00:00Just one more round of applause, please, before I bring David Ali up here, just to celebrate all the honorees,
00:06executive honorees in black music.
00:08We couldn't do this without you guys. There would be no black music, except for your dedication and passion and
00:15determination.
00:16So, again, thanks to all the honorees.
00:20Regarding David Ali, he's a very quiet man.
00:24I met him several years ago at a BMAC, Black Music Action Coalition, award ceremony.
00:30And his gentleness just struck me from the very beginning.
00:35And then after that, that's when I learned that he was managing Kehlani, learned that he was managing Larry June,
00:43and then learned that he was also bringing on board Destin Conrad, one of our rising stars that's being honored
00:49tonight.
00:50And they've had a banner 18 months, including Kehlani winning two Grammy Awards, Destin being a Grammy nominee for the
00:59first time,
01:00and Larry June continues his fantastic success as an independent rapper in the industry.
01:08Yeah, okay.
01:10So there's one...
01:11Come on, boys!
01:15All right.
01:16All right.
01:17There's...
01:18Okay, there's one sentence from the interview that I did with David that really encapsulates everything that David is about.
01:25And he said it, and I quote,
01:27So with this job, you're signing up to be the person who's got to be there for your artist through
01:31thick and thin.
01:33And that's what I love.
01:35So without further ado, our executive of the year for the R&B Hip Hop Power Players 2026,
01:41David Ali of Above Ground Entertainment.
01:57What's up, everybody?
01:58How y'all doing tonight?
02:01This is super crazy.
02:03Thank you, Gail.
02:04Thank you, Billboard.
02:05Thank you, Christina.
02:06I was a little nervous to come up here, but I know a bunch of y'all in here, so
02:08it's a lot more comfortable now.
02:10And I just want to say thank you.
02:13It's an honor.
02:14It's a dream.
02:14I'm happy to be here.
02:16Shout out to Kehlani.
02:17We've been on a journey for like 12 years, going on 13 years.
02:21I appreciate all your support.
02:23I definitely can say I wouldn't be here without you.
02:25Shout out, Destin.
02:26I don't know where you at, but I know you in the building.
02:28That's my brother and my partner.
02:30I appreciate your bravery.
02:32I got to shout out Larry June, too, because we having an amazing journey.
02:36And I'm just happy to be here.
02:38Shout out to the team, because it's like the executive of the year award, but my team really, like,
02:42the executives of the year.
02:43It's like 12 of us, and without them, it ain't no me.
02:46So I got to say thank you to the whole squad at Above Ground.
02:50I wrote something down, too.
02:52Not a speech, but I got to remember to say this.
02:54I got to shout out to Atlantic Records, too, because we done had an incredible 18 months.
02:58It's been about 10 years, but I feel like these last 18 months have been incredible.
03:03I got to shout out Empire, Ghazi, and Nima.
03:06We're having a great business together.
03:08And shout out to my brother, Sasha, Alive Nation, because he's my partner in touring.
03:12And together, we've been able to take our people around the world, and it's just a blessing.
03:17So I'm going to keep it short, but thank you all, and I appreciate it.
03:19Shout out to Billboard.
03:24Oh, and the last thing I want to say, shout out to everybody grinding, because this is for us.
03:32You know what I mean?
03:32This is really for the culture.
