Femme It Forward Sets Inaugural Give Her FlowHERS Awards Gala: Exclusive

Trailblazing Black women in entertainment will be celebrated with an annual ceremony, the Give Her FlowHERS Awards Gala, Billboard can exclusively reveal.

An initiative of Femme It Forward, the Give Her FlowHERS Awards is set for next Friday, Nov. 11 at the Beverly Hilton Los Angeles, with funds raised on the night supporting Femme It Forward’s mentorship program, Next Gem Femme.

Femme It Forward, the female-led music and entertainment platform, launches the event to fete trailblazing Black women in entertainment who “empower, uplift, and inspire change.”

First-time Special Awards honorees include breakthrough hip-hop star Latto (“The Big Femme Energy Award”); songwriter and artist Jozzy (“The Pen It Forward Award”), R&B singer and songwriter Muni Long (“The Bloom Award”); Lashon Jones, mother of rapper Lil Baby (“Moms I’d Like to Follow” or M.I.L.F. Award); singer-songwriter Victoria Monet (“The Visionary Award”); and high-profile couple Ciara and Russell Wilson (“The Black Love Award”).

Also, organizers will today announce honorees who have made “an invaluable impact as mentors” as part of the Next Gem Femme program. The list of 22 mentors to be honored — as voted on by their mentees — includes Baroline Diaz (Interscope), Dimplez Ijeoma (Capitol Music Group), Madeline Nelson (Amazon Music), Nicole Wyskoarko (Interscope Geffen A&M), Valeisha Butterfield Jones (Google), Alex Maxwell (Live Nation) and Diana Dotel (MTW), among others.

Emerging artists will also get time in the spotlight on the night, from Baby Tate, Mapy The Violin Queen, Joyce Wrice and Alex Vaughn, while Jasmine Solano is booked to DJ at the afterparty.

The gala “is a realization of the work we do year-round with Femme It Forward to champion, empower, and celebrate the women who are pushing our culture forward every day,” comments Heather Lowery, president and CEO of Femme It Forward.

Lowery and her team “wanted to take it a step beyond a traditional awards show and create a special experience that truly represents everything our culture is about: family, love, sisterhood, entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and artistic brilliance,” she continues.

Initially launched under the Live Nation Urban banner, Femme It Forward is now a joint venture with parent Live Nation Entertainment. Its mission, to celebrate, educate, and empower the industry’s “most creative and accomplished female visionaries through multi-format, multi-market consumer experiences,” according to a statement.

Additional details for the inaugural gala will be announced ahead of showtime.

For a full list of honorees and more information on the Give Her FlowHERS Awards Gala visit giveherflowhers.com and buy tickets at femmeitforward.com/gala.