Black Entertainment Television Awards (BET Awards) has released a statement apologizing to legendary singer Usher after they muted part of his speech at the awards gala.
''Celebrating global icon Usher on our stage with a star-studded tribute and having him accept his award with a heartfelt speech was an honor," the statement said in part.
The network expressed gratitude for Usher’s participation and clarified that the muting was inadvertent.
''We extend our sincere apologies to Usher as we couldn't be more grateful for his participation in Culture's Biggest Night.''
''Fans can catch his full uninterrupted speech across BET platforms and tonight's encore on BET,'' the statement concluded.
Much of his speech centered on the idea of fatherhood, forgiveness, and his three-decades' long career.
In his Lifetime Achievement Award speech during the BET Awards, Usher reflected on growing up without his father and emphasized the importance of present fathers.
Usher also emphasized on the importance of having a forgiving heart to understand the hardships faced by black men in America.
However, due to an audio malfunction, parts of his emotional 13-minute speech were inadvertently muted.
It appears that the heavy censoring started shortly after Usher said, ''Sorry, I'm gonna curse and let you know how I really feel,'' early on in his acceptance.
A full version of the speech is now available on BET's YouTube channel and will be included in a Monday rebroadcast, with a few profanities removed.
Netizens especially Usher's fans took to X to air their frustrations over being unable to hear the entire speech.
With onesaying, ''Are they gonna upload Usher's unedited speech on BET+ or something, because this consistent muting is ridiculous.''
Another fan added, ''Usher cussing up a storm up there like it's the Source awards BET took away my audio can't even hear the speech.''
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