BET Awards: 13 Performamces Graded!

Kanye West
The night's most anticipated moment came right at the start. For his first big TV performance since last fall's Taylor Swift kerfluffle, West stood atop a stage volcano and fired off a rousing performance of his new single, ''Power.'' Focused, furious, and anything but apologetic, he made us remember exactly what we've been missing. A- — Simon Vozick-Levinson

Prince tribute
Four lovely ladies channelled the Purple One. Janelle Monáe's jittery robot-preacher shtick fit ''Let's Go Crazy'' like a violet glove. Esperanza Spalding gave a jazzy spin to ''If I Was Your Girlfriend.'' Alicia Keys gave ''Adore'' her all. Last but most definitely not least, the great Patti LaBelle reached down and howled through a version of ''Purple Rain'' that got an ovation from Prince himself. A- —SVL

Monica
Veteran R&B singer Monica performed the track that jump-started her career, ''Everything to Me.'' She later brought out Deneice Williams to perform ''Silly,'' which Monica's ballad samples. It was one the the night's cuter throwback moments. B —Brad Wete

Alicia Keys
In a purple dress and red heels higher than anyone would expect a pregnant woman to rock, Keys performed a medley of ''No One,'' brought out gospel talent Kim Burrell for a rendition of ''If I Ain't Got You,'' and sang her latest hit ''Un-Thinkable.'' It was a standard Keys performance, starting at the piano and ending with some two-stepping. Not bad. But not amazing, either. B —BW

Diddy
Coming out with a braggadocios only he could deliver on Waka Flocka Flame's ''O Let's Do It,'' Diddy transitioned to his latest single ''Hello, Goodmorning.'' He brought out a bunch a guests for the cut. T.I., Rick Ross, and a leather catsuit-wearing Nicki Minaj. There was also an elaborate light display topped off by indoor fireworks. Wow! A- —BW

Drake
He started off quietly before launching into his defiant ''Over.'' Luckily it wasn't a case of too little, too late. Drake brought out surprise guest Young Jeezy for a remix of the Atlanta rapper's ''Lose My Mind,'' which saved what would've been an almost boring showing. B —BW

MJ Tribute
Jermaine Jackson introduced the forthcoming tribute to his brother Michael as one that we all had been waiting for. And he was right. Chris Brown stole the show and everyone's heart performing Jackson's ''The Way You Make Me Feel,'' ''Remember the Time,'' and ''Billie Jean'' with the passion, vigor, and skill the ''King of Pop'' did for decades. A+ —BW

Trey Songz
Songz opted to promote his latest single, a sad ballad entitled ''Your Side of the Bed,'' instead of a track that reflects the incredible year he's had. ''I Invented Sex'' or ''Say Aah'' would've been much better choice. C —BW

Ludacris/Nicki Minaj/DJ Khaled/Every other living rapper/Tommy Lee
The night's most hip-hop moment came courtesy of DJ Khaled, as he seemingly brought every rapper in the building on stage for his ''All I do is Win.'' Ludacris, Nicki Minaj (in her third wig of the night), T-Pain, Rick Ross, Diddy, and more tore down the stage, capping off a great show. B+ —BW

Usher
Dressed in all white, Usher broke into an angelic falsetto for his extremely smooth ballad ''There Goes My Baby.'' There was a formal Michael Jackson tribute coming later in the evening, but this was as true an expression of the King of Pop's lasting musical legacy as you're likely to find. B+ —SVL

T.I.
Kanye didn't have the only comeback at this awards show. T.I., who's preparing to release his first album since serving a weapons sentence, tore through ''Yeah Ya Know'' (from his new action flick Takers). It's not the most memorable song in T.I.'s catalog, but his performance was as precise as ever. Getting the redoubtable Travis Barker to back him on drums didn't hurt, either. B —SVL

B.o.B and Eminem
Switcheroos galore! First, B.o.B. did his hit ''Airplanes,'' with Keyshia Cole adding some real grit to the hook that Paramore's Hayley Williams usually handles. Then, Eminem kicked things up another notch by coming out for his ''Airplanes, Part 2'' verse. Em is way too big a star to be reduced to sideman duty, of course, so he followed that up with a compelling run through his own motivational smash ''Not Afraid.'' B+ —SVL

El DeBarge
He might have gotten slightly lost in the shuffle of more contemporary stars and bigger names, but DeBarge's falsetto hits medley (''All This Love,'' ''I Like It,'' Time Will Reveal,'' ''Rhythm Of The Night'') was one of the night's most quietly enjoyable sequences. B+ —SVL