DaBaby and Roddy Ricch used their platform at this year's BET Awards to deliver a performance with a powerful message. While the show was filmed remotely, many of the performances were pretaped, which allowed the artists to do something incredible with their delivery of the Black Lives Matter remix of their hit song "Rockstar."
The music video opened on a shot of DaBaby getting arrested by a cop who is kneeling on his neck, while rapping the opening lines of the remixed track, which directly evoke the protests and struggles against police brutality and racism that have been going on for weeks.
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The performance moved on to a scene of protesters holding Black Lives Matter signs and wearing shirts emblazoned with "I Am George Floyd" in front of a burned-out cop car.
The song included protest images and captured the anger and pain of the moment, and concluded with a young girl, tears running down her face, holding up a sign that reads "More Love."
Aye! @DaBabyDaBaby & @RoddyRicch got us feeling like Rockstars in the crib! 💥 #BETAwards" pic.twitter.com/sLxi7fmvWf
— BET (@BET) June 29, 2020
ET spoke with host Amanda Seales last week, and she opened up about how the challenges facing Black Americans will play an important role in the very fabric of the show itself.
"We are seeing artists who are very seamlessly and organically bringing in what's happening in the world into their performances. And I'm doing the same thing with my comedy and my hosting," Seales shared. "So really what we're going to do is what exactly is expected of Black folks. We are going to speak and perform from the natural space where we are right now as Black Americans."
"For other networks and other shows, it might require a lot more thought process, but for a Black music show, Black music has always been intrinsically connected to what's going on in Black lives," Seales explained.
Check out the video below to hear more.
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