"Jingle Jangle" and "Ma Rainey" lead the NAACP Image Award Nominations

Netflix completely reigned over the 52nd annual NAACP Image Award nominations where Jingle Jangle, Ma Rainey and Da 5 Bloods were the top three most nominated films. As we've seen with most of the awards to date from various organizations -- but maybe not with the upcoming Globes, SAG, and the Oscars -- those films that opted to wait until January or February to start screening like Malcolm & Marie, Judas and the Black Messiah and the United States vs Billie Holliday, which are all fully "2021" films, are missing from a lot of the precursor lists. Sometimes that's due to eligibility rules sticking to the calendar year as we're doing and as we assume the NAACP did. Other times it might just be due to the age-old risk that late-breaking awards campaigns take each and every year. When you wait to the last minute you have the distinct advantage of being fresh in the mind should you be nominated coupled with the disadvantage that you might miss the nominations altogether if not enough people screen your work in time.

Congratulations to all of the nominees in film, television, literature, and music. You can all see the NAACP nominations after the jump... UPDATED WITH WINNERS 03/29...

Outstanding 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)

We like that they keep it to five (when more and more awards shows expanding their categories like crazy)

Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture

• David E. Talbert – Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (Netflix)
• George C. Wolfe – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix)
• Gina Prince-Bythewood – The Old Guard ★ (Netflix)
• Radha Blank – The Forty-Year-Old Version (Netflix)
• Regina King – One Night in Miami… (Amazon Studios)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding 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)

It's a bummer to see Radha Blank and Nicole Beharie left off this list for The 40 Year Old Version and Miss Juneteenth but the Image Awards have long favoured mainstream wide-release kind of entertainments over indie fare. (Doesn't it seem like the High Note came out a million years ago? That's what the pandemic did. It divided life into the before and after times.)

Outstanding 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)

A bit shocking to see Leslie Odom Jr left out of this lineup. Perhaps, they felt, as we do that he's not really a supporting player in One Night in Miami (which is where he's been campaigning). 

Outstanding 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)

So much talent packed into these categories, even if Jingle Jangle didn't give Anika and Phylicia enough to do, focusing mostly on the child actors and Forrest Whitaker. 

Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture

• David E. Talbert – Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (Netflix)
• Kemp Powers – One Night in Miami… (Amazon Studios)
• Lee Isaac Chung – Minari (A24)
• Pete Docter, Kemp Powers, Mike Jones – Soul (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Radha Blank – The Forty-Year-Old Version ★ (Netflix)

Outstanding Independent Motion Picture

• Emperor (Universal Home Video)
• Farewell Amor (IFC Films)
• Miss Juneteenth (Vertical Entertainment)
• The 24th (Vertical Entertainment)
• The Banker (Apple)

MISS JUNETEENTH!

Outstanding International Motion Picture

• Ainu Mosir (ARRAY) - Japan
• His House (Netflix)  - UK
• Night of the Kings (Neon) ★ -Ivory Coast
• The Last Tree (ArtMattan Productions) - UK
• The Life Ahead (La vita davanti a se) (Netflix) - Italy

Outstanding Breakthrough Performance in a Motion Picture

• Dayo Okeniyi – Emperor (Universal Home Video)
• Dominique Fishback – Project Power (Netflix)
• Jahi Di’Allo Winston – Charm City Kings (HBO Max)
• Jahzir Bruno – The Witches (Warner Bros. Pictures)
• Madalen Mills – Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey ★ (Netflix)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance – Motion Picture

• Ahmir-Khalib Thompson aka Questlove – Soul (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Angela Bassett – Soul (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Chris Rock – The Witches (Warner Bros. Pictures)
• Jamie Foxx – Soul ★ (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Phylicia Rashad – Soul (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Only one non-SOUL related nominee.

Outstanding Short Form (Live Action)

• Baldwin Beauty (Powderkeg Media)
• Black Boy Joy ★ (Film Independent Project Involve )
• Gets Good Light
• Home
• Mr. & Mrs. Ellis (AMB Productions)

Outstanding Short Form (Animated)

• Canvas ★ (Netflix)
• Cops and Robbers (Netflix)
• Loop (Pixar Animation Studios)
• The Power of Hope (The Power Of Hope)
• Windup (Unity Technologies)

Outstanding Breakthrough Creative (Motion Picture)

• Loira Limbal – Through the Night (Third Shift Media, Inc.)
• Melissa Haizlip – Mr. Soul! (Shoes In The Bed Productions)
• Nadia Hallgren – Becoming ★ (A Higher Ground Productions and Big Mouth Productions Film for Netflix)
• Radha Blank – The Forty-Year-Old Version (Netflix)
• Remi Weekes – His House (Netflix)

TELEVISION

Outstanding Comedy Series

• #blackAF (Netflix)
• Black-ish (ABC)
• grown-ish (Freeform)
• Insecure ★ (HBO)
• The Last O.G. (TBS)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding Drama Series

• All Rise (CBS)
• Bridgerton (Netflix)
• Lovecraft Country (HBO)
• Power Book II: Ghost ★ (Starz)
• This Is Us (NBC)

Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series

• Jonathan Majors – Lovecraft Country (HBO)
• Keith David – Greenleaf (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
• Nicco Annan – P-Valley (Starz)
• Regé-Jean Page – Bridgerton ★ (Netflix)
• Sterling K. Brown – This Is Us (NBC)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

• Clifford “Method Man” Smith – Power Book II: Ghost ★ (Starz)
• Delroy Lindo – The Good Fight (CBS All Access)
• Alphonse Nicholson – P-Valley (Starz)
• Jeffrey Wright – Westworld (HBO)
• Michael Kenneth Williams – Lovecraft Country (HBO)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

• Adjoa Andoh – Bridgerton (Netflix)
• Aunjanue Ellis – Lovecraft Country (HBO)
• Lynn Whitfield – Greenleaf (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
• Mary J. Blige – Power Book II: Ghost ★ (Starz)
• Susan Kelechi Watson – This Is Us (NBC)

Very disappoined not to see Wunmi Mosaku ("Ruby") from Lovecraft Country here. But as with all the categories, they're jampacked with talent. 

Outstanding Television 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)

Outstanding Actor in a Television 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)

Amazon (and HBO also) are getting confusing as to which of their films they consider movies and which they consider TV. Sylvie's Love and Uncle Frank were deemed "tv movies" but Sound of Metal was considered a "theatrical movie"... how do they choose? 

Outstanding Actress in a Television 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)

Outstanding News/Information (Series or Special)

• AM Joy: Remembering John Lewis Special (MSNBC)
• Desus & Mero: The Obama Interview (Showtime)
• The Color of Covid (CNN)
• The New York Times Presents “The Killing of Breonna Taylor” ★ (FX)
• The Reidout (NBC)

Outstanding Talk Series 

• Red Table Talk ★ (Facebook Watch)
• Tamron Hall (Syndicated )
• The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central)
• The Oprah Conversation (Apple TV+)
• The Shop: Uninterrupted (HBO)

Outstanding Reality Program, Reality Competition or Game Show (Series) 

• Celebrity Family Feud  ★ (ABC)
• Iyanla: Fix My Life (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
• Shark Tank (ABC)
• United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell (CNN)
• Voices of Fire (Netflix)

Outstanding Variety Show (Series or Special)

• 8:46 (Netflix)
• Black Is King (Disney+)
• The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Reunion (HBO Max)
• VERZUZ ★ (APPLE TV)
• Yvonne Orji: Momma I Made It! (HBO)

Outstanding Children’s Program

•  Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices (Netflix)
• Craig of the Creek (Cartoon Network)
• Family Reunion ★ (Netflix)
• Raven’s Home (Disney Channel)
• We Are the Dream: The Kids of the Oakland MLK Oratorical (HBO)

Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Limited–Series)

• Alex R. Hibbert – The Chi (Showtime)
• Lexi Underwood – Little Fires Everywhere (Hulu)
• Lyric Ross – This Is Us (NBC)
• Marsai Martin – Black-ish ★ (ABC)
• Miles Brown – Black-ish (ABC)

Outstanding Host in a Talk or News/Information (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble

• Don Lemon – CNN Tonight with Don Lemon (CNN)
• Jada Pinkett Smith – Red Table Talk (Facebook Watch)
• Joy Reid – The Reidout (NBC)
• LeBron James – The Shop: Uninterrupted (HBO)
• Trevor Noah – The Daily Show with Trevor Noah ★ (Comedy Central)

Outstanding Host in a Reality/Reality Competition, Game Show or Variety (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble

• Alfonso Ribeiro – America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC)
• Iyanla Vanzant – Iyanla: Fix My Life (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
• Steve Harvey – Celebrity Family Feud ★ (ABC)
• Kamau Bell – United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell (CNN)
• RuPaul – RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1)

Outstanding Guest Performance – Comedy or Drama Series

• Chris Rock – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
• Courtney B. Vance – Lovecraft Country (HBO)
• Dave Chappelle – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
• Issa Rae – Saturday Night Live (NBC)
• Loretta Devine – P-Valley ★ (Starz)

Outstanding Animated Series

• Big Mouth (Netflix)
• Central Park (Apple TV+)
• Doc McStuffins ★ (Disney Junior)
• She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix)
• Star Trek: Lower Decks (CBS All Access)

Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance (Television)

• Aisha Tyler – Archer (FX)
• Courtney B. Vance – Hollywood’s Architect: The Paul R. Williams Story (PBS)
• Dawnn Lewis – Star Trek: Lower Decks (CBS All Access)
• Deon Cole – Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Netflix)
• Laya DeLeon Hayes – Doc McStuffins ★ (Disney Junior)

Outstanding Short Form Series – Comedy or Drama

• #FreeRayshawn ★ (Quibi)
• CripTales (BBC America)
• Lazor Wulf (Adult Swim)
• Mapleworth Murders (Quibi)
• Sincerely, Camille (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)

Outstanding Performance in a Short Form Series

• Giancarlo Esposito – The Broken and the Bad (AMC.com )
• J.B. Smoove – Mapleworth Murders (Quibi)
• Jasmine Cephas Jones – #FreeRayshawn (Quibi)
• Laurence Fishburne – #FreeRayshawn ★ (Quibi)
• Stephan James – #FreeRayshawn (Quibi)

Outstanding Short Form Series – Reality/Nonfiction

• American Masters – Unladylike2020 (PBS)
• Benedict Men (Quibi)
• Between The Scenes – The Daily Show ★ (Comedy Central)
• In The Making (PBS)
• Inspire Change Series (NFL Network)

Outstanding Breakthrough Creative (Television)

• Katori Hall – P-Valley (Starz)
• Keith Knight – Woke (Hulu)
• Ramy Youssef – Ramy (Hulu)
• Raynelle Swilling – Cherish the Day ★ (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)
• Teri Schaffer – Cherish the Day (OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network)

MUSIC 

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding Female Artist

• Beyoncé – Black Parade ★ (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
• 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)

Outstanding 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 – Beyonce´ (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
• Brown Skin Girl – Beyonce’ feat WizKid, SAINt JHN, Blu Ivy Carter ★ (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
• Do It – Chloe x Halle (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding Soundtrack/Compilation Album

• Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Music from the Netflix Film) – Branford Marsalis (Milan)
• Insecure: Music from the HBO Original Series – Various Artists (Atlantic Records)
• Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey – Various Artists (Atlantic Records )
• Soul Original Motion Picture Soundtrack – ★ Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste and Tom MacDougall (Walt Disney Records)
• The First Ladies of Gospel: The Clark Sisters Biopic Soundtrack – Donald Lawrence (Relevé Entertainment)

Outstanding Gospel/Christian Album

• Chosen Vessel – Marvin Sapp (RCA Inspiration)
• Gospel According to PJ – PJ Morton (Morton Inspiration / Tyscot Records)
• I Am – Koryn Hawthorne (RCA Inspiration)
• Kierra – Kierra Sheard (Karew/RCA Inspiration)
• The Return – The Clark Sisters ★ (Karew/Motown)

Outstanding Gospel/Christian Song

• “All in His Plan” – PJ Morton (Morton Inspiration / Tyscot Records)
• “Never Lost” – CeCe Winans (Pure Springs Gospel)
• “Something Has To Break” – Kierra Sheard feat. Tasha Cobbs-Leonard (Karew/RCA Inspiration)
• “Strong God” – Kirk Franklin (Fo Yo Soul/RCA Records)
• “Touch from You” – Tamela Mann ★ (TillyMann Inc.)

Outstanding Jazz Album – Instrumental

• Be Water – Christian Sands (Mack Avenue Music Group)
• Music From and Inspired By Soul – Jon Batiste ★ (Walt Disney Records)
• Omega – Immanuel Wilkins (Blue Note Records)
• Reciprocity – George Burton (Inner Circle Music)
• The Iconoclast – Barry Stephenson (Independent)

Outstanding Jazz Album – Vocal

• Donny Duke and Wonder – Nathan Mitchell (ENM Music Group)
• Holy Room – Live at Alte Oper – Somi ★ (Salon Africana)
• Pulling Off The Covers – Mike Phillips (Sono Recording Group)
• Stronger – Jeff Bradshaw (Bone Deep Enterprises)
• The Eddy (From The Netflix Original Series) – The Eddy (Arista Records)

Outstanding Soul/R&B Song 

• “I Can’t Breathe” – H.E.R. (RCA Records/MBK Entertainment)
• “Anything For You” – LEDISI (Listen Back Entertainment/BMG)
• “S. feat. H.E.R” – Jhené Aiko (Def Jam Recordings)
• “Black Parade” – Beyonce’ (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
• “Do It” – Chloe x Halle (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)

Outstanding 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)

Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration (Traditional)

• Alicia Keys feat. Jill Scott – Jill Scott (RCA Records)
• Chloe x Halle – Wonder What She Thinks Of Me ★ (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
• Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis feat. Babyface – He Don’t Know Nothin’ Bout It (BMG)
• Kem feat. Toni Braxton – Live Out Your Love (Motown Records)
• Ledisi and PJ Morton – Anything For You (Listen Back Entertainment/BMG)

Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration (Contemporary)

• Alicia Keys feat. Khalid – “So Done” (RCA Records)
• Big Sean feat. Nipsey Hussle – “Deep Reverence” (Def Jam Recordings/G.O.O.D Music)
• Chloe x Halle – “Do It” (Columbia Record/ Parkwood)
• Jhené Aiko feat. H.E.R. – “B.S”. (Def Jam Recordings)
• Megan Thee Stallion feat. Beyoncé – “Savage Remix” ★ (300 Entertainment / 1501 Certified Ent. LLC)

Outstanding International Song 

• “Blessed” – Buju Banton (Roc Nation Records)
• “Lockdown” – Original Koffee ★ (Promise Land Recordings)
• “Pressure (Remix)” – Original Koffee feat. Buju Banton (Promise Land Recordings)
• “Tanana” – Davido feat. Tiwa Savage (RCA Records/Sony Music U.K./Davido Worldwide Entertainment)
• “Temptation” – Tiwa Savage (Motown Records)

Outstanding Producer of the Year

• Donald Lawrence
• Hit-Boy ★
• Jathan Wilson
• Sean Keys
• TM88

LITERATURE

Outstanding Literary Work – 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)

Outstanding Literary Work – 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)

Outstanding Literary Work – 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-Hernandez (HarperCollins Publishers)
• We’re Better Than This – Elijah Cummings ★ (HarperCollins Publishers)

Outstanding Literary Work – Biography/Autobiography

• A Most Beautiful Thing: The True Story of America’s First All-Black High School Rowing Team – Arshay Cooper (Macmillan)
• A Promised Land – Barack Obama (Crown)
• Olympic Pride, American Prejudice – Deborah Draper (Simon & Schuster)
• The Dead Are Arising – Les Payne, Tamara Payne ★ (W. W. Norton & Company)
• Willie: The Game-Changing Story of the NHL’s First Black Player – Willie O’Ree (Penguin Canada)

Outstanding Literary Work – Instructional

• Do Right by Me: Learning to Raise Black Children in White Space – Valerie Harrison (Temple University Press)
• Living Lively – Haile Thomas (HarperCollins Publishers)
• The Black Foster Youth Handbook – Ángela Quijada-Banks (Soulful Liberation)
• The Woman God Created You to Be: Finding Success Through Faith–Spiritually, Personally, and Professionally – Kimberla Lawson Roby (Lenox Press)
• Vegetable Kingdom – Bryant Terry ★  (Penguin Random House)

Outstanding Literary Work – 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)

Outstanding Literary Work – 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)

Outstanding Literary Work – 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)

The NAACP IMAGE AWARDS will be held on Saturday March 27th, live on BET.

Comments

[Joe G]

Given all the behind the scenes drama with the show "All Rise," in particular the allegations of racism in writing that led all all of the writers of color to quit, I'm a little surprised to see the show make it into the series category.

All the Antebellum love feels misplaced. I wish Nicole Beharie and Miss Juneteenth were in its place.

Looking at this list, there are so many Oscar contenders! If anything, that's a good sign that Black actors are slowly getting more of the attention they deserve from all of Hollywood. Still glad we have these awards though.

[Suzanne]

Lol @ Will Smith’s BAD BOYS nomination.

[Glenn]

No Spike Lee for director, or 40-YEAR-OLD VERSION in independent feature are strange omissions. But seeing Domingo there is nice.

[Shanaynay]

Those crackers at the BFCA could learn from us.

[Brevity]

@Suzanne: I mean, yeah, but there is a dramatic element to Will Smith's performance in that film. It's not 90 minutes of "Aw hell no" over and over.

I don't want to overthink this -- Will Smith is still a huge star and Bad Boys for Life was the default box office champion -- but I wonder if the stunning absence of One Night in Miami in the Lead Actor category is the result of 2-3 actors cancelling each other out.

An analogy that comes to mind is Quiz Show, which had three quasi-lead actors (Fiennes, Turturro, Morrow) and one clear supporter (Scofield, the only eventual Oscar nominee). I think the comparison fails because the three actors never share a scene together; they work individually or in pairs.

As I see it, One Night in Miami has Ben-Adir and Goree as leads, Hodge as supporting, and Odom as a bit of a hybrid, though I lean toward supporting. Still, if you were to predict the Lead Actor category of the Image Awards, you would pick at least two of them to join Boseman and Lindo.

[Bhuray]

Can someone tell me BAD BOYS FOR LIFE is nominated for Best Picture!?!?!?! And why Will Smith is nominated in Best Actor? Those movies are horrendously bad, with the latest one being the absolute worst!