The NAACP Image Awards have been around for the past 48 years. That is almost five decades of honoring black excellence at the highest level. In 2015 and 2016, it seemed as if black America had been sent a memo that the esteemed Oscars were just for white talent, thus causing the internet to erupt in the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite.
And while we deserve to be outraged over being ignored or treated as if we’re less-than in any capacity, the solution has and always will be: Create your own. We don’t need a seat at their table when we have our own.
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So, no, the NAACP Image Awards are not a black answer to the Oscars; they’re a tangible testimony that our exceptional accomplishments deserve to be celebrated!
The NAACP Image Awards celebrate the accomplishment of people of color in the fields of television, music, literature and film, and also honor individuals or groups who promote social justice through creative endeavors.
This is our night to celebrate our stars and our legacies. The all-star celebration will be hosted by Anthony Anderson and will broadcast live from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium 9-11 p.m ET on Saturday on TV One. A 90-minute preshow will air from the red carpet 7:30-9 p.m ET.
And this year, The Root will be in the building! We’re covering the red carpet, so make sure you stay tuned to our social media to get your fill of black excellence!
Greats like Taraji P. Henson, Sterling K. Brown, Octavia Spencer, Trevor Noah, Janelle Monáe, Issa Rae, Mike Colter and Mykelti Williamson are all NAACP Image Awards presenters.
Here are just a few of the nominees:
Chance the Rapper
Regina King
Dwayne Johnson
Beyoncé
Viola Davis
Hidden Figures
Moonlight
Fences
Loving
The Birth of a Nation
Don Cheadle, Miles Ahead
Will Smith, Collateral Beauty
Stephan James, Race
Denzel Washington, Fences
Nate Parker, The Birth of a Nation
Madina Nalwanga, Queen of Katwe
Tika Sumpter, Southside with You
Ruth Negga, Loving
Taraji P. Henson, Hidden Figures
Angela Bassett, London Has Fallen
Alano Miller, Loving
David Oyelowo, Queen of Katwe
Trevante Rhodes, Moonlight
Mahershala Ali, Moonlight
Chadwick Boseman, Captain America: Civil War
Viola Davis, Fences
Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures
Mo’Nique, Almost Christmas
Aja Naomi King, The Birth of a Nation
Lupita Nyong’o, Queen of Katwe
Lion
Miles Ahead
The Birth of a Nation
Moonlight
Loving
Insecure
Black-ish
Survivor’s Remorse
The Carmichael Show
Atlanta
Dwayne Johnson, Ballers
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Donald Glover, Atlanta
Don Cheadle, House of Lies
Kevin Hart, Real Husbands of Hollywood
Issa Rae, Insecure
Keesha Sharp, Lethal Weapon
Uzo Aduba, Orange is the New Black
Niecy Nash, Soul Man
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
Laurence Fishburne, Black-ish
David Alan Grier, The Carmichael Show
Deon Cole, Black-ish
Miles Brown, Black-ish
Tituss Burgess, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Laverne Cox, Orange Is the New Black
Erica Ash, Survivor’s Remorse
Yvonne Orji, Insecure
Marsai Martin, Black-ish
Tichina Arnold, Survivor’s Remorse
Power
Empire
Underground
This Is Us
Queen Sugar
Terrence Howard, Empire
Mike Colter, Marvel’s Luke Cage
Kofi Siriboe, Queen Sugar
Omari Hardwick, Power
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Underground
Taraji P. Henson, Empire
Rutina Wesley, Queen Sugar
Kerry Washington, Scandal
Viola Davis, How to Get Away With Murder
Trai Byers, Empire
Jussie Smollett, Empire
Joe Morton, Scandal
Jesse Williams, Grey’s Anatomy
Alfred Enoch, How to Get Away With Murder
Cicely Tyson, How to Get Away With Murder
Lynn Whitfield, Greenleaf
Amirah Vann, Underground
CCH Pounder, NCIS: New Orleans
Naturi Naughton, Power
See the full list of nominees here!
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