All eyes were on New Edition, an iconic R&B group that formed in 1978, at the 2017 BET Awards on June 25. The band, which consists of Bobby Brown, 48; Johnny Gill, 51; Ronnie DeVoe, 49; Ralph Tresvant, 49; Ricky Bell, 49; and Michael Bivins, 48, was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award, and we can’t think of a more deserving group! While accepting their award on the BET stage, Bobby said to the audience, “I want to say thank you to all of our fans, because y’all know I’ve been through some sh-t… If it wasn’t for the city of Boston, Orchard Park. There wouldn’t be a New Edition.” He added, “I used to tell the guys we were going to be successful, I just didn’t know how successful. I didn’t know how much the fans were going to stick with us as much you have.” Aw! We love how the group took this special time to not only thank their fans but also their roots and where they came from!
Pretty inspiring, right? And after their heartfelt acceptance speech, the group put on a surprise performance of some of their greatest hits! For those who aren’t familiar, New Edition is an esteemed boy group that reached its peak fame in the 80s. During their introduction video tonight, they were said to have “redefined” not only R&B but also boybands. They were also referred to as “legendary.” And while they’re all grown up now, New Edition is still wildly popular today. In fact, BET aired a New Edition mini-series back in January that ran over the course of three nights. The group even received their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on January 23, 2017. And it doesn’t seem like they’re slowing down any time soon.
After all, all six members will reunite to record another album in the near future and go on tour! It’s not hard to see why New Edition was this year’s BET choice for such a prestigious award. Bobby actually attended last year’s BET Awards too as a presenter, but he was reportedly in much better spirits THIS year. After all, as HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY reported, Bobby broke down in tears backstage last year — and it was all because of his deceased wife Whitney Houston and deceased daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown.
“Bobby’s team had to force him, literally push him on stage to present an award but all that was on his mind was Bobbi Kristina and Whitney,” an insider revealed to HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY. “He was sobbing saying ‘I miss Krissy and Whitney, I can’t do this.’” SO sad! But at least he seemed to be feeling much better tonight!
Tell us, HollywoodLifers — are you happy New Edition won the Lifetime Achievement award?