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Home • BET Awards

Beyoncé Uses Excerpts of MLK's ‘I Have a Dream Speech’ for Surprise BET Awards Performance

Dr. King delivered the iconic "I Have a Dream" speech on August 28, 1963.
By Yolanda Sangweni · Updated October 27, 2020

We should have known something was up when Beyoncé’s dancers showed up looking regal and oh so royal on the red carpet of the 2016 BET Awards.

#Beyonces dancers slay in formation! Rumour has it she will be performing & maybe opening up the #BETAwards tonight! pic.twitter.com/9MXoZYAxtz

— TheShadeRoom (@TheShadeRoom) June 26, 2016

Moments later, smoke filled the room as the dancers strutted down the aisles while excerpts from Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech played.

When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Beyoncé soon appeared on the stage to perform a spirited rendition of the single “Freedom” from her platinum-selling album, Lemonade.

ESSENCE Festival headliner Kendrick Lamar joined her onstage and it was Black Excellence personified. We’d like to thank the Queen for bringing chills down our spines.

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TOPICS:  Beyonce Knowles