Gucci Mane & Usher -- "Party"
  • Dj Khaled Ft. Beyoncé & Jay Z -- "Shining"
  • Migos Ft. Lil Uzi Vert -- "Bad and Boujee"
  • Rae Sremmurd Ft. Gucci Mane -- "Black Beatles"

    • Best male hip-hop artist

  • Big Sean
  • Chance The Rapper
  • Drake
  • Future
  • Cole
  • Kendrick Lamar

    • Best female hip-hop artist

  • Cardi B
  • Missy Elliott
  • Nicki Minaj
  • Remy Ma
  • Young M.A.

    • Video of the year

  • Beyoncé -- "Sorry"
  • Big Sean -- "Bounce Back"
  • Bruno Mars -- "24k Magic"
  • Migos Ft. Lil Uzi Vert -- "Bad And Boujee"
  • Solange -- "Cranes in the Sky"

    • Video director of the year

  • Benny Boom -- Kehlani, “Crzy”
  • Bruno Mars & Jonathan Lia -- Bruno Mars, “That’s What I Like”
  • Director X -- Zayn Malik “Like I Would”
  • Hype Williams -- Tyga, “Gucci Snakes Ft, Desiigner”
  • Kahlil Joseph & Beyoncé Knowles-Carter -- Beyoncé, “Sorry”

    • Best new artist

  • 21 Savage
  • Cardi B
  • Chance The Rapper
  • Khalid
  • Young M.A.

    • Album of the year

  • "24k Magic" -- Bruno Mars
  • "4 Your Eyez Only" -- J. Cole
  • "A Seat at the Table" -- Solange
  • "Coloring Book" -- Chance The Rapper
  • "Lemonade" -- Beyoncé

    • Dr. Bobby Jones best gospel/inspirational award

  • Cece Winans -- "Never Have to Be Alone"
  • Fantasia Ft. Tye Tribbett --" I Made It"
  • Kirk Franklin Ft. Sarah Reeves, Tasha Cobbs & Tamela Mann -- "My World Needs You"
  • Lecrae -- "Can’t Stop Me Now (Destination)"
  • Tamela Mann -- "God Provides"

    • Best actress

  • Gabrielle Union
  • Issa Rae
  • Janelle Monáe
  • Taraji P. Henson
  • Viola Davis

    • Best actor

  • Bryshere Y. Gray
  • Denzel Washington
  • Donald Glover
  • Mahershala Ali
  • Omari Hardwick

    • Youngstars award

  • Ace Hunter
  • Caleb Mclaughlin
  • Jaden Smith
  • Marsai Martin
  • Yara Shahidi

    • Best movie

  • "Fences"
  • "Get Out"
  • "Hidden Figures"
  • "Moonlight"
  • "The Birth of a Nation"

    • Sportswoman of the year award

  • Gabby Douglas
  • Serena Williams
  • Simone Biles
  • Skylar Diggins
  • Venus Williams

    • Sportsman of the year award

  • Cam Newton
  • Lebron James
  • Odell Beckham Jr.
  • Russell Westbrook
  • Stephen Curry

    • Centric award

  • Fantasia -- "Sleeping with the One I Love"
  • Kehlani -- "Distraction"
  • Mary J. Blige -- "Thick of It"
  • Solange -- "Cranes in the Sky"
  • Syd -- "All About Me"
  • Yuna -- "Crush Ft. Usher"

    • Coca-Cola viewers’ choice award

  • Beyoncé -- "Sorry"
  • Bruno Mars -- "24k Magic"
  • Drake -- "Fake Love"
  • Migos Ft. Lil Uzi Vert -- "Bad And Boujee"
  • Rae Sremmurd Ft. Gucci Mane --" Black Beatles"
  • The Weeknd Ft. Daft Punk -- "Starboy"

    • Best international act: Europe

  • Booba (France)
  • Mhd (France)
  • Craig David (UK)
  • Emeli Sandé (UK)
  • Giggs (UK)
  • Skepta (UK)
  • Stormzy (UK)
  • Wiley (UK)

    • Best international act: Africa

  • Aka (South Africa)
  • Babes Wodumo (South Africa)
  • Davido (Nigeria)
  • Nasty C (South Africa)
  • Stonebwoy (Ghana)
  • Tekno (Nigeria)
  • Wizkid (Nigeria)
  • Mr Eazi (Nigeria)