Netflix, HBO and Beyoncé lead 2021 NAACP Image Award nominations
The NAACP has revealed this year’s nominees for its annual Image Awards, celebrating the work of artists of color and those advocating for social justice through art.
On Tuesday morning, actress-singer Anika Noni Rose, actress-singer Chloe Bailey, actress Erika Alexander, actor-dancer Nicco Annan and actor-singer T.C. Carson joined forces to announce the 2021 contenders on Instagram.
Netflix leads this year’s film and TV nominations with 48 — including multiple nods for award-season heavyweights “Da 5 Bloods” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” — followed by HBO with 25. In the music categories, Beyoncé is out front with six nominations, including female artist.
Tuesday’s announcement also included posthumous nominations for beloved Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle and actor Chadwick Boseman, who died last year after a private battle with colon cancer. Boseman is nominated for both supporting actor and actor in a motion picture, for Netflix’s “Da 5 Bloods” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” respectively.
The 2021 NAACP Image Awards will air March 27 at 5 p.m. Pacific on BET. Here’s a sampling of the nominees (you can view the full list on the NAACP website):Television
Comedy Series:
- “#blackAF” (Netflix)
- “Black-ish” (ABC)
- “Grown-ish” (Freeform)
- “Insecure” (HBO)
- “The Last O.G.” (TBS)
Actor in a Comedy Series:
- Anthony Anderson - “Black-ish” (ABC)
- Cedric the Entertainer - “The Neighborhood” (CBS)
- Don Cheadle - “Black Monday” (Showtime)
- Idris Elba - “In the Long Run” (Starz)
- Tracy Morgan - “The Last O.G.” (TBS)
Actress in a Comedy Series:
- Issa Rae - “Insecure” (HBO)
- Folake Olowofoyeku - “Bob Hearts Abishola” (CBS)
- Regina Hall - “Black Monday” (Showtime)
- Tracee Ellis Ross - “Black-ish” (ABC)
- Yara Shahidi - “Grown-ish” (Freeform)
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series:
- Andre Braugher - “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (NBC)
- Deon Cole - “Black-ish” (ABC)
- Jay Ellis - “Insecure” (HBO)
- Kenan Thompson - “Saturday Night Live” (NBC)
- Laurence Fishburne - “Black-ish” (ABC)
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series:
- Jenifer Lewis - “Black-ish” (ABC)
- Marsai Martin - “Black-ish” (ABC)
- Natasha Rothwell - “Insecure” (HBO)
- Tichina Arnold - “The Neighborhood” (CBS)
- Yvonne Orji - “Insecure” (HBO)
Drama Series:
- “All Rise” (CBS)
- “Bridgerton” (Netflix)
- “Lovecraft Country” (HBO)
- “Power Book II: Ghost” (Starz)
- “This Is Us” (NBC)
Actor in a Drama Series:
- Jonathan Majors - “Lovecraft Country” (HBO)
- Keith David - “Greenleaf” (OWN)
- Nicco Annan - “P-Valley” (Starz)
- Regé-Jean Page - “Bridgerton” (Netflix)
- Sterling K. Brown - “This Is Us” (NBC)
Actress in a Drama Series:
- Angela Bassett - “9-1-1” (FOX)
- Brandee Evans - “P-Valley” (Starz)
- Jurnee Smollett - “Lovecraft Country” (HBO)
- Simone Missick - “All Rise” (CBS)
- Viola Davis - “How to Get Away With Murder” (ABC)
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series:
- Clifford “Method Man” Smith - “Power Book II: Ghost” (Starz)
- Delroy Lindo - “The Good Fight” (CBS All Access)
- J. Alphonse Nicholson - “P-Valley” (Starz)
- Jeffrey Wright - “Westworld” (HBO)
- Michael Kenneth Williams - “Lovecraft Country” (HBO)
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series:
- Adjoa Andoh - “Bridgerton” (Netflix)
- Aunjanue Ellis - “Lovecraft Country” (HBO)
- Lynn Whitfield - “Greenleaf” (OWN)
- Mary J. Blige - “Power Book II: Ghost” (Starz)
- Susan Kelechi Watson - “This Is Us” (NBC)
TV Movie, Limited Series or Dramatic Special:
- “Hamilton” (Disney+)
- “Little Fires Everywhere” (Hulu)
- “Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker” (Netflix)
- “Sylvie’s Love” (Amazon Studios)
- “The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel” (Lifetime)
Actor in a TV Movie, Limited Series or Dramatic Special:
- Blair Underwood - “Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker” (Netflix)
- Chris Rock - “Fargo” (FX)
- Daveed Diggs - “Hamilton” (Disney+)
- Leslie Odom Jr. - “Hamilton” (Disney+)
- Nnamdi Asomugha - “Sylvie’s Love” (Amazon Studios)
Actress in a TV Movie, Limited Series or Dramatic Special:
- Aunjanue Ellis - “The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel” (Lifetime)
- Kerry Washington - “Little Fires Everywhere” (Hulu)
- Michaela Coel - “I May Destroy You” (HBO)
- Octavia Spencer - “Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker” (Netflix)
- Tessa Thompson - “Sylvie’s Love” (Amazon Studios)
Music
New Artist:
- Chika - “High Rises” (Warner Records)
- Doja Cat - “Say So” (RCA Records/Kemosabe )
- D Smoke - “Black Habits” (WoodWorks Records / EMPIRE)
- Giveon - “When It’s All Said and Done” (Epic Records)
- Skip Marley - “Higher Place” (Island Records/ Tuff Gong Records)
Male Artist:
- Big Sean - “Detroit 2” (Def Jam Recordings/G.O.O.D Music)
- Black Thought - “Streams of Thought, Vol. 3: Cane & Able” (Republic Records)
- Charlie Wilson - “All of My Love” (P Music Group/BMG)
- Drake - “Laugh Now, Cry Later” (Republic Records)
- John Legend - “Bigger Love” (Columbia Records)
Female Artist:
- Beyoncé - “Black Parade” (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
- H.E.R. - “I Can’t Breathe” (RCA Records/MBK Entertainment)
- Jazmine Sullivan - “Lost One” (RCA Records)
- Ledisi - “Anything For You” (Listen Back Entertainment/BMG)
- Alicia Keys - “Alicia” (RCA Records)
Album:
- “Alicia” - Alicia Keys (RCA Records)
- “b7” - Brandy (Brand Nu/eOne)
- “Bigger Love” - John Legend (Columbia Records)
- “Chilombo” - Jhené Aiko (Def Jam Recordings)
- “The Wild Card” - LEDISI (Listen Back Entertainment/BMG)
Music Video/Visual Album:
- “I Can’t Breathe” - H.E.R. (RCA Records/MBK Entertainment)
- “Anything For You” - Ledisi (Listen Back Entertainment/BMG)
- “Black Is King” - Beyoncé´ (Columbia Records/Parkwood)
- “Brown Skin Girl” - Beyoncé feat WizKid, SAINt JHN, Blue Ivy Carter (Columbia Records/Parkwood)
- “Do It” - Chloe x Halle (Columbia Records/Parkwood)
Soul/R&B Song:
- “I Can’t Breathe” - H.E.R. (RCA Records/MBK Entertainment)
- “Anything for You” - Ledisi (Listen Back Entertainment/BMG)
- “B.S.,” feat. H.E.R - Jhené Aiko (Def Jam Recordings)
- “Black Parade” - Beyoncé (Columbia Record/Parkwood)
- “Do It” - Chloe x Halle (Columbia Record/Parkwood)
Hip Hop/Rap Song:
- “Deep Reverence feat. Nipsey Hussle” - Big Sean (Brand Nu/eOne)
- “Savage Remix” - Megan Thee Stallion feat. Beyoncé (300 Entertainment/1501 Certified Ent. LLC)
- “Cool Off” - Missy Elliott (Atlantic Records)
- “Laugh Now, Cry Later” - Drake (Republic Records)
- “Life Is Good” - Future & Drake (Epic Records)
Film
Motion Picture:
- “Bad Boys For Life” (Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Entertainment)
- “Da 5 Bloods” (Netflix)
- “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” (Netflix)
- “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
- “One Night In Miami” (Amazon Studios)
Actor in a Motion Picture:
- Anthony Mackie - “The Banker” (Apple)
- Chadwick Boseman - “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
- Delroy Lindo - “Da 5 Bloods” (Netflix)
- Forest Whitaker - “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” (Netflix)
- Will Smith - “Bad Boys For Life” (Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Entertainment)
Actress in a Motion Picture:
- Issa Rae - “The Photograph” (Universal Pictures)
- Janelle Monáe - “Antebellum” (Lionsgate)
- Madalen Mills - “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” (Netflix)
- Tracee Ellis Ross - “The High Note” (Focus Features)
- Viola Davis - “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:
- Aldis Hodge - “One Night In Miami” (Amazon Studios)
- Chadwick Boseman - “Da 5 Bloods” (Netflix)
- Clarke Peters - “Da 5 Bloods” (Netflix)
- Colman Domingo - “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
- Glynn Turman - “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture:
- Anika Noni Rose - “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” (Netflix)
- Gabourey Sidibe - “Antebellum” (Lionsgate)
- Nia Long - “The Banker” (Apple)
- Phylicia Rashad - “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” (Netflix)
- Taylour Paige - “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture:
- “Da 5 Bloods” (Netflix)
- “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” (Netflix)
- “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
- “Soul” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
- “The Banker” (Apple)
Animated Motion Picture:
- “Onward” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
- “Over the Moon” (Netflix)
- “Scoob!” (Warner Bros. Pictures)
- “Soul” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
- “Trolls World Tour” (Universal Pictures)
Literature
Fiction:
- “Black Bottom Saints” - Alice Randall (HarperCollins Publishers)
- “Lakewood” - Megan Giddings (HarperCollins Publishers)
- “Riot Baby” - Tochi Onyebuchi (TorDotCom Publishing, imprint of Tom Doherty Associates)
- “The Awkward Black Man” - Walter Mosley (Grove Atlantic)
- “The Vanishing Half” - Brit Bennett (Riverhead Books)
Nonfiction:
- “A Black Women’s History of the United States” - Daina Berry (Beacon Press)
- “A Promised Land” - Barack Obama (Crown)
- “Driving While Black” - Gretchen Sorin (W. W. Norton & Company)
- “Long Time Coming: Reckoning With Race in America” - Michael Eric Dyson (St. Martin’s Press)
- “We’re Better Than This” - Elijah Cummings (HarperCollins Publishers)
Debut Author:
- “A Knock at Midnight” - Brittany Barnett (Penguin Random House)
- “Greyboy: Finding Blackness in a White World” - Cole Brown (Skyhorse)
- “Lakewood” - Megan Giddings (HarperCollins Publishers)
- “The Compton Cowboys” - Walter Thompson-Hernández (HarperCollins Publishers)
- “We’re Better Than This” - Elijah Cummings (HarperCollins Publishers)
Poetry:
- “Homie” - Danez Smith (Graywolf Press)
- “Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry” - John Murillo (Four Way Books)
- “Seeing the Body” - Rachel Eliza Griffiths (W. W. Norton & Company)
- “The Age of Phillis” - Honorée Jeffers (Wesleyan University Press)
- “Un-American” - Hafizah Geter (Wesleyan University Press)
Children:
- “I Promise” - LeBron James, Nina Mata (HarperCollins)
- “Just Like a Mama” - Alice Faye Duncan, Charnelle Pinkney Barlow (Simon & Schuster)
- “Kamala Harris: Rooted in Justice” - Nikki Grimes, Laura Freeman (Simon & Schuster)
- “She Was the First!: The Trailblazing Life of Shirley Chisholm” - Katheryn Russell-Brown, Eric Velasquez (Lee & Low Books)
- “The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver” - Gene Barretta, Frank Morrison (HarperCollins)
Youth/Teens:
- “Before the Ever After” - Jacqueline Woodson (Penguin Random House)
- “Black Brother, Black Brother” - Jewell Parker Rhodes (Hachette Book Group)
- “Dear Justyce” - Nic Stone (Crown Books for Young Readers)
- “Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped From the Beginning” - Jason Reynolds (Hachette Book Group )
- “This Is Your Time” - Ruby Bridges (Delacorte Books for Young Readers)
General
Entertainer of the Year:
- D-Nice
- Regina King
- Trevor Noah
- Tyler Perry
- Viola Davis
Social Justice Impact:
- April Ryan
- Debbie Allen
- LeBron James
- Stacey Abrams
- Tamika Mallory
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