ISSA RAE, BRANDY, RAPSODY, SKAI JACKSON, NIATIA “LIL MAMA” KIRKLAND, MISS AMERICA 2019 NIA FRANKLIN, MISS USA 2019 CHESLIE KRYST, TAMIKA MALLORY, AND BEVERLY BOND ARE AMONG PRESENTERS
KIM BURSE RETURNS AS MUSICAL DIRECTOR, LEADING ALL FEMALE HOUSE BAND
THE 2019 BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® AWARDS, HOSTED BY NIECY NASH, PREMIERES SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 AT 8 P.M.
TO APPLY FOR MEDIA CREDENTIALS FOR 2019 BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® AWARDS: https://blackgirlsrock19.pvitl.com/registration/media_application
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today BET Networks and Beverly Bond, Executive Producer and Creator of BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® announce the performers at The 2019 BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® Awards on BET. The line-up will include India.Arie, Common, Erykah Badu, Ari Lennox, Elle Varner, Monica, Kiana Ledé, and Maimouna Youssef aka Mumu Fresh. House music icons, Crystal Waters, Cece Peniston, Robin S., and DJ Cocoa Chanelle will collaborate for a special moment.
Presenters who will take the stage, include Brandy, Issa Rae, Rapsody, Niatia “Lil Mama” Kirkland, Skai Jackson, Miss America 2019 Nia Franklin, Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst, and Tamika Mallory.
Musical Director Kim Burse, will return for the ninth year to lead the house band, a phenomenal group of all-female musicians, including Cora Coleman (Drums), Divinity Roxx (Bass), Crystal Vargas (Percussion), Lynette Williams (Keyboard), Ashlee Juno (Guitar), Katty Rodriguez (Saxophone), Lessie Vonner (Trumpet), Arnetta Johnson (Trumpet), Myrish Spell (Trombone), and background vocalists Tiffany Ryan, Ayana George, & Latayvia Chery.
This year’s celebration will tape on Sunday, August 25, 2019, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) Prudential Hall in Newark, NJ and will premiere on Sunday, September 8th, 2019, at 8:00 P.M. ET/PT on BET.
As previously announced, the 2019 star-studded line up of celebrants will include Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominated actress, director, and producer Angela Bassett (Icon Award), Oscar, Golden Globe, and Emmy-winning actress and director Regina King (Star Power Award), GRAMMY-Award winning singer/songwriter Ciara (Rock Star Award), Academy Award and Emmy Award-nominated producer and industry trailblazer Debra Martin Chase (Shot Caller Award) two-time GRAMMY Award-winning musician H.E.R. (Young Gifted and Black Award), and activists The Mothers of The Movement Sybrina Fulton, Geneva Reed-Veal, Gwen Carr, Congresswoman Lucy McBath, Maria Hamilton and Cleopatra Cowley-Pendleton (Community Change Agent Award).
The televised special is a BET Networks, B.G.R. Enterprises Inc./BONDVISION MEDIA and Jesse Collins Entertainment production. The executive producers are Beverly Bond, creator and CEO of BLACK GIRLS ROCK!®, Connie Orlando, Head of Original Programming for BET Networks and Jesse Collins and Jeannae Rouzan-Clay of Jesse Collins Entertainment.
The 2019 BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® Awards will air on BET Africa at 8 P.M. CAT on September 10th, BET France at 10 P.M. CEST on September 11th and at 9 P.M. BST on BET UK and 9 P.M. KST on BET South Korea on September 12th.
For updates or more information about BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® visit http://www.BET.com/blackgirlsrock and www.blackgirlsrock.com
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ABOUT BLACK GIRLS ROCK!®:
Founded by celebrity DJ, model and executive producer Beverly Bond, the BLACK GIRLS ROCK! ® Awards show was created to celebrate the nexus of achievements of exemplary women of color who break boundaries, blaze trails, and set trends across sectors. Since 2006, the annual BLACK GIRLS ROCK!® Awards has honored an outstanding range of accomplished and inspiring women across generations and genres. BLACK GIRLS ROCK! is a multifaceted media, entertainment, philanthropic, and lifestyle brand that focuses on the empowerment of women and girls of color. The BLACK GIRLS ROCK! platform encompasses numerous experiential live events, media content, merchandise, and programs including the internationally acclaimed televised BLACK GIRLS ROCK! Awards, The BLACK GIRL MAGIC™ Hour podcast, and BLACK GIRLS ROCK! Inc., a 501(c)3 not-for-profit, and the BLACK GIRLS LEAD summer leadership intensive for teen girls. The BLACK GIRLS ROCK! movement continues to be a leading force in highlighting the spectrum of brilliance that Black women possess and remain at the vanguard of a cultural paradigm shift where Black women’s narratives, overall presence in society, and prominence in mainstream media are being elevated and recognized like never before. For additional information on BLACK GIRLS ROCK!™, visit http://www.blackgirlsrock.com.
ABOUT BET NETWORKS:
BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIA.B), is the nation’s leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for black entertainment, music, culture and news; BET HER, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the African-American woman; BET Music Networks – BET Jams, BET Soul and BET Gospel; BET Home Entertainment; BET Live, BET’s growing festival business; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET around the globe.
ABOUT JESSE COLLINS ENTERTAINMENT:
Jesse Collins Entertainment (JCE) is a full-service television and film production company founded by entertainment industry veteran Jesse Collins. For more than a decade, the company has played an integral role in producing some of television’s most memorable moments in music entertainment including groundbreaking and award winning television programming including the BET Awards, Soul Train Awards, BET Honors, UNCF An Evening of Stars, ABFF Awards and the BET Hip Hop Awards. On the scripted side, JCE has produced numerous shows for BET including Real Husbands of Hollywood starring Kevin Hart as well as the critically acclaimed The New Edition Story, a biopic on the boy band that aired as a 3-part mini-series. It posted record ratings for the network and attracted nearly 30 million viewers. It was followed by The Bobby Brown Story, which chronicled the talented but troubled singer’s exit from the popular ’80s boy band through his solo success and was the highest rated non-tentpole program on the network since The New Edition Story. The company’s second season of American Soul, the critically-acclaimed period drama based on the untold rise of the iconic music and dance program Soul Train, will debut in 2020. Go to http://www.jessecollinsent.com/ for more information on the company.
ABOUT NEW JERSEY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER:
New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located in downtown Newark, New Jersey, is among the largest performing arts centers in the United States. It is the artistic, cultural, educational and civic center of New Jersey — where great performances and events enhance and transform lives every day. As New Jersey’s Town Square, NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the State’s and the world’s best artists, while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city. Through its extensive Arts Education programs, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. NJPAC has attracted over seven million visitors (including more than one million children) since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents. Visit http://www.njpac.org or call 1-888-GO-NJPAC for more information.
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