2022 NAACP Image Awards: 5 Times a Black Woman Scored Big at This Year’s Show
The Black women of Hollywood dominated the 53rd annual NAACP Image Awards. Some of the evening’s most notable wins came courtesy of stars including Angela Bassett, who won "Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series", and Issa Rae, who not only won "Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series", but she also took home overall "Outstanding Comedy Series".
Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Jennifer Hudson won for "Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture" for her role of the legendary Aretha Franklin in Respect, and also snagged one of the most significant recognitions of the night, earning bragging rights to called “Entertainer of the Year.” Join us as we look back on five times a Black woman scored big at the 2022 NAACP Image Awards.
Angela Bassett
The Roots’ Questlove presented the thespian with the award for "Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series" for her role in the high-speed action drama 9-1-1, from inside the National Jazz Museum located in Harlem, New York. Bassett beat out several Hollywood heavy hitters, including Dawn-Lyen Gardner, Queen Latifah and Octavia Spencer.
Jennifer Hudson
Her first award of the night, Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Hudson took home the win for “Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture” for her role as the legendary Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin in Respect. The film garnered raving reviews from critics.
“This is for Ms. Franklin’s legacy. To her family, I wanna dedicate it to each and every one of them and to everyone who has supported me. I did not see this coming by any means, but Lord knows I’m grateful,” she remarked.
Nikole Hannah-Jones
Award-winning actress Kerry Washington presented scholar and activist Nikole Hannah-Jones with the award for Social Justice Award, describing the trailblazer as “guardian of Blackness.”
“As a student of history, I know that the work that I do and the life I live would not be possible without the decades-long efforts of the NAACP to force this country to live up to its highest ideals,” Hannah-Jones humbly said in her acceptance speech. Elsewhere she noted, “This award is not really about me. As of now, some 36 states have passed or are considering bills to make it harder to teach about racism and inequality. Politicians are using the power of the state to whitewash an already whitewashed history.”
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Issa Rae
Actress, writer, and producer Issa Rae took home the award for “Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series” for her role in the HBO hit series Insecure. She thanked her team, especially her two co-stars, Jay Ellis and Yvonne Orji. The actress returned for a second win for “Outstanding Comedy Series,” where she hilariously petitioned the audience to campaign for her to host the Image Awards come next year now that her show had ended with its fifth season.
Jennifer Hudson
Back for a second win, Hudson took home the last most significant award as “Entertainer of the Year.” Hudson noted, “This is for Ms. Franklin’s legacy, to her family; I want to dedicate it to each and every one of them. To everybody who’s always supported me. …To the fellow actresses, from Zendaya to Halle Berry, Andra Day—all of you ladies have inspired me so much. I did not see this coming by any means, but Lord knows I am grateful.”
