It was a big year for Usher, who completed his Vegas residency, then released his new album Coming Home just as he performed in the Super Bowl Halftime Show. It was as good a year as any to give him the Lifetime Achievement Award, which was presented by none other than legendary producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.
With his new multimedia project Bando Stone And The New World on the way, and his album Atavista already out, Donald Glover — aka Childish Gambino — was the first to hit the stage at the 2024 BET Awards to pay homage to Usher with a fluttering falsetto performance of Usher’s 8701 hit, “U Don’t Have To Call,” with Keke Palmer. Palmer picked up the torch to perform his breakout “You Make Me Wanna,” then his “Good Good” collaborator Summer Walker hit the stage to perform their collab.
Coco Jones was the next star to emerge — from the crowd, no less — to sing “There Goes My Baby” with some audience participation that would make Usher himself proud. “Confessions Pt.2” was performed by Marsha Ambrosius — and yes, she did hit that run — as she was encircled by laser beams. Chlöe popped out next to perform “Good Kisser” in a glittering bodysuit, followed by Tinashe, who performed Usher’s first No. 1, “Nice & Slow.”
Next up was Teyana Taylor and Victoria Monét, who performed a sexy duet dance routine to “Bad Girl.” Latto then joined a fleet of dancers to remake the “Yeah!” video onstage, with her performing Ludacris’ iconic verse ahead of the finale, during which all the other women returned to the stage.
You can watch the performance above and find the full list of 2024 BET Awards nominees and winners here.
