Ashanti Dazzled by Oprah's Diamonds  8/4/06

R&B singer Ashanti was shocked when she attended talk show host Oprah Winfrey's Legends Ball and was handed a pair of diamond earrings.

Thesinger was a guest at the event, which honored famous African American women, last May (05).

She explains, "It was amazing. I was so excited and nervous all at the same time. It was a whole extravaganza. The whole weekend we were in Santa Barbara (California).

"We were going to meet these iconic women from Della Reese to Cicely Tyson to Rosa Parks. It was such an overwhelming, wonderful, wonderful experience.

"Oprah gave out diamond earrings - they were chandelier earrings - black diamonds on one side and white diamonds on the other - like two toned.

"They were incredible! When I first looked at them I'm like, 'Oh, it's not real, but it's pretty!' and then Oprah was like, 'Yeah, they're real!'

"But everyone was thinking the same thing, 'There's no way that you would actually go out and buy this many pairs of diamond earrings for all of these women', but that's Oprah!"