The Grammy Museum® & BET Explore the Diverse Sounds of African Artists in New “Sounds Of Africa” Exhibit Opens 24 June in Conjunction with the Bet Experience at L.A. Live
Johannesburg, 17 June 2016: On Friday 24 June, the GRAMMY Museum® and BET are to unveil a brand new exhibit, Sounds of Africa that showcases and celebrates the unique diversity of African music, spotlighting winners and nominees of both the GRAMMY Awards® and the “BET Awards”.
Located on the third floor of the Grammy Museum, the display is an extension of the 16th annual “BET Awards” and the 2016 BET Experience at L.A. LIVE.
Commented Monde Twala, VP: BET, Youth & Music, VIMN Africa, “It’s fantastic to see the influence of African artists and music amplified in this unique exhibition in this iconic setting. We are excited about working with the Grammy Museum to create this fascinating tribute to legendary, traditional and contemporary African musicians.”
On display temporarily until autumn 2016, the exhibit will feature handwritten lyrics, costumes and rare instruments from a wide range of artists including:
- South African duo Mafikizolo (2014 BET Awards Best International Act: Africa nominees)
- Nigerian hip-hop artist and actor Ice Prince (winner, 2013 BET Awards Best International Act: Africa)
- GRAMMY winner Angélique Kidjo (Benin)
- Nigerian singer/songwriter and producer 2Face Idibia
- Singer/songwriter Salif Keita (Mali)
- Nigerian singer/songwriter Sir Victor Uwaifo
- Congolese rumba singer/songwriter and bandleader Tabu Ley Rochereau
- Nigerian visual artist Laolu Senbanjo
- and many more…
The BET Awards premieres on BET (DStv channel 129) on Tuesday 28 June at 19:00 CAT.
Russian Bear is the official South Africa sponsor of the BET Awards 2016.
For more information on the BET Awards, visit www.betafrica.tv, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BETinAfrica, or join the conversation about the channel on Twitter and Instagram @BET_Africa using the hashtag #BETAwards16.
About BET Africa
Launched Africa 2015, BET Africa is part of the diverse multimedia entertainment portfolio of Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) Africa. Celebrating African and African-American culture, BET Africa is available exclusively on the DStv platform and includes the dynamic online destination www.betafrica.tv.
About The BET Awards
Stephen G. Hill, BET’s President of Programming, Connie Orlando, BET’s Senior Vice President of Music and Specials, Lynne Harris Taylor, BET’s Vice President of Specials, will serve as Executive Producers for the “BET Awards” along with Jesse Collins, CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment.
About The Grammy Museum
Paying tribute to music’s rich cultural history, this one-of-a-kind, 21st-century museum explores and celebrates the enduring legacies of all forms of music, the creative process, the art and technology of the recording process, and the history of the premier recognition of excellence in recorded music – the GRAMMY® Award. The GRAMMY Museum features 30,000 square feet of interactive and multimedia exhibits located within L.A. LIVE, the downtown Los Angeles sports, entertainment and residential district. Through thought-provoking and dynamic public and educational programs and exhibits, guests will experience music from a never-before-seen insider perspective that only the GRAMMY Museum can deliver.
The GRAMMY Museum is open Monday to Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. For more information, please visit www.grammymuseum.org or follow @TheGRAMMYMuseum on Twitter and Instagram, and like “The GRAMMY Museum” on Facebook.
About BET International
BET Networks is the leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for people that want to know what’s hot, what’s next and what matters in black culture. BET is currently viewed in more than 110 million homes in over 50 countries around the world, including the United States, the UK, sub-Saharan Africa, Canada and the Caribbean. BET International is part of Viacom International Media Networks, a division of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all platforms.
About “BET Awards”
The “BET Awards” is one of the most watched award shows on cable television according to the Nielsen Company. The “BET Awards” franchise remains as the #1 program in cable TV history among African-Americans, and it is BET’s #1 telecast every year. It recognizes the triumphs and successes of artists, entertainers, and athletes in a variety of categories.