BET Hip-Hop Awards Descends Into Farce After Rick Ross, Young Jeezy Scuffle

The BET Hip-Hop Awards attracted all the wrong kinds of attention at the weekend, as the event held in Atlanta, Georgia descended into farce when police were called in to break up a spat that took place at the ceremony.

Already suffering from bad press with the news that Kanye West wouldn't be attending the awards despite leading the way on nominations with 17 nods, the event was plunged into further disrepute when police confirmed to the Press Association that they'd been forced to respond to a scuffle that took place at around 7:30pm on Saturday evening (September 29th). No names were disclosed regarding who was involved in the scuffle, but it was revealed that the fight took place during a tribute performance to the late hip-hop mogul Chris Lighty, who committed suicide just last month. Gossip website TMZ.com say Rick Ross and Young Jeezy were the main offenders.

Leading the tribute performance were rappers Q-Tip, Fat Joe, Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliott and 50 Cent; LL Cool J paid homage to him with some words beforehand. Away from the fights and the tributes, Rakim was given the "I Am Hip-Hop Icon" honour by fellow wordsmith T.I, with Kendrick Lamar coming away with lyricist of the year. The recording of the event will air on BET on October 9th, it's unknown whether the scuffle will be included, though officials said it did not interrupt the running of the awards.