Katt Williams foots the bill for Melba Moore’s Hollywood Walk of Fame star
The legendary singer and actress is the 2,760th person to receive a star in the category of Live Theatre/Live Performance.
Katt Williams is receiving praise from fans on social media after Melba Moore revealed that the comedian covered the cost to secure her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The 77-year-old legendary singer and actress became the 2,760th person to receive a star — in the category of Live Theatre/Live Performance — on Hollywood Boulevard, WBLS reported.
According to the site, “there is a $75,000 sponsorship fee upon selection,” which covers the costs to create and install the star and maintenance of the Walk of Fame.
“As I look back over my life in Harlem / Newark [New Jersey], I am proud. Receiving a Hollywood Star made me reflect on the goodness of God. It took me a lifetime to get here. I am a late bloomer. I am still trying to find the words,” Moore shared on Instagram before the ceremony on Thursday.
The Tony-winning actress, who was in the original cast of “Purlie” on Broadway, revealed during the event that Williams helped secure the coveted honor.
“A public thank you to KW. He is the sole sponsor of my star………I am still in shock,” said Moore on Instagram. “Katt, in me you have a Friend. Love Melba Forever Moore.”
Moore is a prolific five-octave singer who scored a string of Billboard charted hits in the 1980s and ’90s. The Grammy-nominated vocalist is also the first female pop/R&B artist to do a non-operatic solo concert at New York City’s Metropolitan Opera House and the Olympia in Paris, per her bio.
Williams, who attended the Walk of Fame ceremony alongside Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jimmy Jam, and Luenell, paid homage to Moore at the star-studded event.
“We are here to honor the extraordinary life and achievements of a true legend,” Williams said in his speech, Yahoo reports.
“I looked up who paved the way for Melba Moore,” he said. “Who was the person that excelled in all of those things and I found out that that person did not exist. Melba Moore is one-of-one in our industry and that’s what we’re celebrating.”
“In this day and age, we call somebody a legend if they’ve been doing something for 20, 30 years, but to be at the top of your craft in stage, television, music, and film, there really has never been anything like it,” Williams continued.
Williams said Moore has always “exemplified the elegance, grace, dignity, and strength of the Black woman.”
“This strength and her ability to turn adversity into fuel for her art is a testament to her unwavering determination,” he continued. “True greatness extends beyond the boundaries of talent alone.”
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