Lauryn Hill, Eve, Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan & Others Turn Out The 'Essence' Awards

04/30/2001 3:00 PM, Yahoo! Music


(4/30/01, 3 p.m. ET) --The 2001 Essence Awards taped at New York's Theater at Madison Square Garden on Friday (April 27), and the ceremony featured a rare performance by Lauryn Hill.

During the show's finale, the Grammy-winning singer performed an acoustic version of the brand-new song, "Adam Lives In Theory." Fellow diva Eve performed her latest hit, "Let Me Blow Ya Mind," with the help of Lil' Mo (in the absence of Eve's original singing partner, Gwen Stefani of No Doubt). Jennifer Holiday, Chaka Khan, and Gladys Knight performed a medley that included "Something Blue" and "Missing You." Yolanda Adams also performed a gospel medley during the show, and the dynamic duo of Big Boi and Andre--collectively known as OutKast--performed their latest hit " So Fresh, So Clean."

Other celebrities on hand for the festivities included Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, Maxwell, Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington, Aaliyah, and Camille Cosby. This year's honorees included educators Hans and Ivan Hageman, tennis star sisters Venus and Serena Williams, civil rights activist Randall Robinson, neurosurgeon Keith Black, actor Samuel L. Jackson, and the founders of Mothers Against Violence. The 2001 Essence Awards will air on Fox in May.

-- Yves Salomon, New York

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