"Anything Can Happen" as the Line-Up of Talent and Nominees Are Announced for This Year's BET Awards '13

HOSTED BY BLOCKBUSTER MOVIE STAR AND COMEDIAN CHRIS TUCKER

Hip-Hop Artist Drake Takes Command with 12 Nominations while Kendrick Lamar and 2 Chainz Are Tied with 8 Nominations

An Unprecedented 10 Nominees Rival For The Coveted "Video of the Year Award"

Chris Brown and R. Kelly Confirmed As the First Performers For This Year's Awards Show

Legendary R&B Singer Charlie Wilson To Be Honored with the 2013 "Cadillac Lifetime Achievement Award"

LIVE from Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles Sunday, June 30, 2013 at 8:00 p.m. * ET/PT on BET Networks

The BET Experience at L.A. Live, a Three-Day Event Including Concerts, Comedy Shows, a Film Festival and a Fan Fest and Seminars, June 28-30, Culminates with the BET AWARDS '13

LOS ANGELES, May 14, 2013 -- Earlier today, nominees were announced at the official BET Awards '13 press conference in Los Angeles, by BET's President of Music Programming and Specials, Stephen G. Hill ; this year's BET Awards '13 host, blockbuster movie star and comedian Chris Tucker ; R&B artist Chris Brown ; hip hop artist Kendrick Lamar; and singer and television personality Tamar Braxton .

Leading the pack of A-list nominees include, hip hop artist Drake, with an impressive 12 nominations including Best Male Hip Hop Artist and Video of the Year; close behind is breakthrough hip hop artist Kendrick Lamar and rapper 2 Chainz tied with 8 nominations; A$AP Rocky with 5 nominations; while Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake and Miguel face off with 4 nominations each in the categories of Best Collaboration, Coca-Cola Viewers' Choice Award and Video of the Year.

In what is sure to be a showdown of epic proportions, this year's Video of the Year Award has a phenomenal line-up of 10 nominees including Kanye West , Justin Timberlake , Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Rihanna, 2 Chainz, A$AP Rocky, Miguel and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis , all vying to get their hands on the sought-after trophy.

During the press conference, Chris Brown was exclusively announced as the first confirmed performer. As an added bonus, R. Kelly is closing the BET Awards '13 and will head over to the Staples Center immediately after to open the BET Experience concert. In addition, a living legend, Charlie Wilson was announced as the recipient of the prestigious Cadillac Lifetime Achievement Award, to honor his four decades in the entertainment industry.

"This year's line-up of nominees and performers is reflective of the variety of fantastic talent that's rocking the world right now," says Stephen G. Hill , President of Music Programming and Specials. "We are especially excited as we move on up to the Nokia Theatre at LA Live. You know how we do. Big thangs shall indeed be poppin'. The BET Awards. Anything Can Happen... and most likely will."

The nominees for the BET Awards '13 include:

Best Female R&B/Pop Artist
Beyonce
Tamar Braxton
Alicia Keys
Rihanna
Elle Varner

Best Male R&B/Pop Artist
Chris Brown
Bruno Mars
Miguel
Justin Timberlake
Usher

Best Group
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Mary Mary
Mindless Behavior
Slaughterhouse
The Throne ( Kanye West & Jay-Z)

Best Collaboration
2 Chainz f/ Drake - No Lie
A$AP Rocky f/ Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar - Problems
French Montana f/ Rick Ross , Drake and Lil Wayne - Pop That
Kendrick Lamar f/ Drake - Poetic Justice
Justin Timberlake f/ Jay-Z - Suit & Tie
Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz - Mercy

Best Male Hip Hop Artist
2 Chainz
A$AP Rocky
Drake
Future
Kendrick Lamar

Best Female Hip Hop Artist
Azealia Banks
Eve
Nicki Minaj
Rasheeda
Rye Rye

Video of the Year
2 Chainz f/ Drake - No Lie
A$AP Rocky f/ Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar - Problems
Drake - Started From The Bottom
Drake f/ Lil Wayne - HYFR
Kendrick Lamar f/ Drake - Poetic Justice
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis f/ Wanz - Thrift Shop
Miguel - Adorn
Rihanna - Diamonds
Justin Timberlake f/ Jay-Z - Suit & Tie
Kanye West f/ Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz - Mercy

Video Director of the Year
A$AP Rocky & Sam Lecca
Benny Boom
Director X
Dre Films
Hype Williams

Best New Artist
Azealia Banks
Joey Bada$$
Kendrick Lamar
Trinidad Jame$
The Weeknd

Best Gospel Artist
Deitrick Haddon
Lecrae
Tamela Mann
Mary Mary
Marvin Sapp

Best Actress
Angela Bassett
Halle Berry
Taraji P. Henson
Gabrielle Union
Kerry Washington

Best Actor
Don Cheadle
Common
Jamie Foxx
Samuel L. Jackson
Denzel Washington

YoungStars Award
Gabrielle Douglas
Jacob Latimore
Keke Palmer
Jaden Smith
Quvenzhane Wallis

Best Movie
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap
Sparkle
Think Like A Man

Subway Sportswoman of the Year
Gabrielle Douglas
Brittney Griner
Candace Parker
Serena Williams
Venus Williams

Subway Sportsman of the Year
Victor Cruz
Kevin Durant
Robert Griffin III
LeBron James
Ray Lewis

Coca-Cola Viewers' Choice Award
A$AP Rocky f/ Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar - Problems
Drake - Started From The Bottom
Kendrick Lamar - Swimming Pools (Drank)
Miguel - Adorn
Rihanna - Diamonds
Justin Timberlake f/ Jay-Z - Suit & Tie

Centric Award
Tamar Braxton - Love and War
Fantasia - Lose To Win
Miguel - Adorn
Nas - Daughters
Charlie Wilson - My Love Is All I Have

Best International Act: Africa
2Face Idibia (Nigeria)
Toya Delazy (South Africa)
Donald (South Africa)
Ice Prince (Nigeria)
R2Bees (Ghana)
Radio and Weasel (Uganda)

Best International Act: UK
Marsha Ambrosius
Estelle
Labrinth
Rita Ora
Emeli Sande
Wiley

This year for the first time, the general public can purchase tickets to the BET Awards with a BET Experience VIP Package, which also includes 3-day tickets to nightly concerts at the Staples Center.

For 12 years, BET Networks has drawn music's biggest talent to be part of the biggest night in music; the BET Awards. This year, the activity and excitement expands with the first ever BET EXPERIENCE AT LA. LIVE! This three-day festival filled with comedy, gospel and soulful music concerts, seminars, film screenings, "106 & PARK" tapings and so much more will build anticipation for the finest BET Awards show yet.

BET.com/BETAwards (http://www.bet.com/shows/bet-awards.html) is the official site for the BET Awards '13 and features content on nominees and award recipients. The microsite will feature exciting interactive consumer elements and include information for ticket purchase, events, schedules and registration.

BET Mobile will return on June 3rd with the official BET AWARDS app on iPhone and Android devices with exclusive photo, video and interactive content.

Join the conversation on social media by following BET's multiple social media platforms, dedicated to the BET Awards:

Follow us on Twitter & Instagram : @BETAwards, Use hashtag: #BETAwards

On Facebook: facebook.com/TheBETAwards

On Tumblr: betawards.tumblr.com

*All times are ET/PT

The BET AWARDS '13 will premiere Sunday, June 30, 2013 at 8:00PM BST across BET's international platforms in the UK and Africa.

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 AWARDS '13, in conjunction with Jesse Collins , CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment.

About BET Awards:

Established in 2001, the BET AWARDS continues to be one of the most watched awards shows on cable television according to the Nielsen Company reaching an average of 7.5 million viewers annually. The franchise remains the #1 program in cable television history, among African-Americans. Each year, the BET AWARDS recognizes the distinguished achievements of artists, entertainers and athletes in a number of diverse categories, including film, sports and music.

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 Grammy Awards, the BET Awards, BET Honors and BET's Rip the Runway and has worked with superstar talent such as Will Smith , Jay-Z, Rihanna, Kanye West , Mary J. Blige , Kid Rock, Lil Wayne and many more.

About BET Experience at L.A. LIVE:

The BET Experience at L.A. Live is an exciting weekend consisting of concerts from A-list talent at STAPLES Center, Nokia Theatre at L.A. LIVE and Club Nokia, the BET Film Festival, fan festival, live tapings of "106 & Park," The BET GRAMMY(R) Museum exhibit, Music Matter stage, BET Revealed seminars and the BET Awards. For the first time ever, tickets to the BET Awards show are available to the public through VIP ticket packages. For more information and to purchase tickets to the events, visit www.BETExperience.com.

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom 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 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 operates in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.