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Old School and New School Musicians Gather to Pay Tribute to the "Queen of Soul"; Premiere Telecast on BET Set for Tuesday, October 28 at 9 p.m. ET/PT
Washington, DC - Revered singer Aretha Franklin was honored as the ninth music superstar to be immortalized along BET's WALK OF FAME on Saturday night at the network's Washington corporate headquarters. The celebration of Ms. Franklin's remarkable career was filled with electrifying performances by Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, Norah Jones, Chaka Khan, Gerald Levert, Eddie Levert, Seal, Teena Marie, gospel greats Yolanda Adams and Shirley Caesar, and many others in a scene loaded with the glitz and glamour worthy of the "Queen of Soul." Hosted by award-winning radio personality and BET legend Donnie Simpson, viewers will have a front row seat to all the excitement when the 9TH ANNUAL BET WALK OF FAME premieres Tuesday, October 28 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
The incredible star-filled event not only paid homage to a noteworthy musician, but also raised awareness and financial support for a great cause, the United Negro College Fund. The annual charitable black-tie gala has generated over $2 million dollars since 1995. "BET is proud to be an annual contributor to UNCF through our WALK OF FAME gala and telecast," said Bob Johnson, BET's Founder and CEO, at Saturday night's event. "By tonight's end, our contributions should total almost $3 million," boasted Johnson to the crowd in front of him sprinkled with celebrity guests Tim and Daphne Reid, NBA player Rod Strickland, Elektra Records President Sylvia Rhone, actor Leon, Marion Barry, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Darryl "Chill" Mitchell, James Ingram, Michael Spinks and Richard Smallwood.
Arranged by famed musical director Patrice Rushen, the night was filled with many of Aretha Franklin's greatest hits redone by a surplus of award-winning superstars - some exclusively requested by Ms. Franklin herself. Renditions of "I Never Loved a Man," from Grammy Award winning Alicia Keys; "Daydreaming," by Grammy Award-winning Norah Jones; and the soul-stirring performance of "Do Right Woman," by the eminent Teena Marie brought the crowd to their feet. Additional highlights included Chaka Khan's performance of "Baby I Love You," and Mary J. Blige's soulful version of "Natural Woman," which filled her with emotion as she thanked Ms. Franklin for paving the way for so many artists. Words of adoration and rightful respect from many of the stars showered Ms. Franklin all evening.
"You, Aretha, have always been and still are my only vocal mentor," said an emotional Chaka Khan during her performance. "They throw the word diva around real loosely. But you're the only diva, the only one. And baby I love you." "This has been the best three days of my career," confessed Aretha to the elite crowd after receiving her award from BET President and Chief Operating Officer Debra Lee, reflecting back on the activities and accolades leading up to the crowning moment. The show's astonishing finale proved that this luminary was deserving of the honor as she performed an assortment of her signatures tunes - resulting in a performance that put her own personal stamp on the affair.
In the midst of her career during the 1960s, African Americans saw Ms. Franklin as a cultural icon, as someone reflecting the pride of the black community during the civil rights movement. Ms. Franklin mentioned how "wise" it was of BET to use the WALK OF FAME event as a fund-raising gala for the United Negro College Fund. To bring this magnificent event to viewers, BET teamed up once again with Cossette Productions, famed producers of the music world's Grammy Awards and the annual BET Awards, to produce this year's telecast.
Ms. Franklin joins a remarkable group of past WALK OF FAME honorees, including Michael Jackson (1995), Whitney Houston (1996), Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds (1997), Boyz II Men (1998), Diana Ross (1999), Luther Vandross (2000), Patti LaBelle (2001) and Stevie Wonder (2002). She is a world-renowned artist, whose forty-plus year reign over popular music has brought joy to millions around the globe through a distinguished career filled with accomplishment and achievement. Ms. Franklin's fans can also enjoy her latest Arista release, "So Damn Happy" which showcases her instinctive understanding of life, love, celebration and undaunting faith while evoking a timeless wisdom. Reuniting with talented producing duo, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, hit-makers Troy Taylor and Ron Lewis, and collaborating with the "Queen of Hip Hop Soul" Mary J. Blige, this new CD is sure to win new "Queen of Soul" fans as well as reclaim the old ones.
ABOUT BET
BET, a subsidiary of Viacom, Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B), is the nation's leading television network providing quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs programming for the African-American audience. The BET Network reaches more than 75 million households according to Nielsen media research, and can be seen in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. BET is a dominant consumer brand in the urban marketplace with a diverse group of branded businesses: BET.com, the Number 1 Internet portal for African Americans; BET Digital Networks - BET Jazz, BET Gospel and BET Hip-Hip, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Event productions, specializing in a full range of event production services, including event management, venue selection, talent recruitment, sound, lighting and stage production; and BET Books, the nation's leading publisher of African-American themed romance novels under the Arabesque Books label, and publisher of new imprints Sepia and New Spirit.
Alicia Keys in pressroom | Mary J. Blige performs onstage | Ronald Isley of the Isley Brothers performs onstage | Yolanda Adams performs onstage
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