Buzz
Sometimes, things turn out to be more fun when unplanned…my BET Experience & more
So by now, you all know that I achieved my dream of attending the BET Awards for the first time this year…and yes watch out, the Grammys and Oscars could be next! But the real story is how I finally made the decision to attend the BET Awards, the uncertainties and the many adventures in between. If you think you saw it all on social media, then think again and buckle your seat belts!!! When I returned from Cannes in May, I went for a US visa and thought it would be great to do the BET Awards since it was happening in June. I immediately started looking into the process of getting media accreditation in order to make it possible. I visited the official website for BET but unlike the Cannes Film Festival, which clearly had information on media applications, there was nothing like that for the BET Awards.
Although I had a Ghanaian contact at BET, I knew she had left the network so I didn’t even go to her to find things out (I later found out that she could have been of help if I had asked). I then emailed my contact at Viacom International Media Networks (who worked on my accreditation for the MTV Europe Music Awards I attended in Rotterdam last year), only to get an automated response saying she had left the company. The automated message also included the email address for two people who were now handling communications/PR for Viacom. I emailed them but never got an answer.
My anxiety started to mount as I continued to find out means to get accreditation for the awards. I contacted another friend who does publicity in Hollywood and she sent me a link with which I could apply for accreditation. It was right before the deadline so I managed to squeeze in my application on time. In fact, another friend sent me a different link and I applied as well.
After these applications, I now started waiting to hear from BET whether my request was accepted. Of course as one of Africa’s leading bloggers in the entertainment sector I was almost convinced that my request would be accepted. But after waiting and waiting, that appeared to be a mirage and maybe just maybe I had rated myself a little more than I’m worth…hahaha!!!
With each passing day to the event, I got frustrated when I wasn’t hearing anything. The only other option that could guarantee me attending the BET Awards was to buy a VIP ticket package. But with VIP packages going for around $1,100 to $2500 and $4500, that was really not an option for me. In fact I started an online campaign for my readers and social media community to contribute towards my dreams of attending the awards. Days passed without a single donation. In fact at some stage I even joked (not lied) on social media that I had received donations from two people, just to encourage other people to donate. Well, that didn’t get any positive results.
The event date inched closer and the frustration grew further, as I had to plan my travels adequately. I decided to get cheap tickets for 3-days of BET Experience- Staples Center concerts, so that incase I got my passes last minute while in Los Angeles, then I wouldn’t have wasted too much money on tickets anyway (in fact I was planning to resell those tickets if I finally got my accreditation from BET).
The BET Experience concerts were starting from Thursday to Saturday ahead of the awards on Sunday. On the Sunday night ahead of it all, I decided to leave Ghana on Tuesday to arrive in L.A on Wednesday so I could rest a day before the concerts. The last minute planning meant my flight was rather expensive. I went ahead to book my flight from Accra to Amsterdam to Los Angeles, and Los Angeles to New York so that I could tour the US a bit after the awards. Hello, City of Angels!!! As fate would have it, I arrived in L.A after a 10 hour flight from Amsterdam and checked into the Los Angeles Vacation Rooms, a ‘hotel’ I booked based on proximity to the Staples Center, Venue for the BET Experience concerts (stay tuned for my terrible experience with that hotel in my upcoming ‘that type of hotel’ series on my stay in America.)
Soon, it was already Thursday and time for the first night of the concerts. During the day however, I visited the Hollywood Walk of Fame for my experience of Hollywood. I enjoyed it although I felt stupid after tipping some action figures and cartoon characters too much to have photos with them. I soon learnt how to ‘walk the streets of Hollywood’… literally!










Watch out for @detroithustleking #betweekend and everyone is pumped!!! A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) onIn the evening, I made my way to the Staples Center and found my way to my seat inside the auditorium. I booked the same seat for 3 nights. Although it was far from the stage it was right on top of the stage so I could see the performance pretty well…at least whenever the artists decided to stay on stage instead of running through the crowd.

See the huge joints @snoopdogg shared to the audience #betx #betweekend A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) on
On Friday, some friends of mine came from Iowa as well to attend the Friday show, so I moved from my hotel to join them a new one, close to airport. Although the new hotel was farther from the Staples Center, it was very close to the airport and ideal for my 6am flight to New York, on Monday.
Thanks guys for making my stay in #losangeles really fun and cool. See you soon😉 Jimmy Butler @ish_nii912 A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) onAlthough I had still not heard from BET regarding my accreditation to officially attend the main BET Awards on Sunday, I had some little hope on Friday evening, when I was invited by a friend to be her guest to the welcome party for BET International award nominees at the Grammys Museum. I was hoping to get a last minute BET Awards ticket from BET International arm of the network. So I passed through party before heading to the Staples Center for Friday’s concert. It was an opportunity to see the Ghanaians who had also come for the event. I met Becca but Stonebwoy couldn’t make it because he had a rehearsal that took some steam away from him earlier. After sticking around for a bit I headed off to the Staples Center.



@brysontiller live #betx A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) on
On Saturday, my day got off to a busy start when I received a WhatsApp message from Becca that I should join her as a guest to the BET International presentation for award winners (yes the infamous ceremony that is pre-recorded to announce winners for Africa and Europe.) Becca told me she put me on the guest list so I could attend the early afternoon event. I got into an Uber and headed to the Microsoft Theatre for the event. When I got there, I asked for the guest list but the security was not aware of such a list. I told them I had come for the award presentation and I was handed a wristband to join a bunch of seat fillers for the ceremony. [caption id="attachment_110030" align="aligncenter" width="620"]

Passed by for the recording of @diasporadialogues today. Keep an eye out on this amazing show aimed at bridging the gap between Africans home and in the diaspora. Congrats big sis @k3pr A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) onAfter the interview, I was tired so I went to the hotel to rest and wait for my friends to get in touch with me so I join them to Venice Beach, as planned the previous night. I was so tired that I dozed off while waiting for their call. In fact the only thing that woke me up was the chiming of the hotel fire alarm. When the alarm went off, I immediately joined the other hotel guests to make a quick exit as per instructions. But we soon found out it was only a false alarm. I called my friends after I saw their missed call to find out where they were. Looking at the distance of Venice beach, I dressed up and took my ticket so I would head to the Staples Center for the Saturday concert, right from the beach. Again I hopped onto Uber and made my way to the beach (but not after two previous cars cancelled my trip after because I had pinned in the wrong location). Thinking, I was going to Labadi beach back home in Ghana, I went through the central entrance for the Venice Beach. To my surprise it was a huge stretch and finding my friends took longer than expected so I had to jump into another Uber to head towards Staples Center, without seeing them. I made my way to the concert and it turned out to be really fun!!! Yes I had fun, even after finding out that the two Uber drivers that cancelled my ride earlier in the day had reported me as a ‘no show’ and I had been billed $5 each. Performers on the night included A$AP Rocky, Schoolboy Q, Rae Sremmurd, Gucci Mane, Migos, Young Thug, Lil Yachty and more!
This is how my #betexperience comes to an end #betx #betawards17 A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) on
After the Saturday concert, my BET Experience was officially over as Sunday came and I still didn’t have a ticket to the BET Awards. I tried some last minute lobbying on social media trying to catch the attention of all the BET Networks from Africa to International to USA, but there was no luck. [caption id="attachment_110006" align="aligncenter" width="620"]



Its my prerogative #newedition lifetime achievement award winner #betawards17 A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) on
About last night #betawards17 #betx A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) onI also received a Platinum VIP tag that allowed me almost anywhere, including all the exclusive celebrity parties after the show. This tag came as part of the $4,500 VIP package and I intended to use it fully, at least catch some celebs for a few selfies. Sadly, after hanging around and charging my phone for about an hour, I couldn’t catch word on where the big parties were being held…yes they were that exclusive. [caption id="attachment_110005" align="aligncenter" width="620"]











I managed to sleep a little before heading to Penn Station New York to catch a train to the Newark Airport. Oh I forgot to tell you I had on me some bottles of shito and a load of dry fish to give to family in the USA…typical yeah? I remember when I arrived in Los Angeles and the customs guy asked me what type of fish I had with me. ‘Is it Ethiopian fish?’, he asked. I told him it was dried fish from Ghana and then he jokingly said, “Oh ok Ghanaian fish, it might smell but it is allowed.” Anyway I made my way to the airport with my luggage, checked in, boarded and made my way to Washington Dulles Airport. Hello DMV area!! [caption id="attachment_110033" align="aligncenter" width="900"]#aboutlastnight Oluman Ameyaw goes clubbing in #newyork #NYC #manhattan 😱😱😱























A taste of Ghana in D.C … Palm Wine at Appioo African Bar &Grill A post shared by Ameyaw Debrah (@ameyaw112) onThe tough finish!!! On Saturday, my last day in Virginia I planned to meet up my auntie in Manassas again to go shopping, and also to see my cousin since she was at work when I visited the first time. My aunt needed to go get some stuff in Fairfax, so we drove that direction before coming back to Manassas to start with our shopping. My cousin, who had rushed out of her work during lunchtime, came to meet me briefly at the Manassas Mall and returned to work. [caption id="attachment_110028" align="aligncenter" width="900"]


We’re sorry for the inconvenience. We’d like to discuss what transpired over DM. ^JR https://t.co/Y6hG6uklaR
— United (@united) July 2, 2017
We never want traveling to be stressful. Please see our previous tweets, as we’re genuinely interested in discussing this further. ^JR https://t.co/Y6hG6uklaR — United (@united) July 2, 2017Also I thought I had heard one of the crew members explain to me at the door that I should pick up my bag from ‘lost and found’ when we arrive. So I just couldn’t hide my anger. After paying for every single bag I carried on the flight, (yes there is nothing free on United), I couldn’t believe I had to go through so much stress with the only free allowance the airline gives. I started attacking United airline on twitter before the plane took off. And while in the air, I couldn’t stop thinking of how to attack them further when I landed. [caption id="attachment_110029" align="aligncenter" width="620"]

We called United from the hotel before leaving but they weren’t very helpful, we had to go through a rather impersonalized call center before reaching a not so useful agent who told me to fill out a lost and found application online…. really? When I got to the airport I got lost a few times trying to find the right terminal. After asking around, I was directed to the correct terminal and I hopped into an airport taxi there. I started sending Direct Messages to United on Twitter, yes the same account that I was blasting some few hours earlier. I explained the situation, told them the seat I was in, and gave them some more flight details. After about an hour of waiting and moving from on desk to the other, my passport was finally returned. Phew… what a relief. I could now go back to my hotel to sleep and rest a bit before my flight to Ghana on Sunday evening.
Our pleasure, Ameyaw. We always got you covered. ^RD — United (@united) July 2, 2017After sleeping for some few hours, I woke up and headed to New York for some last minute shopping before my flight to Ghana. I checked out of the hotel and left my bags with the concierge so that when I returned, I could go straight to the airport, and of course not pay extra for over-staying. I took a hotel cab to Penn Station, and boarded a train to New York. One of the reasons for going back to shopping was so that I could go to TopMan, which seems to be the only shop that has my trouser length and waist size. Sadly, there was only one pant that I could get in my size, so I left New York with disappointment, and feeling I had wasted the time I could have used for something else. From New York I had to meet ‘family’ in Madison station, New Jersey because I had promised to stop over to at least eat some ‘ampesi’ or rice with Kontomire sauce before leaving to Ghana. I got on a train in that direction but little did I know that the trip was rather long, and would eat into my time to prepare for the airport. I started to fret, more minutes passed, and the time for my flight worryingly ticked closer. I finally got to meet her but there was only time for small pleasantries. I ordered an Uber to pick me from the Madison Station to my hotel and I left for the hotel with a basket of ‘ampesi’ and rice with Kontomire stew. Yes I ate in the Uber while heading to the hotel, and I could only imagine what the driver was thing…. “These Africans…shaking my head,” I guess! We made it to the hotel in some good time and I immediately requested for another Uber to come for me to the airport, while I went to collect my luggage from the concierge and also leave the basket with the rest of the food I couldn’t eat. The attendant was a Nigerian, so seemed to easily understand when I told him someone would come later for the basket…ha-ha!!! I got my bags into the second Uber, which was driven by a fantastic Moroccan woman, and dashed off to the airport. We seemed to be making some good time on the road until we run into serious traffic. Soon, what should have been a 14-minute drive away from the JFK Airport ended up being over one hour!!! I didn’t give up hope even with a little over an hour to take off. I had checked in online in order to make it less stressful when I finally get to the airport. Soon we got to the end of the crazy traffic, only to realize the hold up was due to an accident when saw a car catching flames. I speedily made my way to terminal 4 for Delta, and used the porter service outside for quicker results. After checking in, I was told I had 30 minutes more left till boarding. I swiftly run towards the gate and into a long queue through security. I explained to the people in front of me that my flight was soon boarding and they nicely let me move ahead of them each time I asked. I did that bit by bit until I finally made it through security and immigration. I then dashed straight to my boarding gate where other passengers had already started queuing. I realized that my pass didn’t have a seat allocated on it yet, so I went to the desk to check. I was told to wait a little bit for the system to allocate a seat to me. I was asked to monitor the screens in the waiting area for my details to show once ready. I went to the waiting area and after some minutes, nothing popped up on the screens, and even if it did I didn’t understand to messages well enough to know it. So I went back to the desk and this time around, I got the boarding pass with me seat number on it. I then breathed easily and made my way to the plane. I arrived safely in Amsterdam, where I took a KLM flight to Ghana after waiting and working at the airport for some six or so hours. When I got home to Ghana I went straight to the kitchen to eat some jollof rice for all my troubles…]]>
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