Music industry pioneer Sylvia Rhone will be honored by the Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC) at its upcoming “Celebration of an Icon” tribute. The invite-only event will take place in Los Angeles on June 25 during BET Awards Week.
BMAC is joining forces with Monami Entertainment for the Rhone tribute, which will be hosted by superstars Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes. Both are among the list of R&B/hip-hop artists — including En Vogue, Brandy and MC Lyte — that Rhone championed during her career. Rhone, the former chairwoman/CEO of Epic Records, will next accept the earlier announced Ultimate Icon Award at the 2026 BET Awards (June 28).
BMAC is also marking Black Music Month, the Juneteenth holiday and the nation’s 250th birthday with its own “America250 Celebration: From 1619 to America250. The event will feature a fireside chat between Pulitzer Prize-winning scholar and The 1619 Project author Nikole Hannah-Jones and BMAC co-founder/president & CEO Willie “Prophet” Stiggers. The pair will discuss the topic “Redefining Patriotism” at Chelsea Studios in New York City on June 18.
To further underscore the impact and legacy of Black music and culture, the evening will present special performances from the BMAC x America250 Voices of Tomorrowprogram, a nationwide youth talent search and music collaboration initiative. As part of the BMAC x America250 initiative, BMAC has commissioned Grammy-winning producer Adam Blackstone to reinterpret the classic anthem “Optimistic.”
Originally performed by the Sounds of Blackness, the song was initially produced by the Grammy-winning duo Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis and Sounds of Blackness music director Gary Hines. The new version will feature five of the program’s $10,000 Music Maker Grant recipients: Dani Wright, DJ Stussy, Jastin Martin, RAHBI and The Reasn. The quintet will join several yet-unannounced top artists to record the song, which is slated for an early July release.
Looking ahead, the date is now set for the sixth annual BMAC Gala. It will take place on Sept. 24 at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. Last year’s honorees were John Legend, Irving Azoff, Kai Cenat, Sherrese Clarke, Apple/Apple Music and Primary Wave Music.
In announcing the organization’s upcoming events, BMAC‘s Stiggers commented: “We are at a crucial time in history. We’re calling on the music community to come together and strategize to get our democracy back on track and use their voices and art to demand accountability and respect within our democracy. We also hope these events will remind us of our power and honor those who dedicated themselves to Black music, like Sylvia Rhone, to ensure our music was heard.”
