Ayo Edebiri, Tems, Wizkid and Tyla are Nominees for the NAACP Image Awards 2025

As expected, more than a few Africans and Africans in the diaspora have been nominated. Leading the list is Ayo Edebiri, whose acting talents enthralled audiences in her role as sous-chef Sydney Adamu in the fast-paced psychological comedy-drama series The Bear. Edebiri received five nominations for her work across different productions: three for The Bear (Best Actress in Comedy Series, Outstanding Breakthrough in Television, and Outstanding Director for the episode "Napkins"), one for voicing Envy in Inside Out 2, and another for her guest appearance on Saturday Night Live.

Tony and Grammy Award-winning powerhouse Cynthia Erivo faces formidable competition for Entertainer of the Year from versatile actress Keke Palmer, rap virtuoso Kendrick Lamar, comedy megastar Kevin Hart, and NFL Hall of Famer turned broadcasting sensation Shannon Sharpe.

Lupita Nyongo is nominated in the Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance - Motion Picture category for her work on Dreamworks Animation's The Wild Robot. She is also nominated under the Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture category for her role in Paramount Pictures' Quiet Place: Day One. Here, she faces competition from the likes of Kerry Washington and Regina King. Uzo Aduba is nominated under the Outstanding Actress in a Limited Television (Series, Special or Movie) category for her role on The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Hulu/Searchlight Pictures.

Disney+'s Iwájú, an animated series set in a futuristic Lagos, received a nomination under the Outstanding Animation category.

Under the Best New Artist category, we find Shaboozey and Tyla. The South African artist's song "Jump" has been nominated under the Outstanding International Song category alongside Chris Brown and Davido's "Hmmm," Tems' "Love Me Jeje," and Wizkid's "Piece of My Heart" with Brent Faiyaz, which also bagged a nomination under the Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration (Contemporary) alongside Usher and Burna Boy's "Coming Home."

Uche Okonkwo is nominated under the Outstanding Literary Work - Debut Author category for her short story collection, A Kind of Madness. Across ten stories,she asks why the "people and places we hold closest so often [are] the ones that drive us to madness." Omotara James'Song of My Softening is nominated in the Outstanding Literary Works - Poetry category.

What Now? a podcast by Trevor Noah, former host of The Daily Show, is nominated under the Outstanding Society and Culture Podcast category. Noah has featured guests such as Ta-Nehisi Coates, Jessica Alba, and Kevin Hart.

The NAACP Image Awards will be held on February 22 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium and broadcast at 8 p.m. EST on BET and CBS. Some categories are open for public voting on the Image Awards website.