Ava DuVernay accepts the Entertainer of the Year
award
(Photo Credit: Earl Gibson III/WireImage, Ziva Santop Photography)

The winners of the 49th NAACP Image Awards were announced during a live broadcast from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium which aired on TV One. The two-hour live special was hosted by Anthony Anderson and opened with a powerful moment in support of #TIMESUP featuring Angela Robinson, Kerry Washington, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Laverne Cox, Lena Waithe and Tracee Ellis Ross. There was a live pre-show from the red carpet hosted by Terrence J with special correspondent, Tanika Ray. 

Ava DuVernay was honored as the NAACP Entertainer of the Year. NAACP chairman Leon W. Russell presented the NAACP chairman’s Award to William Lucy, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson presented the NAACP president’s Award to Danny Glover and several members of the Memphis Sanitation “I Am A Man” Workers were also in attendance – they were presented with the NAACP Vanguard Award earlier in the week during a press conference at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, TN. Charlie Wilson was honored with the Music Makes a Difference honor which is bestowed upon an individual within the recording industry who has achieved worthwhile success and inspiration for civic engagement, criminal justice, education, economic opportunity, or criminal justice. 

In addition, some of the biggest names in film, television and music appeared in the LIVE telecast including: Sterling K. Brown, Halle Berry, Mary J. Blige, Michael B. Jordan, Daniel Kaluuya, Issae Rae, Mandy Moore, Chadwick Boseman, Terry Crews, Tracee Ellis Ross, Yara Shahidi, Angela Rye, Danai Gurira, Isaiah Washington, Jacob Latimore, Jay Pharoah, Jemele Hill, Josh Gad, Loretta Devine, Meta Golding, Michael Smith, Tyler James Williams, Omari Hardwick, Ava DuVernay, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Chris Sullivan, Sonequa Martin-Green, Judge Greg Mathis and Mike Colter. 

Anthony Anderson speaks onstage at the 49th NAACP Image Awards on January 15, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Earl Gibson III/WireImage)

The 49th NAACP Image Awards production team included executive producers Reginald Hudlin and Phil Gurin, Tony McCuin as director, Byron Phillips as producer, and Robin Reinhardt as talent producer. 

The winners of the 49th NAACP Image Awards in the non-televised categories were announced during a gala dinner celebration that took place Sunday, January 14, 2018, at the Pasadena Conference Center – the event was hosted by The Real’s Adrienne Houghton, Loni Love, Jeannie Mai and Tamera Mowry-Housley. 

The NAACP Image Awards is the premiere multicultural awards show. It celebrates the accomplishments of people of color in the fields of television, music, literature and film, and also honors individuals or groups who promote social justice through creative endeavors.  

Nominees for the NAACP Image Awards are determined by the number of entries received by the deadline. To be eligible, projects must have had a national distribution date between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2017.  From those entries, a nominating committee selects five nominees in each of the 56 categories. To determine the winners, the members of the NAACP vote via a secured online site. The results are tabulated by the Image Awards auditors, Bert Smith & Co., and the results are confidential until the envelope is opened LIVE on stage during the TV One telecast. 

For full list of winners from the 49th NAACP Image Awards visit: www.lasentinel.net