Tracee Ellis Ross and Anthoney Anderson will not return as hosts of the 2017 BET Awards as a new host has been announced.
Yes, comedian and actress Leslie Jones will be this year’s BET Awards.
Leslie joins a long line of stand-up comedians that have rocked the role, including Chris Rock, Mo’Nique, Kevin Hart and Chris Tucker.
Before her fame, The 6-foot actress played basketball at Chapman University before transferring to Colorado State University. While attending CSU, she shifted between different majors while trying to find her calling.
In LA, Leslie pursued her comedic career. She performed at The Comedy Club and even went on to open for Jamie Foxx. Though her act was not well-received by the audience, Foxx motivated her with his words.
While working at UPS by day and being a comedian by night, Jones eventually landed TV roles. Some of these roles included stints on “In the House” and “Girlfriends.” Jones even went on to perform in BET’s comedy series “The Way We Do It” between 2001 and 2002.
In 2003, Leslie started to achieve more success by landing a role in Martin Lawrence’s “National Security.” From there, she went on to appear in numerous movies, one of them being her most notable appearance in “Top Five” with Chris Rock.
After being impressed with Leslie, Chris Rock used his influence with “Saturday Night Live” creator Lorne Michaels to get Leslie an audition for “SNL.” Rock referred to Jones as the “funniest woman I know.”
Though Leslie did not land a featured role on “SNL” right away, she was offered a writing position which then led to her being in front of the camera. In 2014, she quickly left the writing studio and went on to be a full-time cast member at the end of the year.
By joining the cast, Jones and her cast mate Sasheer Zamata made history. This was the first time in history that SNL had more than one African-American female cast member at the same time.
Leslie Jones may have not been an athlete at the 2016 Rio Olympics, but she sure did participate. Jones was a key player in sharing updates on the Olympics to her fans on social media. She also traveled to Rio and documented her experience. Jones’s love for the Olympics made her the best commentator of the event!
Leslie Jones’s rising career proves that you can be a star at any age. The now-49-year-old is not only making headway in the comedy realm, but, at 47, was also the oldest person to acquire a position on “SNL.” Leslie’s hustle does not go unnoticed. Her hard work ethic and dedication shows that, no matter how old you are, you can ultimately achieve your dreams.
This years show promises to be a laugh out loud situation!
