“When They See Us” And “Dolemite Is My Name” Leads Nominations For 51st NAACP Image Awards

The 51st NAACP Image Awards will kick off on Feb. 22 and the nominees for this year’s ceremony have finally been announced.

The Image Awards is a ceremony that celebrates and awards people of color, specifically Black creative, within the TV/film, music, and literature fields. It also recognizes individuals who have made contributions to social justice through their respective crafts.

Leading with the most nominations is Netflix, with a total of 42. The streaming service landed thirty nominations for the TV category with Ava DuVernay’s limited series “When They See Us” having the most at 12. The Eddie Murphy-led film “Dolemite Is My Name” has the most for motion picture categories with a total of seven. Universal leads the motion picture categories with 15 nominations, paced by #JordanPeele’s “Us” and “Queen & Slim,” by Lena Waithe and Melina Matsukas.

Entertainer of the Year is a battle amongst Angela Basset, Billy Porter, Lizzo, Regina King, and Tyler Perry. Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture is a bid between Alfre Woodard (Clemency), Cynthia Erivo (Harriet), #JodieTurnerSmith (Queen & Slim), Lupita Nyong’o (Us) and Naomie Harris (Black and Blue). For the same award on the actors’ side, it is between Chadwick Boseman (21 Bridges), Daniel Kaluuya (Queen & Slim), Murphy (Dolemite Is My Name), Michael B Jordan (Just Mercy) and Winston Duke (Us). The nominees for Outstanding Male Artist are #Khalid, #BrunoMars, #LilNasX, #MAJOR, and #PJMorton. For Outstanding Female Artist, the nominees are #Beyonce, #Fantasia, #AriLennox, #Mahalia, #LuckyDaye and #MykalKilgore.

The nominees were announced Thursday morning during a joint press meeting with Derrick Johnson, president, and CEO of the NAACP, and Connie Orlando, EVP and head of programming at BET Networks, Deadline reports. To see the full list of nominees, visit NAACP.org