Legendary Boston R&B group New Edition honored with BET lifetime achievement award
Nearly 40 years after the group first formed in the Orchard Park housing projects of Roxbury, R&B group New Edition was honored with a lifetime achievement award at the BET Awards Sunday night.
“Thirty-plus years in the music industry will chew you up and spit you out, but all six of us are standing onstage right now,” member Ronnie DeVoe said after accepting the award. “What an amazing thing.”
DeVoe, along with Ricky Bell, Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill, Ralph Tresvant, and Michael Bivins, then changed into their iconic all-white suits for performances of “Mr. Telephone Man” and “Can You Stand the Rain.” Afterward, they were joined by cast members of the BET miniseries The New Edition Story for a performance of “If It Isn’t Love.”
Before accepting the award, members of the group watched as The New Edition Story cast members performed hits from both the group’s and the group members’ solo careers, including “Candy Girl,” Bobby Brown’s “My Prerogative,” and Bell Biv DeVoe’s “Poison.” The stage was adorned with a banner reading, “Roxbury Talent Show,” a nod to the night the group was discovered by a manager at a talent show.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh offered congratulations to the group in a tweet Monday morning.
https://twitter.com/marty_walsh/status/879361799837147136
