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Mike Epps Slated As Host For This Year's BET AWARDS

G.O.O.D. MUSIC'S LEADS WITH 17 IMPRESSIVE NOMINATIONS; 2CHAINZ FOLLOWS WITH 13 AND ROUNDS THINGS OUT WITH 11 NODS SIX CYPHERS TO BE INCLUDED IN THIS YEAR'S AWARDS TAPING AT THE BOISFEUILLET JONES CIVIC CENTER IN ATLANTA ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2012; NETWORK PREMIERE ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2012 AT 8:00 PM*

NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- BET Networks' flagship music variety program, "106 & PARK," officially announced the nominees for the BET HIP HOP AWARDS (#HIPHOPAWARDS). Actor and comedian (@THEREALMIKEEPPS) will once again host this year's festivities from the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center in Atlanta on Saturday, September 29, 2012 with the network premiere on Tuesday, October 9, 2012 at 8:00 pm*.

Mike Epps completely took-over "106 & PARK" to mark the special occasion and revealed some of the notable nominees with help from A$AP , Ca$h Out, DJ Envy and DJ Drama. Hip Hop Awards nominated artists A$AP Rocky and Ca$h Out performed their hits "Goldie" and "Cashin Out" while nominated deejay's DJ Envy and DJ Drama spun for the crowd.

The BET HIP HOP AWARDS Voting Academy is comprised of a select assembly of music and entertainment executives, media and industry influencers. Celebrating the biggest names in , newcomers on the scene, and shining a light on the community, the BET HIP HOP AWARDS is ready to salute the very best in hip hop culture. Leading the pack of A-list talent this year is Kanye West with 17 Nominations for Best Hip Hop Video; Reese's Perfect Combo Award; Best Live Performer; Lyricist of the Year; Video Director of the Year; Producer of the Year; MVP of the Year; Track of the Year; Made-You-Look Award; Hustler of the Year; Impact Track; and 2 nominations for People's Champ Award Powered by Verizon for "Otis" and "Mercy" and 2 nominations Best Club Banger for "Ni**as in Paris" and "Mercy."

"This year as there's a vibrant, young energy in music that our BET Hip Hop Awards show is poised to capture both in dynamic cyphers and thrilling on-stage performances. The excitement will be coming to you at the speed of light!" stated Stephen G. Hill, President of Specials and Programming, BET Networks. "On another note, you can expect an all-star tribute to our friend from those artists who loved him and worked with him...when it came to Chris, it was 'love' and 'work' in that order. This show, from front to back, is going to be special."

Following is the Full List of BET HIP HOP AWARDS '12 Nominees and Categories:

Best Hip Hop Video f/ Drake — No Lie A$AP Rocky — Goldie Drake f/ — HYFR f/ Miguel — Kanye West f/ , and 2 Chainz — Mercy

Reese's Perfect Combo Award (Best Collabo) 2 Chainz f/ Drake — No Lie Drake f/ Lil Wayne & () J. Cole f/ — Nobody's Perfect Wale f/ Miguel — Lotus Flower Bomb Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz — Mercy

Best Live Performer A$AP Rocky Drake J. Cole The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) Kanye West

Lyricist of the Year J. Cole Jay-Z Kanye West

Video Director of the Year A$AP Rocky & Sam Lecca Chris Robinson Kanye West

Producer of the Year Hit-Boy J. Cole J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League No I.D. Kanye West

MVP of the Year 2 Chainz J. Cole Jay-Z Kanye West

Track of the Year Cashin' Out — Produced by DJ Spinz (Ca$h Out) Ima Boss — Produced by ( f/ Rick Ross) Ni**as in Paris — Produced by Kanye West, Hit-Boy and Mike Dean (The Throne — Jay-Z & Kanye West) No Lie — Produced by Mike Will Made-It and Co-Produced by Marz (2 Chainz f/ Drake) The Motto (Remix) — Produced by T-Minus (Drake f/ Lil Wayne & Tyga)

CD of the Year — The Dreamer, The Believer Drake — Take Care J. Cole — Cole World: The Sideline Story The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) — Young — TM: 103 Hustlerz Ambition

DJ of the Year DJ Drama DJ Enuff DJ Envy DJ Funkmaster DJ

Rookie of the Year 2 Chainz A$AP Rocky Ca$h Out Meek Mill

Made-You-Look Award (Best Hip Hop Style) 2 Chainz A$AP Rocky Big Sean Kanye West

Best Club Banger Ca$h Out — Cashin' Out (Produced by DJ Spinz) Drake f/ Lil Wayne & Tyga — The Motto (Remix) (Produced by T-Minus) Future — (Produced by ) The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) — Ni**as in Paris (Produced by Kanye West, Hit-Boy & Mike Dean) Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz — Mercy (Produced by Lifted with additional production by Kanye West)

Best A$AP Rocky — LiveLoveA$AP Joey BadA$$ - 1999 Meek Mill — 2 Rick Ross — — Taylor Allderdice

Sweet 16: Best Featured Verse 2 Chainz — Mercy (Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz) Diddy — Same Damn Time Remix (Future f/ Diddy & ) Drake — Stay Schemin' (Rick Ross f/ Drake & ) Ludacris — Same Damn Time Remix (Future f/ Diddy & Ludacris) T.I. — Magic Remix (Future f/ T.I.)

Hustler of the Year 2 Chainz Jay-Z Lil Wayne Rick Ross Kanye West

Impact Track Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free) — Bitch Bad — Lupe Fiasco Daughters — Nas Murder to Excellence — The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West)

People's Champ Award Presented by Verizon 2 Chainz f/ Drake — No Lie Driicky Graham — Snapbacks & Tattoos Meek Mill f/ Rick Ross — Ima Boss The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) f/ — Otis Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T & 2 Chainz — Mercy

Best Hip Hop Online Site 2DopeBoyz.com AllHipHop.com Complex.com HipHopDX.com NahRight.com RapRadar.com WorldStarHipHop.com

BET.com/HipHopAwards is the official site for the BET HIP HOP AWARDS 2012 where fans can visit to get up-to-date info on this year's show and take a look back on past BET Hip Hop Awards. In the coming weeks, BET.com will launch a series of interactive timelines, exclusive video content, games and quizzes leading up to the show. BET.com will also give away BET Hip Hop Awards tickets exclusively to BET.com registered users and loyal readers of the BET newsletter. To become a BET.com member and register for our BET Newsletter log on to http://www.bet.com/register.html.

BET's inaugural HIP HOP AWARDS APP is available now for iPhone and Android. It provides a detailed history of the show since its inception in 2006 - hundreds of artists, past winners, cyphers, acceptance speeches and more. "The Lineup" allows app users to predict the order of this year's show performer and a real-time Tweet map shows you what the country and your favorite artists are saying about the show. And for the first time ever, one award — the Best Hip Hop Online Site — will be determined solely by app users.

Join the conversation on social media by logging on to BET's multiple social media platforms:

● On by using : #HipHopAwards; and following us @HipHopAwards and @BET ● On by liking the fan page at facebook.com/HipHopAwards

Stephen G. Hill, BET's President of Music Programming and Specials; Lynne Harris Taylor, BET's Vice President of Specials, will serve as Executive Producers for the BET Hip Hop Awards, along with Jesse Collins, CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment.

Official sponsors of The BET HIP HOP AWARDS include , Verizon, Reese's, Ubisoft/Hip Hop Experience, Dodge Dart, NBCU/'Man with the Iron Fist'.

About Jesse Collins Entertainment Jesse Collins Entertainment is a full service film and television production company founded by entertainment industry veteran Jesse Collins. Over the past decade, Collins, the company's CEO, has played an integral role in producing some of television's most memorable moments in the music entertainment arena. Formerly Executive Producer/Executive Vice President of Cossette Productions, Collins has produced award winning television programming including the , the BET Awards, BET Honors and BET's and has worked with superstar talent such as , Jay-Z, , Kanye West, Mary J. Blige, Kid Rock, Lil Wayne and many more.

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), 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 90 million households and can be seen in the , , the , the 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 operates in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

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SOURCE BET Networks

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