Cardi B Leads 2026 BET Awards with 6 Nominations
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- Cardi B leads the 2026 BET Awards with six nominations, including Best Female Hip Hop Artist (which she's won three times) and the inaugural Fashion Vanguard Award.
- Kendrick Lamar earned five nominations, tied for second-most with Mariah the Scientist, after winning four BET Awards in 2025.
- The 2026 BET Awards introduces two new categories: the Fashion Vanguard Award (recognizing global fashion influence) and the Pulse Award (honoring digital creators who moved Black culture forward online), with Pulse nominees including Druski, Charlamagne Tha God, Don Lemon, and the podcast It Is What It Is.
- One Battle After Another and Sinners are among the Best Movie nominees, with Oscar winners Michael B. Jordan (Best Actor) and Chase Infiniti among the acting contenders alongside Denzel Washington, Cynthia Erivo, and Angela Bassett.
- Doechii, Doja Cat, Clipse, Teyana Taylor, Olivia Dean, and Latto each earned four nominations, rounding out the most-nominated field.
- Winners will be revealed June 28 at 8 p.m. ET/PT, airing on BET and simulcast across BET Her, CMT, Logo, MTV, MTV2, Nickelodeon, Paramount, Pop, VH1, Comedy Central, and TV Land.
Why it matters: The two new categories — Fashion Vanguard and Pulse — expand BET's scope beyond music into cultural-influence territory, with the Fashion Vanguard inaugural list (Beyoncé, Rihanna, Zendaya, A$AP Rocky, Bad Bunny) signaling BET's intent to crown cross-industry tastemakers. Cardi B's six noms, including Album of the Year for AM I THE DRAMA?, position her as the June 28 ceremony's likely centerpiece following Kendrick Lamar's 2025 sweep.
