“We the generation with the knowledge and the hope,” Marley rapped. The night’s other cyphers brought the heat too, including a reggae cypher featuring legends like Skip Marley and Bounty Killer along with up-and-comers like Koffee.
“And if they can’t see us as an equal, they not allowed.” “And if they say the sky is the limit, then buy a cloud,” she wrapped her verse. Then Badu came in as her iconic self, opening, “My face too cute / My game too strong / Your man too close / He on my phone / About these bills / Put mommy on the phone.” Brandy brought the cypher home, reminding us whose beat it was in the first place.
turned the performance political, addressing Breonna Taylor’s police-shooting death. The attraction of the night was the “Ladies First” cypher, featuring Teyana Taylor, H.E.R., Erykah Badu, and Brandy rapping over the beat for Brandy’s hit “I Wanna Be Down.” Taylor opened with some flexes (“If I’m comin’ how I’m comin’, I don’t half-ass / ’Cause R&B Tey will leave your favorite in the trash bag”) before H.E.R. The BET Hip Hop Awards couldn’t quite make that happen last night, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but it brought the next best thing: four absolutely stacked groups of rappers. When it comes to a cypher, you can’t beat the camaraderie of having everyone in the same room, hanging out like friends and encouraging each other when they’re up.
