How to Watch the 2023 BET Awards: Live Stream the Ceremony Online for Free

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The 2023 BET Awards, also known as “Culture’s Biggest Night”, airs live this weekend, and this year’s ceremony is set to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop.

The ceremony will kick off on Sunday, June 25, at 8 p.m. ET on BET, featuring highly-anticipated performances from pioneers and newcomers representing both the East and West Coast history of the genre from Fat Joe, Remy Ma, Chief Keef, DJ Unk, E-40, Fast Life Yungstaz & Easton (F.L.Y.) and more. GloRilla and Bel-Air’s Coco Jones, as well as other 2023 BET Awards nominees Ice Spice and Latto are also expected to hit the stage.

Patti Labelle will honor Tina Turner’s life at the BET Awards, Rolling Stone exclusively revealed Friday. No details were made available about what exactly LaBelle will perform, but a BET Awards statement said it will be “nothing short of extraordinary” and will “capture the essence of Turner’s unparalleled legacy.”

Oddly enough, with days left before the ceremony, BET has yet to formally announce a host for the live show. That being said, there are a number of other huge stars performing on this year’s show, so read on for everything you need to know about how to watch the 2023 BET Awards on TV and online.

When Are the 2023 BET Awards?

The 2023 BET Awards air tonight, Sunday, June 25 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on BET. For those with cable, the show will also be simulcast on Logo, MTV, MTV2, TV Land and VH1.

The show is taking place live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. While previous events have been open to the public, this year’s ceremony is open to nominees and invited guests only, meaning the only way to watch the BET Awards is on TV or online.

How to Watch the 2023 BET Awards Online Free

If you have cable, you can watch the BET Awards on BET or any of the TV channels mentioned earlier. For those without cable, there are a couple of ways to watch the 2023 BET Awards Online for free.

Your best bet is to use a streaming service like fuboTV or DIRECTV Stream, which both offer BET as part of their channel lineups. Sign-up for one of the streamers to watch the BET Awards live online.

A subscription to fuboTV normally costs $69.99 but the site is currently offering a 7-day free trial which you can grab here. You’ll get instant access to livestream the BET Awards online free. Then, choose to continue on at the $69.99/month price, or cancel before your free trial is over.

Buy 7-Day Free Trial fuboTV

Another great way to watch the BET Awards online is through DIRECTV Stream. The new DIRECTV streaming service has all the popular TV channels, including BET, and the site is offering a five-day free trial that you can use to livestream the BET Awards online free. Pricing for DIRECTV Stream also starts at just $69.99/month once your free trial is over.

Buy 5-Day Free Trial DIRECTV Stream

Who Is Performing at the 2023 BET Awards?

This year’s BET Awards promise a great night of music, with performances from Tyga, Fat Joe, Soulja Boy, The Sugarhill Gang, Ying Yang Twins and Yo-Yo and more.

There will also be a special tribute to Busta Rhymes, who will be feted by artists and friends like Bia, Coi Leray and Swizz Beatz, as he receives the BET Lifetime Achievement Award.

Who Is Nominated at the 2023 BET Awards?

Drake leads all the BET Awards nominees, with seven nominations this year. GloRilla follows closely behind with six nominations, and Lizzo and 21 Savage have five nods each. Other nominees include Beyonce, Burna Boy, Chris Brown, SZA, and Kendrick Lamar.

Ice Spice also snagged himself a BET Awards nod, as she’s nominated alongside Pinkpantheress, for their viral track, “Boy’s A Liar Pt. 2.”

The Best Female Hip-Hop Artist category is a stacked field this year, with Cardi B, Coi Leray, GloRilla, Ice Spice, Latto, Megan Thee Stallion, and Nicki Minaj fighting it out for the BET trophy.

Who Is Hosting the 2023 BET Awards?

With a few days before the BET Awards left, there’s been a strange silence with no formal announcement yet about who will host the 2023 awards ceremony. For the previous two years, actress Taraji P. Henson has hosted the show, but she’s presumably not set to return this year.

Bow Wow is the main host of House of BET, a four-day celebration in L.A. from Thursday, June 22, to Sunday, so he could be a potential contender.

Find out at the 2023 BET Awards, which airs live on Sunday, June 25 at 8 p.m. ET. Livestream the BET Awards online for free by signing up for DIRECTV Stream here and choosing their five-day free trial.

Buy 5-Day Free Trial DIRECTV Stream