There were first-time winners in several key categories at the 20th annual BET Awards. Lizzo was named best female R&B/pop artist. She beat Beyoncé, who had won 10 times in this category, including the last six years in a row.
Megan Thee Stallion won best female hip-hop artist, beating two former winners in the category – Cardi B, who had won the last two years, and seven-time winner Nicki Minaj.
DaBaby won best male hip-hop artist, beating four-time winner Drake, among others.
Gymnast Simone Biles won sportswoman of the year for the first time. She beat tennis legend Serena Williams (who had won 12 times in the category, including the last six years in a row).
Here are other artists who made history at the BET Awards.
Blue Ivy Carter, the eight-year old daughter of Beyoncé and Jay-Z, shared in the BET HER award for “Brown Skin Girl,” along with her mother, Wizkid and SAINt JHN. This made Blue Ivy the youngest winner in BET history. The old record was held by Willow Smith, the daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, who was 10 in 2011 when she shared the YoungStars award with her brother Jaden Smith, then 12.
Roddy Ricch’s debut album, Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial, won album of the year. It’s the second year in a row that a debut album has won this award. Last year’s winner was Cardi B’s Invasion of Privacy. Ricch also won best new artist, despite stiff competition from Lil Nas X and Summer Walker.
Chris Brown won best male R&B/pop artist for the record-extending fifth time. He beat The Weeknd, who has yet to win in this category. Brown also won best collaboration for his hit “No Guidance” (featuring Drake).
Migos won best group for the fourth time, a record in the category. They had been tied with OutKast, which it won three times.
Kirk Franklin won the Dr. Bobby Jones beset gospel/inspirational award for “Just For Me,” beating Kanye West, among others. This is Franklin’s fourth win in the category, which puts him in a tie with Yolanda Adams for the most wins in the category’s history.
DJ Khaled’s “Higher” (featuring the late Nipsey Hussle and John Legend) won video of the year. It’s the first collab to win in this category since Jay-Z and West’s “Otis” (which credited the late Otis Redding as a featured artist) eight years ago.
Michael B. Jordan won best actor for the third time, tying Denzel Washington for the most wins in the category’s history. The ascendant Jordan has won all three of these awards in the last five years. Washington’s most recently win was in 2008.
Basketball great LeBron James won sportsman of the year for the seventh time, which extends his lead as the top winner in that category.
Queen & Slim won best movie. It’s only the second film directed by a woman to win in this category (which was introduced in 2010). Melina Matsoukas oversaw Queen & Slim Ava DuVernay directed Selma, the 2015 winner.
Marsai Martin, the 15-year old co-star of ABC’s black-ish, won the YoungStars award for the second year in a row. She’s the third performer to win twice in this category, following Yara Shahidi and Keke Palmer.
Burna Boy won best international act for the second year in a row. The artist is from Nigeria, as was the 2018 winner, Davido.