Inside the Virtual BET Awards: How They Pulled It Off & Why It Might Change the Future of Award Shows

In April, BET aired a special called Saving Our Selves: A BET COVID-19 Relief Effort, which was the network’s first foray into producing and airing a show under pandemic conditions.
“At that point, even though we didn’t really think that we’d be extended through now, we started thinking about the ‘what if,’” says Connie Orlando, BET’s evp of specials, music programming & music strategy. “What would an award show look like if we had to pro