Tyrese performs with Yolanda Adams at theGrio Awards, speaks about the importance of celebrating Black achievement

Tyrese Gibson made a special appearance at theGrio Awards, performing with gospel legend Yolanda Adams during the first annual ceremony on Oct. 22 at the Beverly Hilton. (The show is airing on theGrio Cable Network.)

The six-time Grammy Award nominee was also mesmerized by Adams’ performance of the Karyn White hit “Superwoman” with Patti LaBelle, Fantasia, Jennifer Hudson and Queen Latifah. Gibson spoke with theGrio’s April Ryan about how that song reflects how he relates to women in his life.

Gibson said that his love for women “goes beyond the usual compassion, the intuition, maternal instincts, the discernment.” The “Sweet Lady” crooner explained that love is less of a feeling and more of a “process.”

“There’s a process to a heartbreak, disappointment, and what it takes internally for a woman to hit that reset button and make the decision to love again,” Gibson said. “To be so committed to her family. And the survival of her family. That her physicality is compromised the entire time. And the woman and the strength of a woman is to push through whatever it takes to still do whatever it takes to provide.”

Gibson continued with Ryan during theGrio Awards post-show to speak about the significance of having the awards ceremony as a platform to uplift and celebrate Black achievement.

“There’s nothing more encouraging than working your butt off and being validated by your peers,” Gibson said. “What I appreciate about this particular award, which is something that I’ve never experienced, it’s not just the awards. It’s literally the speeches and all of the dialogue in and around empowerment and moving the needle, and giving us permission to own, and the audacity to create.”

Gibson also discussed how theGrio Awards and honorees like Tyler Perry illustrate that while Black artists and creatives welcome collaboration with other communities, the Black community can stand on its own feet.

“There is a spoken and yet unspoken insecurity [that] we have to outsource others and other communities in order for us to [succeed],” Gibson said. “But Tyler Perry said it very clearly: ‘It really just takes us.’ It’s not about purposely excluding, but we don’t have to do anything with anybody in order for us to do and have.”

Watch “Byron Allen Presents theGrio Awards” at 8 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27 on theGrio Cable Network. Check your local listings.

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