Ladies of Soul Don't Show

Thu., Sep. 8, 2005 12:35 PM PDT by Julie Keller

Mariah Carey, Destiny's Child, Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott were the big winners at Wednesday's 2005 Lady of Soul Awards. Too bad none of them showed to collect their trophies.

The MIA Carey dominated the solo slate, winning for Best Solo Single for "We Belong Together" and Album for The Emancipation of Mimi, while Destiny's Child was the group to beat, scoring Group Single for "Soldier" and Album for Destiny Fulfilled. Keys' "If I Ain't Got You" was named Song of the Year, and Elliott was given props for Best Music Video for "Lose Control," featuring Ciara and Fat Man Scoop.

The big-name blow-offs were handled with humor. "I've got a great place on the mantle, so call me Mariah," joked presenter and Charmed star Dorian Gregory, as he accepted the Best Single statuette for Carey.

With all the no-shows, it was up to an old vet to keep up the festivities. Aretha Franklin, on hand to collect the Lena Horne Award for outstanding career achievements, brought down the house with crowd-pleasing performances of "Until You Come Back to Me" with Stevie Wonder on piano and a high-energy version "Respect."

"I don't think I can carry it, but I am absolutely thrilled to be receiving this award," the Queen of Soul told the crowd upon receiving her prize.

Franklin was also pleased to hand out her namesake Aretha Franklin Award for entertainer of the year award to rising soulster Amerie, who in turn performed "1 Thing."

Another big winner who did show up, Ciara, performed and seemed genuinely thrilled with her two trophies for Best New Artist and Dance Cut for "1, 2 Step."

"It's such a blessing just to be acknowledged as an artist," said Ciara, who came in with a leading five nominations. "We didn't get any sleep on this video, so thank you."

The show also paid tribute to the late Luther Vandross, who died in July, and honored the victims of Hurricane Katrina, with many winners and presenters giving shout-outs to the victims and beseeching viewers to donate time and money. "My heart is heavy," said Wonder. Ciara, meanwhile, pledged to go down to the Gulf Coast and help.

"I've been asked by a few networks to give back. More than anything, I want to devote time," she said. "You can feel the hurt, but you can't feel it really unless you're there."

The Lady of Soul Awards, an offshoot of the Soul Train Awards, are voted on by 1,600 artists and radio station representatives. This year's ceremony, jointly hosted by Ciara, Brian McKnight and Toni Braxton, was held at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in California and will be syndicated for broadcast later this month.

Here's a complete recap of the winners:

R&B/Soul Album, Group, Band or Duo: Destiny's Child, Destiny Fulfilled R&B/Soul Album, Solo: Mariah Carey, The Emancipation of Mimi R&B/Soul Single, Solo: Mariah Carey, "We Belong Together" R&B/Soul Single Group, Band or Duo: Destiny's Child, 'soldier" R&B/Soul or Rap Music Video: Missy Elliott featuring Ciara and Fat Man Scoop, "Lose Control" R&B/Soul or Rap Dance Cut: Ciara featuring Missy Elliott, "1,2 Step" R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist: Ciara featuring Missy Elliott, "1,2 Step" R&B/Soul or Rap Song of the Year: Alicia Keys, "If I Ain't Got You" Gospel Album: Dorothy Norwood, 'stand on the Word" Aretha Franklin Entertainer of the Year: Amerie Lena Horne Award (career achievement): Aretha Franklin