The BET Awards 2023 was an unabashed celebration of the 50th anniversary of Hip-Hop. Although host-less and script-less due to the Writers Guild of America writers’ strike, legends Kid Capri and MC Lyte held it down as DJ and announcer during a show that featured numerous performances from dozens of rappers. This year’s BET Awards may have been heavy on hip-hop, but R&B eeked out a small presence thanks to Coco Jones who walked away with her first BET Award and performed her hit song “ICU.”
After a banner year flexing her acting and singing talents, Coco came into the BET Awards with three nominations – for Best Female R&B/Pop Artist, Best Actress and Best New Artist. Competition in every category was steep, but Jones was up against Ambré, Doechii, FLO, Glorilla, Ice Spice and Lola Brooke for Best New Artist and she came out victorious.
Best New Artist was one of the few televised awards, and Ray-J and his wife Princess Love presented Coco with the coveted statue. The singer/actress fought back tears of joy as she accepted the award and shouted out her family in the audience. She thanked Jesus and BET for riding with her for all these years and recounted when she appeared on 106 & Park when she was 16.
“Thank you so much to my culture, who has stood beside me. We were raised together, and it’s been a really long journey,” the 25-year-old former Disney star said during her acceptance speech before sharing a thoughtful message. “For all of my Black girls, we do have to fight a lot harder to get what we deserve. But don’t stop fighting – even when it doesn’t make sense and you’re not sure how you’re gonna get out of those circumstances – keep pushing because we are deserving of great things.”
Shortly after accepting the Best New Artist trophy, it was time for Coco to perform her chart-topping hit single “ICU,” and she rose to the occasion. The only contemporary R&B singer on the BET Awards 2023 list of performers, Jones represented the genre to the fullest in a performance sponsored by Walmart who teamed up with her to give the organization Black Women’s Health Imperative a 100K donation.
Coco stood inside a circular stage dressed in a majestic black gown. BET’s graphics department made it look like it was raining onscreen and as if she was standing in a pool of water as her dewy skin glistened. She looked her typical gorgeous self and sounded good singing on live TV.
It may have been Hip-Hop’s night, but Coco Jones made quite a splash in the name of R&B at BET Awards 2023. Watch this superstar in the making shine right here.
