I wanted to be in bed early this evening - to rest mentally and physically - to prepare myself for the harrowing week ahead of me with work and school.
Buuuuuuuuut.....as fate would have it, I turned on my television in one of those rare moments and happened to scroll past BET on the channel guide. Normally (and I'm just slightly ashamed to say it), I would just pass BET riiiiiiiight on by in favor of American Dad or Bob's Burgers, but I saw that 'Black Girls Rock 2013' was on and my eternal curiosity got the best of me. Recently (aaaand maybe not so recently, if I can just be totally honest), there's been very little in BET's lineup to catch my attention, even marginally. But 'Black Girls Rock' was something that really stood out to me, in a very positive way, when I watched it for the first time last year. So to catch it by chance tonight was really a treat for me. Of course, once I hit the 'INFO' button and saw that Patti Labelle was one the award recipients for the evening, that pretty much solidified it for me that I would be watching tonight. (And no, I don't have DVR so I can't record it) So much for that early bedtime tonight.
Despite sacrificing my precious extra couple hours of sleep (WOE IS ME!), I'm really glad that I tuned in to watch 'Black Girls Rock 2013'. All of the performances tonight were fantastic - Jennifer Hudson, Ledisi, Patti Labelle, Kelly Rowland w/ Sevyn Streeter & Eve, Alice Smith, etc - and the sound system/acoustics (something that has been EXTREMELY problematic for BET in the past, IMHO) were really on-point this evening. I was especially moved by the stories of all of the honorees.
Buuuuuuuuut as much as I talk about the set, the singers, the awards...my heart really lies in the clothes. Although there wasn't much to talk about in way of clothes - I don't know if there was like a pre-show red carpet moment or something - there were a couple of moments that I noticed.
Jennifer Hudson's performance ROCKED (pun so intended), but those flat boots that she danced in did not really seem worthy of a stage show like she turned out tonight, despite it's striking resemblance to a Beyonce performance. LOL I hate to bring up Queen Bey in this discussion, but since she has really kind of set the bar for just about all female performers in the game currently, it's kind of inevitable that any awards show performance featuring a bevy of background dancers is going to draw comparisons. But I digress. No stacked heel, no wedge or a bootie, and certainly not a stiletto....just a flat, black combat boot like the ones I used to wear in the Air Force. Meh. The rest of her ensemble was rather unremarkable. Once I figure out how to add photos to this thing (I'm certain it's fairly simple - but as of now, I'm pretty computer illiterate. In 2013....a mess, right?), I'll be golden. Eh, I digress. The next outfit that she wore onstage - to present Queen Latifah with an award - was an improvement, but only by virtue of the fact that she wore heels. Her skirt, which I assume was Pucci because of the print, had a tulip-like flounce on the bottom, which I was already not a fan of, but paired with the black knee-high boots she was wearing, it made for a slightly challenging silhouette. Again, not terrible, but certainly not very good.
Tatiana Ali looked fantastic tonight - she was poised, well-spoken, statuesque, and elegant....but I wish she'd had an ensemble change at least once. The white gown she donned was beautiful, though I found that flower near her face heavy and distracting. But no matter how nice the dress was (minus the gigantic flower, of course), it was tired and stale after the first 2 presenters that she introduced to the stage. OUTFIT CHANGE NEEDED.
Alice Smith, a new artist, performed C. Lo Green's "A Fool For You". She sounded amazing, and she looked pretty good in her brown (with a vague tribal/snake combo print) sheath dress. Her hair (and makeup), on the other hand, was a different story. Her shaggy bowl cut was a tragedy, IMO, and it didn't really do her a lot of favors - it obscured the fact, particularly the eyes....but then again, maybe that's a good thing, considering the frosty eyeshadow contrasted instead of complementing her complexion. But I don't want to sound mean or nit-picky, so...............we focus on the positive. Her dress was great and she sounded even better.
Patti gave you elegant Chado Ralph Rucci vibe with an elegant, taupe-colored embroidered overcoat with matching wide-legged trousers.
