BET AWARDS RUNDOWN: Chris Brown Triumphs, Nicki Minaj Speechless, Bloopers, More

No one was safe last night at the 2011 BET Awards and host, Kevin Hart made that quite clear at the beginning of the ceremony â held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Amidst Hart’s jokes about Rick Ross, Ne-Yo, Trey Songz, Busta Rhymes and more, the night was jam packed with top-notch performances, A-list fashion and even an awkward moment or two sprinkled in.

It comes as no surprise that Sunday night’s big winner was none other than Chris Brown. Already leading the pack with six nominations before the show aired, the scandal-prone artist walked away with four of the night’s awards including best male R&B artist. Stating that he wasn’t much of a public speaker, Brown told everyone, “All my fans are everything to me.” He then added, “I know it’s been a long road. I just appreciate every blessing that’s been put in front of me.” Brown also went on to win best collaboration for his work with Busta Rhymes and Lil’ Wayne in ‘Look at Me Now’ â a song they later performed on stage.

Meanwhile, stoner-rapper Wiz Khalifa accepted his award for best new artist, beating out an impressive list of his peers like J. Cole, Willow Smith, Bruno Mars and Miguel. A speechless Nicki Minaj took home the best female hip-hop artist and gave a special thank you to Lil’ Wayne for seeing something in her that no one else saw. Kanye received recognition for winning best male hip-hop artist, however, was unable to attend â Justin Bieber accepted the award on his behalf.

BET also took the time to honor comedian, actor, author and radio personality Steve Harvey with the State Farm Humanitarian Award for his work with the youth. In Harvey’s speech he made it quite clear that without God’s grace, mercy and forgiveness he would not be here today, stating that this award was a testament to God’s power in addition to his mother.

For her tremendous contribution to the legacy of music, BET presented Patti LaBelle with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Her good friend Gladys Knight awarded LaBelle with the trophy. In her acceptance speech LaBelle made it clear that she had been in this business for at least 50 years. Prior to LaBelle receiving her award Cee-Lo, Marsha Ambrosius and Shirley Ceasar took to the stage to sing a tribute of some of LaBelle’s most iconic songs.

The ceremony also featured performances from Mary J. Blige and Anita Baker; Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, DJ Khaled and Ace Hood; Alicia Keys and Bruno Mars; Jill Scott, Trey Songz and Kelly Rowland; Donnie McClurkin, Mary Mary and Deitrick Haddon; plus a remarkable performance from Beyonce who was streamed singing live from Glastonbury.

What were your thoughts on the 2011 BET Awards?

Check below for a full list of the winners!

Best Male Hip-Hop Artist: Kanye West

Best Female Hip-Hop Artist: Nicki Minaj

Best Male R&B Artist: Chris Brown

Best Female R&B Artist: Rihanna

Best Group: Diddy-Dirty Money

Best Collaboration: Chris Brown f/ Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes â “Look at Me Now”

Video of the Year: Chris Brown f/ Busta Rhymes & Lil Wayne â “Look At Me Now”

Video Director of the Year: Chris Robinson

Best New Artist: Wiz Khalifa

Best Gospel: Mary Mary