Culture's biggest night is officially underway. The 2026 BET Awards kicked off Sunday (June 28) at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, with Druski hosting and MC Lyte back as the announcer.
T.I. opened the show with a high-energy performance of "LET 'EM KNOW" off his new album KILL THE KING, rapping part of the track from inside a car alongside his 21-year-old son, Clifford "King" Joseph Harris III.
Cardi B Wins Best Female Hip-Hop Artist
Six nominations in, Cardi B walked away with her first win of the night: Best Female Hip-Hop Artist, for Am I the Drama? — her first full album since 2018's Invasion of Privacy. Onstage, she got candid about what it took to make it. "Three babies later, I put the album out, honey," she said. "I overcame my fear, my anxiety and I put it out."
Later in the show, she turned the stage into a full production, running through a stretch of the album's biggest tracks while weaving between dancers, a motorcycle, and a casino-themed set piece.
Teyana Taylor Receives The Inaugural Icon Of The Year Award
BET handed out a brand-new honor this year, and Teyana Taylor was the one to receive it first: Icon of the Year. Janet Jackson did the presenting, and the moment hit Taylor hard — she was in tears before she even reached the stage. She thanked Jackson directly, calling her a major source of inspiration in her career, then turned reflective about the title itself.
"I worked my ass off 20 years for this," she said. "I'm not accepting what I've earned with arrogance. I'm accepting what I've earned with gratitude." It capped a big night for her overall — she also won Best Actress, Video Director of the Year, and the first-ever Fashion Vanguard Award.
Doechii And SZA Take Home Best Collaboration
Doechii and SZA won the BET Her Award for their collaboration "Girl, Get Up."
"Y'all don't understand how hard me and SZA worked putting that record together. It was at a time where, girl, I was going through it," Doechii said, with SZA responding, "Anything for you, always!" Doechii also teased new music on the way during her speech.
Kehlani Takes Best Female R&B/Pop Artist
Kehlani won Best Female R&B/Pop Artist, hugging Leon Thomas — winner of Best Male R&B/Pop Artist — on her way to the stage. "I'm really honored to be here," she said, also reacting to Janet Jackson's presence in the room. Jamie Foxx introduced Kehlani's performance of "Folded" alongside his daughter Anelise, the two playing piano and guitar together before Kehlani delivered a slowed-down, orchestral rendition of the song.
Druski Crowns Himself With A Little Black History
Before introducing RAYE's performance, host Druski paused to recognize a Black history moment of his own. "It's not just reserved for February, it's all year round," he said. "So the person I wanted to acknowledge is… me! Your boy is the youngest ever to host the BET Awards."
Durand Bernarr Recreates His Viral Grammys Run
Durand Bernarr brought his now-iconic Grammys stage sprint to the BET stage during Druski's "Coulda Been Records" audition bit, dashing on stage to sing a bit of Tevin Campbell's "Can We Talk" before Druski jokingly called security to remove him.
D'Angelo's Children Take The Stage To Honor Their Father's Legacy
A lineup of artists came together to pay tribute to D'Angelo, who passed away in October at age 51 after a battle with pancreatic cancer — but it was his own children who opened the moment. Michael Archer Jr., Imani, and Morocco walked out together to introduce the performance themselves, offering a brief, personal reflection on their father before the music began.
What followed was a full-circle celebration of his sound. The Vanguard — D'Angelo's longtime touring band, including drummer Chris Dave, bassist Pino Palladino, guitarists Jesse Johnson and Isaiah Sharkey, vocalist Kendra Foster, and keyboardist Cleo "Pookie" Sample — anchored the set, joined by Ari Lennox, RAYE, George Clinton, Durand Bernarr, and BJ the Chicago Kid.
Lauryn Hill Honored With Star-Studded Tribute Performance
The room belonged to one woman tonight, and it took nearly a dozen artists to properly thank her. Lauryn Hill received BET's first-ever Living Legend Icon Award, and the network pulled out all the stops to mark the moment.
The War and Treaty kicked off the tribute, with Tanya Trotter calling the crowd to "celebrate my baby sister, Ms. Lauryn Hill" before handing things off to a rotating lineup that included Doechii, SZA, Tierra Whack, Tems, Doja Cat, Nas, Lizzo, Rapsody, Alexia Jayy, Queen Latifah, and Common. Hill's own children — Selah, Joshua "YG," and Zion Marley — also joined the performance, running through a stretch of her most iconic records, from "Ready or Not" and "Doo Wop (That Thing)" to "Killing Me Softly" and cuts off The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
Hill watched it all unfold from her seat, fanning herself and singing along to her own catalog being celebrated in real time. Queen Latifah closed out the set with a callout that summed up the night: "Respect the queen of Jersey."
Hill didn't just sit back and watch, either — she eventually took the stage herself, closing out the tribute with a live performance of "Ex-Factor."
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