Scott โคMillsโข Announcesโฃ Departureโ as BET President and CEO
After leading BETโข through a period of important change, I have made the tough decision to step down as President and CEO. It has been an incredibleโ honor and privilege to lead this exceptional brand and serve theโ Black community โขalongside all of you. Your talent, passion, and โunwavering โฃcommitmentโ to BET’s missionโฃ have driven all that we’ve accomplished as a โteam, โand โคI am deeply proud of โwhat we’ve built together.
When Bob Johnson โfrist asked me โto joinโฃ BET many years ago,I recognized it asโค a unique possibility to learn from America’sโ most successful Black entrepreneur. That experience proved to beโฃ a master class in bold vision and exceptional execution, ultimately contributing to the creation โขofโฃ the firstโ Black american โbillionaire.
This visionary approachโ continued under Debra Lee, who successfully guided โขBET’s evolution from a music video-focused network to โขone featuringโ premium scriptedโ originals and major cultural events. She greenlit groundbreaking hits likeโฃ Theโข Game, Being Mary Jane, and The New Edition Story,โ significantly elevating the BET brand.
Returning to lead BET in 2018, I immediately recognized the challenges facing the industryโข with the decline โof conventional cable television. โIn response,the BET โฃteam embarked โon a bold plan to expand the brand beyond its cable origins.
We โขlaunched BET+, which quicklyโ attracted โmillions of subscribers and led to a doubling ofโค our โฃcontent production. Simultaneously, we aggressively grew our digital presence and maintained ourโ cable viewership.โฃ Building on this streaming success, we established BETโข Studios and secured โขa foothold in theโข rapidly growing โFAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television) ecosystem โthrough co-branded FAST channels. In essence, we โขtransformed BET from a legacy โcable business in decline into a growing media โขcompany with leading positions across platforms most relevant to Blackโข audiences.
The support of the Black creative โขcommunity โwasโ vital to our success.โ Our record-breaking partnership withโฃ Tyler Perry yielded numerousโ hits and the #1 seriesโข on television forโค Black โaudiences.Lee Daniels โdeliveredโฃ BET’sโ first primetime Emmy andโ Tonyโ nominations, and introduced us to incredibly talented performers like Ms. pat and โคJordan Cooper.โข We celebrated Black excellence with Queen Latifah and Deon Cole, learned from Taraji P. Henson on our largest stage,welcomed kevin Hartโ home for the 25th anniversary of our culture’s biggest night,and benefited fromโ the producorialโฃ genius of Jesse โCollins.
Whatโฃ Iโฃ cherish most is the opportunity to have worked alongside my incredible colleagues, to be ofโค service – including partnering with Black business leaders to raise nearly โฃ$20 million to support Black Americansโข during the pandemic – andโ to collaborate with outstanding partners โขlike theโ NAACP and National Urban League,โค as well as theโ smartest, boldest, and most talented creative minds in the industry.
Thank you for your partnership,your passion,and your beliefโ inโ BET.โ Stewarding this โbrand has been a privilege, andโ I remain deeply proud of how we upheld its legacy โขwhile transforming it forโ the future.
With great recognition,
Scott
