The first winners of the 2026 NAACP Image Awards were announced Monday in the non-televised literary, short-form and creator award categories.
Michelle Obama, who received a total of five NAACP Image Award nominations this year, received the prize for outstanding literary work — biography/autobiography for The Look, her retrospective on her fashion choices as former first lady of the United States.
Rapper Kendrick Lamar, who received a total of six nominations overall — including entertainer of the year — and the most nominations in the music recording categories, won the award for outstanding short-form series or special for his Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show.
Filmmaker and producer Will Packer also won for outstanding literary work — instructional for his 2025 self-help book Who Better Than You? The Art of Healthy Arrogance & Dreaming Big.
The awards were announced during the first of a three-night virtual event hosted by actress and writer Angel “ThatChickAngel” Laketa Moore and actor and rapper Khleo Thomas exclusively on the NAACP Image Awards‘ YouTube channel. Additional non-televised awards will be announced on Tuesday and Wednesday, with Rev. Dr. Jamal-Harrison Bryant set to be presented with the Mildred Bond Roxborough Social Justice Impact Award at the 57th NAACP Image Awards Creative Honors on Thursday and A$AP Rocky receiving the Vanguard Award at the NAACP Image Awards Reception & Fashion Show on Friday night.
The 57th NAACP Image Awards, hosted by Average Joe star and comedian Deon Cole, will air live on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 8:00 PM ET/PT on BET and CBS from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. Special honorees include Viola Davis, who’ll receive the Chairman’s Award, and Colman Domingo, who’ll be presented with the President’s Award.
The complete list of night one non-televised winners follows.
Outstanding Literary Work – Biography/ Autobiography
- 107 Days – Kamala Harris (Simon & Schuster)
- The Look – Michelle Obama (Crown) (WINNER)
- Toni at Random – Dana A. Williams (Amistad, HarperCollins)
- Truly – Lionel Richie (HarperOne)
- Uncommon Favor: Basketball, North Philly, My Mother, and the Life Lessons I Learned from All Three – Dawn Staley (Black Privilege Publishing (Atria Books, Simon & Schuster))
Outstanding Literary Work – Non-Fiction
- A More Perfect Party: The Night Shirley Chisholm & Diahann Carroll Reshaped Politics – Juanita Tolliver (Legacy Lit/Hachette Book Group) (WINNER)
- Born in Flames – Bench Ansfield (W. W. Norton & Company)
- From These Roots – Tamara Lanier (Penguin Random House, Crown)
- Hidden Hospitality: Untold Stories of Black Hotel, Motel, and Resort Owners from the Pioneer Days to the Civil Rights Era – Calvin Stovall Jr. (Brown Books Publishing Group)
- I Am Nobody’s Slave – Lee Hawkins (HarperCollins Publishers)
Outstanding Literary Work – Instructional
- American Soul: The Black History of Food in the United States – Anela Malik (National Geographic Partners, LLC)
- Braided Heritage: Recipes and Stories on the Origin of American Cuisine – Dr. Jessica Harris (Penguin Random House/Clarkson Potter)
- We the Pizza: Slangin’ Pies and Savin’ Lives – Muhammad Abdul-Hadi (Penguin Random House/Clarkson Potter)
- Who Better Than You? – Will Packer (Penguin Random House) (WINNER)
- Wine Pairing for the People – Cha McCoy (Harvest, an imprint of WilliamMorrow, HarperCollins)
Outstanding Literary Work – Journalism
- “As Black New Yorkers Move Out, N.Y.C. Politics May Be Reshaped” – Maya King (Newspaper)
- “Audra McDonald Took The Stage and Rewrote The Rules” – Adam Davenport (Online)
- “Black joy and boots: How line dancing is fanning cultural connection” – Lisa Respers France (News Service)
- “HBCUs Reel as Trump Cuts Black-Focused Grants: ‘This Is Our Existence’” – Jasper Smith (Online)
- “On Borrowed Time” – Anissa Durham (Online) (WINNER)
Outstanding Literary Work – Debut Author
- Anela Malik – American Soul: The Black History of Food in the United States (National Geographic Partners, LLC)
- Charles B. Fancher – Red Clay (Blackstone Publishing) (WINNER)
- Dr. Judith Joseph – High Functioning: Overcome Your Hidden Depression and Reclaim Your Joy (Little, Brown Spark)
- Lorna Lewis – A Sky Full of Love (Lake Union)
- Zoe B. Wallbrook – History Lessons (Soho Crime)
Outstanding Literary Work – Fiction
- Can’t Get Enough – Kennedy Ryan (Forever/Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group)
- Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic – Harmonia Rosales (W. W. Norton & Company)
- Death of the Author – Nnedi Okorafor (William Morrow) (WINNER)
- Happy Land – Dolen Perkins-Valdez (Berkley, Penguin Random House)
- Harlem Rhapsody – Victoria Christopher Murray (Berkley, Penguin Random House)
Outstanding Literary Work – Poetry
- “Death of the First Idea” – Rickey Laurentiis (Alfred A. Knopf)
- “Florida Water” – Aja Monet (Haymarket Books)
- “The Grace of Black Mothers” – Martheaus Perkins (Trio House Press)
- “The Intentions of Thunder: New and Selected Poems” – Patricia Smith (Scribner) (WINNER)
- “We Look Better Alive” – Ali Black (Burnside Review Press)
Outstanding Literary Work – Children
- Black Boy, Rise – Brynne Barnes (Chronicle Books)
- Black Diamond Kings: Heroes of Negro League Baseball – Charles R. Smith Jr. (Candlewick Press)
- My Quiet Place – Monica Mikai (Chronicle Books)
- The History of We – Nikkolas Smith (Penguin Young Readers)
- Yvonne Clark and Her Engineering Spark – Allen R. Wells; Illustrated by DeAndra Hodge (Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers/Macmillan) (WINNER)
Outstanding Literary Work – Youth/Teens
- (S)Kin – Ibi Zoboi (HarperCollins/Versify)
- Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Book of Anansi – Angie Thomas (HarperCollins/Clarion Books) (WINNER)
- The Scammer – Tiffany D. Jackson (HarperCollins – Quill Tree Books)
- The Story of My Anger – Jasminne Mendez (Penguin Young Readers)
- Through Our Teeth – Pamela N. Harris (HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books)
Outstanding Literary Work – Graphic Novel
- Creaky Acres: A Graphic Novel – Calista Bril (Penguin Young Readers)
- Defiant: The Story of Robert Smalls – Rob Edwards (Stranger Comics)
- One Crazy Summer: The Graphic Novel – Rita William-Garcia (HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books)
- Parable of the Talents A Graphic Novel Adaptation – Octavia E. Butler, adapted by Damien Duffy, Illustrated by John Jennings and David Brame (Abrams ComicArts) (WINNER)
- They Choose Violence – Sheldon Allen (AWA Studios)
Outstanding Short Form Series or Special – Reality/Nonfiction/Documentary
- College Gameday: Michael Vick (ESPN)
- Glam Through The Ages (KeyTV Network)
- Noochie’s Live From The Front Porch (YouTube TV)
- The Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show starring Kendrick Lamar (FOX) (WINNER)
- The Daily Show: After The Cut (Comedy Central)
Outstanding Digital Content Creator – Gaming/Tech
- Berlin Edmonds – @Berleezy (WINNER)
- Cory Kenshin – @CoryxKenshin
- Gerard Williams – @Hiphopgamer
- Jay Ann Lopez – @blackgirlgamers
- Khleo Thomas – @khleothomas
Outstanding Digital Content Creator – Fitness/Wellness/Food
- Alex Hill – @justaddhotsauce
- Jeanette Jenkins – @msjeanettejenkins
- Keith Lee – @Keith_Lee125 (WINNER)
- Kimberly Villalobos – @KimmysKreations.1
- Massy Arias – @Massy.arias
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