Obama a winner at BET Awards

By GottaLaff

Diddy, Keys... Obama? Oh yeah! Fist bump!

Another name heard frequently throughout the night was that of Barack Obama. Diddy, Alicia Keys and other nominees used their time onstage to urge viewers to vote, and clearly showed their support for the Democratic presumptive presidential nominee, who could become the nation's first black president.

For Best New Male Artist in a Presidential Election, Barack Obama! Diddy:

"If we all register and vote, we will have the first black president in the history of America," Sean "Diddy" Combs told the crowd Tuesday at the Shrine Auditorium before chanting "Obama or Die" - a declarative remix of his neutral "Vote or Die" motto from the 2004 presidential election, when he attempted to boost the youth vote.

Keys:

As she picked up her award for best female R&B artist, Alicia Keys told the crowd that it's time for black people to erase the word "can't" from their vocabulary. "Together we can do anything," she said, playing on the Democrat's "Yes We Can" mantra before shouting: "Obama y'all!"

Banner:

"For the first time in history, we have the opportunity for somebody who's not in the good ol' boy network to get into office," rapper David Banner told reporters backstage. "People talk about his lack of experience, but there's people with much more experience who haven't done such a good job."

For Best New Female Artist in a Presidential Election:

Backstage, Humanitarian Award winner Quincy Jones said he wanted Obama to be elected and create a Secretary of Culture position. Actress Nia Long beamed about possible first lady Michelle Obama.

"Michelle is graceful, beautiful and not afraid to be exactly who she is," Long said backstage. "It's wonderful to see their love in the midst of all the political madness. They have something we should all be proud of. She's smart. She's educated. And she's fearless. I'd love to have tea with her one day."

As expected, the Obamas also received the award for Best Collaboration in a Presidential Election. Of course, there had to be the inevitable losers:

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee, John McCain, failed to merit a shoutout by any of the BET presenters or performers.

Oh that's right, he wasn't even in the running.