tony awards

Jay-Z Surprised The 2024 Tony Awards By Joining Alicia Keys For A Spirited ‘Empire State Of Mind’ Performance

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Jay-Z doesn’t exactly have the strongest association with the Broadway world, but he still managed to wow at this weekend’s Tony Awards.

Alicia Keys’ musical Hell’s Kitchen was among this year’s nominees, so she performed during the ceremony. She began with a rendition of “Empire State Of Mind (Part II) Broken Down” before transitioning into the original “Empire State Of Mind,” during which Jay appeared on a giant screen to perform his part of the song, which got a big reaction from the audience. It turned out Jay was performing from the lobby outside of the venue, and Keys made her way out there to perform the track alongside Jay.

This actually isn’t Jay’s first Tonys experience: He was a producer of the musical Fela!, which is based on the life of Nigerian singer Fela Kuti. The show was one of the most-nominated at the 2010 Tonys, racking up 11 nods including for Best Musical. Jay said of the show at the time, “It’s an inspiration, about the power of music. Here’s a guy that’s on the other side of the world who was influenced by James Brown, who takes this thing and makes his own sort of genre of music. I just think it’s fascinating.”

Check out the performance above.

Alicia Keys & JAY-Z Reunite To Perform “Empire State of Mind” At The Tony Awards

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Alicia Keys brought out JAY-Z for a performance of their iconic 2009 collaboration, “Empire State of Mind,” during the 2024 Tony Awards on Sunday night. The event was held at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. “Are we in New York City tonight? Are we at the Tony Awards tonight? Had to do something crazy. It’s my hometown,” Keys said to introduce the performance.

From there, cameras cut to JAY-Z performing his verse outside of the venue. Soon afterward, Keys joined him to sing the chorus. As for the awards show itself, the musical Hell’s Kitchen, which was inspired by Keys’ discography, was nominated. It details Keys’ childhood in Manhattan during the 1990s.

Read More: Alicia Keys Suggests New Jay-Z Collab Could Be Coming Soon

Alicia Keys & JAY-Z Perform During The Tony Awards

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 16: Jay-Z and Alicia Keys perform during The 77th Annual Tony Awards at David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center on June 16, 2024, in New York City. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions)

Keys and JAY-Z teamed up for “Empire State of Mind” as a single for the latter’s 11th studio album, The Blueprint 3. It dominated the charts after release, staying at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks. It also received nominations for three Grammy Awards, while winning both Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Check out Keys and JAY-Z’s performance of the song at the Tony Awards below.

Alicia Keys Brings Out JAY-Z For The Tony Awards

Prior to the performance, Keys seemingly teased having another collaboration with the legendary rapper on the way. In a post on social media, she wrote: “1 Dream, 1 Song, 1 Billion streams [prayer hands emojis]. Thank you! We love you. What’s next…. [eyes emoji] [shushing emoji].” Be on the lookout for further updates on Alicia Keys and JAY-Z as well as the Tony Awards on HotNewHipHop.

Read More: Jay-Z Clip Reacting To Beyonce & Sean Paul Goes Viral As Usher Dances With Alicia Keys At The Super Bowl

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Alicia Keys, Sufjan Stevens, And More Got 2024 Tony Award Nominations, While Britney Spears And Others Didn’t Make The Cut

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Alicia Keys 2024 Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show
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The 2024 Tony Awards are set to go down on June 16, at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater in New York City. Before then, though, organizers have unveiled the list of nominees today (April 31), and the music world (the part of it not traditionally or primarily associated with musicals, specifically) is well represented.

Nominated for Best Musical are Alicia Keys’ Hell’s Kitchen and the Sufjan Stevens-inspired Illinoise, along with The Outsiders, Suffs, and Water For Elephants. The Who’s Tommy is also nominated for Best Revival Of A Musical.

Maleah Joi Moon is nominated for Best Performance By A Leading Actress In A Musical for her role in Hell’s Kitchen, while Brandon Victor Dixon is up for Best Performance By An Actor In A Featured Role In A Musical also for Hell’s Kitchen. The musical also spawned Best Performance By An Actress In A Featured Role In A Musical nominations for Shoshana Bean and Kecia Lewis, and a Best Book Of A Musical nod for Kristtoffer Diaz.

Stereophonic, which has music by Will Butler, is also well-represented, including consideration for Best Play and Best Original Score. David Byrne and Fatboy Slim’s Here Lies Love is also nominated in the latter category.

As People notes, musicals that didn’t get a nomination this year include Barry Manilow’s Harmony, the Britney Spears-inspired Once Upon A One More Time, and Huey Lewis’ The Heart Of Rock And Roll.

Find the full list of nominations here.

Samuel L. Jackson’s Tony Loss Reaction Trends On Twitter

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Samuel L. Jackson has spent nearly three-quarters of a century walking the Earth, and in that time he’s achieved plenty of accolades. The multi-talent has over 200 acting credits on IMDb to his name and is known to be the second highest-grossing actor of all time, with his previous projects bringing in upwards of $27 billion across the globe. While he’s been nominated for several awards over the years, Jackson doesn’t always win (despite his immense talent). The Pulp Fiction star doesn’t seem to be too bothered by this, and even recently admitted he’d rather play the role of Marvel’s Nick Fury than pick another character just because they’re likely to earn him an Oscar.

On Sunday (June 11), Jackson was among the many famous faces on the red carpet at the Tony Awards, where he was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play. The production the 74-year-old appeared in was directed by his wife, LaTanya, who accompanied him to the event. When it was announced that Brandon Uranowitz beat Samuel in the category, cameras caught a comedic reaction on his face, seemingly hinting that he wasn’t expecting to win in the first place.

Read More: Samuel L. Jackson Would Rather Portray Nick Fury Than Chase Oscar-Bait Roles

Brandon Uranowitz Comes Out on Top

Since the moment aired on live television, social media has been cracking jokes about the Star Wars actor. “Sam Jackson never bothers with the fake ‘I’m so happy for them’ face and honestly, I appreciate it,” one person pointed out. “Wow, Samuel L. Jackson DOES NOT want to be at the Tony’s,” another user speculated.

Thankfully, the Washington, D.C. native was later able to redeem himself while presenting the prize for Best Play along with LaTanya. During their time on the stage, he referred to himself as “Samuel L. ‘it’s an honour to be nominated’ Jackson.”

Read More: Samuel L. Jackson’s Greatest Acting Roles

Twitter Reacts to Samuel L. Jackson

Keep scrolling to see more fan reactions to Samuel L. Jackson’s loss at the 2023 Tony Awards. Do you think the renowned actor should’ve taken home the prize over his competitors? Let us know in the comments, and make sure to check back later for more hip-hop/pop culture news updates.

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