But truthfully, the BET Awards show was just the tip of the iceberg. Those in the know recognize the televised event as the culmination of the multi-day “BET Experience,” which included the BET HER Awards luncheon, a fashion show, workout sessions, a barber shop and beauty salon complete with manicures, braiding and makeup, a customizable sneaker lounge, a Karl Kaní pop-up shop and a subway-style “InstaCarpet”—and much, much more.

Several members of our team at The Root were in attendance, so I’ll leave the rest to them, but the 2019 BET Awards red carpet was something to see this year, as the well-known and “well, I don’t know what the hell is going on here” converged to remind us that blackness is never monolithic—especially on one of the blackest nights in entertainment.