BET Networks Announces the "BET HIP HOP AWARDS '11" Nominees Network Premiere, October 11, 2011 at 8:00 p.m.*

Lil Wayne Leads The Roster of Hip Hop All-Stars With 18 Nominations

Comedian Mike Epps Returns to Host Hip Hop's Crowning Night

Maybach Music's Meek Mill Confirmed For This Year's Cyphers

NEW YORK, Sept. 7, 2011 -- BET's hit music countdown show, 106 & PARK, announced today the exciting list of nominees for the Networks' sixth annual BET HIP HOP AWARDS. During the live taping, rappers Busta Rhymes, Big K.R.I.T. and Meek Mill joined host Terrence and Rocsi as the two revealed the names of this year's top runners. Rapper Lil Wayne leads the pack of contenders with a record-breaking 18 nominations, followed by Kanye West and Wiz Khalifa tied with 9 nods each and Rick Ross with 8 nods. Maybach Music newcomer, Meek Mill, also announced his inclusion in the highly anticipated cypher segments of the show. Actor and comedian Mike Epps added to the excitement and confirmed his return as third time host. Hip hop's main event will return to the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center in Atlanta on Saturday, October 1 with the Network premiere on Tuesday, October 11 at 8:00 p.m.*

Lil Wayne has had an extraordinary year and now has 18 record-breaking BET HIP HOP AWARDS nominations to prove it. Chosen from an illustrious academy of music and entertainment executives, media and influencers, he's been nominated for Best Hip Hop Video, Reese's Perfect Combo Award (Best Collab), Best Live Performer, Lyricist of the Year, MVP of the Year, Track of the Year, Made-You-Look Award (Best Hip Hop Style), Best Club Banger, Sweet 16: Best Featured Verse, Hustler of the Year and two consecutive nominations for Verizon People's Champ Award (Viewers' Choice) with videos "Look At Me Now" and "6 Foot 7 Foot."

Celebrating the biggest names in the game, newcomers on the scene, and shining a light on the community, the BET HIP HOP AWARDS '11 is ready to salute the best of the best in hip hop culture.

The Following is the Full List of BET HIP HOP AWARDS '11 Nominees and Categories:

Best Hip Hop Video
Big Sean f/ Chris Brown - My Last
Chris Brown f/ Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes - Look At Me Now
DJ Khaled f/ Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne - I'm On One
Eminem f/ Rihanna - Love The Way You Lie
Kanye West f/ Rihanna - All Of The Lights

Reese's Perfect Combo Award (Best Collab)
Ace Hood f/ Rick Ross & Lil Wayne - Hustle Hard (Remix)
Big K.R.I.T. f/ Ludacris & Bun B - Country Sh*t (Remix)
Chris Brown f/ Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes - Look At Me Now
DJ Khaled f/ Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne - I'm On One
Lupe Fiasco f/ Trey Songz - Out Of My Head

Best Live Performer
Busta Rhymes
Cee-Lo Green
Jay-Z
Lil Wayne
Kanye West

Lyricist of the Year
Jay-Z
Lil Wayne
Nicki Minaj
Rick Ross
Kanye West

Video Director of the Year
Gil Green
Anthony Mandler
Chris Robinson
Kanye West
Hype Williams

Producer of the Year
J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League
Kane Beatz
Lex Luger
No I.D.
Kanye West, Emile, Jeff Bhasker & Mike Dean

MVP of the Year
Lil Wayne
Nicki Minaj
Rick Ross
Kanye West
Wiz Khalifa

Track of the Year
6 Foot 7 Foot - Produced by Bangladesh (Lil Wayne f/ Cory Gunz)
Black and Yellow - Produced by Stargate (Wiz Khalifa)
I'm On One - Produced by T-Minus (DJ Khaled f/ Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne)
Look At Me Now - Produced by Diplo & Afrojack (Chris Brown f/ Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes)
My Last - Produced by Lex Luger (Big Sean f/ Chris Brown)

CD of the Year
Big Sean - Finally Famous
Lupe Fiasco - LASERS
Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday
Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Wiz Khalifa - Rolling Papers

DJ of the Year
DJ Drama
DJ Enuff
DJ Envy
DJ Khaled
DJ Prostyle

Rookie of the Year
Big K.R.I.T.
Big Sean
Frank Ocean
Diggy Simmons
Tyler the Creator
Wiz Khalifa

Made-You-Look Award (Best Hip Hop Style)
Jay-Z
Lil Wayne
Nicki Minaj
Kanye West
Wiz Khalifa

Best Hip Hop Online Site
All Hip Hop.com
Bossip.com
Nah Right.com
Rap Radar.com
World Star Hip Hop.com

Best Club Banger
Ace Hood - Hustle Hard (Produced by Lex Luger)
DJ Khaled f/ Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne - I'm On One (Produced by T-Minus)
Lil Wayne f/ Cory Gunz - 6 foot 7 foot (Produced by Bangladesh)
Waka Flocka Flame - No Hands (Produced by Lex Luger)
Wiz Khalifa - Black And Yellow (Produced by Stargate)
YC Worldwide f/ Future - Racks (Produced by Sonny Digital)

Best Mixtape
Big K.R.I.T. - Return Of 4Eva
B.o.B - No Genre
J. Cole - Friday Night Lights
Kendrick Lamar - Section .80
Frank Ocean - Nostalgia, Ultra

Sweet 16: Best Featured Verse
Busta Rhymes - Look At Me Now (Chris Brown f/ Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes)
Lil Wayne - Motivation (Kelly Rowland f/ Lil Wayne)
Nicki Minaj - Monster (Kanye West f/ Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver)
Wiz Khalifa - Bright Lights, Bigger City (Cee-Lo Green f/ Wiz Khalifa)
Wiz Khalifa - Till I'm Gone (Tinie Tempah f/ Wiz Khalifa)

Hustler of the Year
Diddy
Jay-Z
Lil Wayne
Rick Ross
Kanye West

Verizon People's Champ Award (Viewers' Choice)
Chris Brown f/ Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes - Look At Me Now
Lil Wayne f/ Cory Gunz - 6 Foot 7 Foot
Nicki Minaj f/ Drake - Moment 4 Life
Kanye West f/ Rihanna - All of The Lights
Wiz Khalifa - Black And Yellow

For more on the BET HIP HOP AWARDS '11, please visit: www.bet.com/hiphopawards.

This year, BET once again teams up with Cossette Productions, the famed producers of the GRAMMY Awards� and the record-setting BET AWARDS shows, to handle production of the telecast. Stephen G. Hill, BET President, Music and Programming, along with Lynne Harris Taylor, BET Vice President of Specials, are executive producers of the telecast.

Tickets for the BET HIP HOP AWARDS '11 are by invite only and not available for purchase.

*All times are ET/PT.

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 98 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to 54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.