Monday night, VH1's Hip Hop Honors returned to the stage after a six-year hiatus in an epic ceremony at the David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City to honor female trailblazers Queen Latifah, Missy Elliott, Salt-n-Pepa, Lil' Kim, and other women who "infiltrated the ranks of the male-dominated genre to make their voices heard and still do today."
The whole thing kicked off with an inspiring statement from Black Lives Matter founders Darnell Moore and Alicia Garza and a special taped cameo by First Lady Michelle Obama honoring the women of hip hop. The show wasted no time getting into the performances with the first one being a tribute to Missy Elliott. Artists performed her greatest hits including Remy Ma who performed "Work It," Nelly Furtado singing "Get UR Freak On," Eve letting loose on "Hot Boyz," and Trina finishing it off with "One Minute Man." Artists also honored Missy's work as a producer with Fantasia singing "Free Yourself," Monica performing "So Gone," and Tweet closing it out with "Oops (Oh My)." Missy's friends and collaborators Pharrell, Timbaland, Busta Rhymes, Angie Martinez, Jazmine Sullivan, and Keyshia Cole also presented the stage in her honor.
Honoree Queen Latifah performed "When You’re Good to Mama" from her Academy Award-nominated performance in Chicago along with a medley of her hits including "Come Into My House," "Had It Up 2 Here," "Monie in the Middle," and "Ladies" First" with Monie Love.
Salt-n-Pepa and Lil' Kim were also among the honorees who received tribute performances from other artists in the industry that included Eve, Ashanti, and more. It was Lil' Kims birthday so she took the stage after an introduction from Diddy to perform her own hits, "Queen B," "Get Money,” and “Lighters Up." Fat Joe and Remy Ma also linked up to perform their latest hit, "All the Way Up."
Finally, the a collection of legends hit the stage to shut it down in the show's finale. Queen Latifah performed "U.N.I.T.Y" along with Eve, M.C Lyte, Monie Love, Da Brat, Mia X, YoY o, Ms Jade, The Lady of Rage, Suga-T, Rah Digga, Nikki D, Sha Rock, We Tee, and Heather B. Watch all the best performances from last night below. You can also catch the rest of the night's greatest moments here.
Missy Elliott Tribute
Queen Latifah's Medley
Lil' Kim's Medley
Fat Joe and Remy Ma's "All The Way Up"
