Howard University Represented at the 2015 BET Honors (2953 hits)
On January 24, the stars aligned for a night of celebration as The BET Honors awarded African-American luminaries for their contributions in entertainment, business and education. This year’s BET Honors was filmed at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C. However. One of the highlights was Howard University’s presence at the award show. Performing arts students made an appearance in the eighth annual telecast special.
During the evening, Kanye West received the Visionary Award, Usher received the Musical Arts Award and Fine Arts alumna Phylicia Rashad (BA ‘70) accepted the Theatrical Arts Award. Johnnetta Betsch Cole, director of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African Art and former president of Spelman College, took home the Education Award. Lastly, former Microsoft Chairman, John W. Thompson, received the Technology and Business Award.
Howard Singers accompanied legendary performer Patti Labelle in paying respect to Rashad, known for her matriarchal character, Claire Huxtable, on The Cosby Show. Austin Harris, a classic voice major from Howard, shared the stage with Labelle.
“My art director, Dr. Norris, gets a lot of invitations,” Harris said. “BET wanted to give a tribute to Phylicia Rashad, and since her Alma Mater is Howard they decided to give us a call. We accepted.”
Comedian and television personality, Wayne Brady returns as the host for a second year. The BET Honors is scheduled to air on television, February 23. Tune in at 9 p.m., 8 p.m. CT. to catch the show’s antics and awards.
