Busta Rhymes is set to be recognized with the Icon Award at the 2023 Culture Creators Innovators and Leaders Awards Brunch.
The seventh annual event will celebrate Hip Hop’s 50th anniversary this year when it goes down on June 24 at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles – with a highlight on Busta’s exceptional contributions to the genre.
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“As a trailblazer and visionary within the Hip Hop community, Busta Rhymes has made unparalleled contributions to the culture, making this accolade richly deserved,” the organization wrote in a press release.
Joi Brown, founder and CEO of Culture Creators, added: “This year’s Innovators and Leaders Awards Brunch holds an unparalleled significance as we celebrate the golden 50th anniversary of Hip Hop. We are thrilled to honor exceptional individuals who have profoundly impacted Black culture and Hip Hop while also showcasing the enduring power of this global cultural phenomenon.”
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Past Icon Award recipients include the late Andre Harrell, Russell Simmons, Sylvia Rhone, Byron Allen, Swizz Beatz and L.A. Reid.
Chloe x Halle will also be honored this year, receiving the Innovators of the Year Award.
It’s been a great year for the legendary Busta Rhymes. Last month, he and Janet Jackson finally got the chance to perform their 1998 joint hit “What’s It Gonna Be?!” for the first time. The moment went down at Madison Square Garden during the New York stop of Jackson’s Together Again Tour.
In March, Busta put on a suit and tie to deliver a special performance backed by a live orchestra at Carnegie Hall. At one point, he took time out of his set to tell the audience how huge it was for him to be a kid from Brooklyn performing at Carnegie Hall and his mother helping him out along the way.
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“While she was making breakfast, I used to see Transformers and Voltron,” he shared with the sold-out audience, noting that his cartoons would come on between 6:30 and 8:00 am.
“So, names like Optimus Prime, Megatron, and Soundwave [I would hear]. It was interesting when I went to the corner store to get my Charleston Chews … I would see brothers on the corner and they would have names like Lord Victorious and Supreme justice … Peace to the Gods!”
He continued: “The point that I’m trying to make is that I learned a lot tonight while in my dressing room looking at the TV monitors and watching these incredible gentlemen speak.”
