Teezo Touchdown accepts the Rookie of the Year award from Billboard’s Senior R&B/Hip-Hop/Afrobeats writer Heran Mamo at Billboard’sR&B Hip-Hop Power Players 2024.
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00:00My name is Heran Mamu, the senior R&B hip-hop Afrobeats writer here at Billboard.
00:08And I'm very excited to present our next award this evening.
00:12This genre-defying star embodies the emotional melodies of an R&B singer, the clever lyricism of a rapper,
00:20and the instrumental intensity of a rock star. And he certainly nailed the look of one, too.
00:25He's taken his signature rock and boom sound from Beaumont, Texas to the biggest arenas and stadiums around the country
00:31with stars like Tyler, the Creator, and Travis Scott.
00:35In the words of his manager, Amal Noor,
00:37Teezo is your favorite artist's favorite artist.
00:41Just ask Drake, who described his debut album, How Do You Sleep At Night?, which celebrates its first anniversary in just three days,
00:48some of the best music ever.
00:51He always performs with a mic hidden in a flower bouquet, but tonight I'm honored to give him his flowers on this stage.
00:58Please join me in a round of applause for Billboard's
01:012024 R&B hip-hop Rookie of the Year American singer-songwriter Teezo Touchdown.
01:16Thank y'all.
01:21They ain't believe in us. God did.
01:25All right.
01:27Firstly,
01:29firstly, I would love to thank God for the gift. Father God,
01:32I want to say thank you for my gift that has taken me from a small town in Beaumont, Texas
01:36to corners of the world that I couldn't even imagine.
01:39I want to say thank you in a room full of people who I still study and admire to this day,
01:43just as I would right before I close my eyes at night and immediately after I open them in the morning.
01:48I would like to say thank you to my team
01:51for tirelessly helping me scratch every single goal
01:53I have off my list and pushing me to write down more, even wilder than the last.
01:58I want to say thank you in a room full of peers who understand that
02:01the satisfaction of seeing someone succeed is a feeling that will never get old,
02:05just as I would after a quick, you know, phone call or a Zoom meeting.
02:10I want to say thank you to Billboard for this prestigious award,
02:14Rookie of the Year.
02:16I want to say thank you to every single veteran for being so kind and insightful, for giving me
02:21a first-hand lesson of how to nurture and instill knowledge to the next person who is coming in after you.
02:27Last but not least, I want to thank the future,
02:30future artists, future execs, the people who are on the way to change the world as we know it.
02:34I want to say thank you in advance for the innovation you will bring to the arts
02:38and your perspective that could potentially change the world.
02:40I want to say thank you in a room full of people who are rooting for you,
02:43with open arms, and are here if you ever need anything.