NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Poetry

This article lists the winners and nominees for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Poetry. This award was first awarded in 2007 and since its conception, Nikki Giovanni holds the record for most wins in this category with three.

Winners and nominees

2000s

Award winners and finalists, 2007–2009
Year Book Author Result Ref.
2007 Celebrations, Rituals of Peace and Prayer Maya Angelou Winner [1]
Check the Rhyme: An Anthology of Female Poets & Emcees DuEwa Frazier Finalist [1]
Hoops Major Jackson
Jazz Walter Dean Myers
We Speak Your Names Pearl Cleage
2008 Acolytes: Poems Nikki Giovanni Winner [2]
Duende: Poems Tracy K. Smith Finalist [3]
Eloquence: Rhythm and Renaissance Usi Ku
Quiver of Arrows Carl Phillips
Selected Poems Derek Walcott
2009

2010s

Award winners and finalists, 2010–2019
Year Book Author Result Ref.
2010 Bicycles Nikki Giovanni Winner [4]
Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry Camille Dungy Finalist [5]
Cooling Board: A Long-Playing Poem Mitchell L. H. Douglas
Mixology Adrian Matejka
Roses and Revolutions: The Selected Writings of Dudley Randall Melba Joyce Boyd
2011 100 Best African-American Poems Nikki Giovanni Winner [6]
Hard Times Require Furious Dancing Alice Walker Finalist
Holding Company Major Jackson
Suck on the Marrow Camille T. Dungy
White Egrets Derek Walcott
2012 Afro Clouds & Nappy Rain: The Curtis Brown Poems James Golden Winner [7]
Head Off & Split Nikky Finney Finalist [7]
Honoring Genius: The Narrative of Craft, Art, Kindness and Justice Haki Madhubuti
Intimate Thoughts Darrin Henson
Last Seen Jacqueline Jones Lamon
2013 Speak Water Truth Thomas Winner [8]
Hurrah's Nest Arisa White Finalist [8]
Maybe the Saddest Thing Marcus Wicker
The Ground Rowan Ricardo Phillips
Thrall Natasha Trethewey
2014 Turn Me Loose: The Unghosting of Medgar Evers Frank X Walker Winner [9]
Chasing Utopia: A Hybrid Nikki Giovanni Finalist [9]
Hum Jamaal May
The Cineaste: Poems A. Van Jordan
The Collected Poems of Ai Ai
2015 Citizen: An American Lyric Claudia Rankine Winner [10]
Digest Gregory Pardlo Finalist [10]
The New Testament Jericho Brown
The Poetry of Derek Walcott 1948–2013 Derek Walcott
We Didn't Know Any Gangsters Brian Gilmore
2016 How to Be Drawn Terrance Hayes Winner [11][12]
Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude Ross Gay Finalist [11]
Reconnaissance Carl Phillips
Redbone Mahogany L. Browne
Wild Hundreds Nate Marshall
2017 Collected Poems: 1974–2004 Rita Dove Winner [13]
Counting Descent Clint Smith Finalist [13]
The Big Book of Exit Strategies Jamaal May
The Sobbing School Joshua Bennett
Thief in the Interior Phillip B. Williams
2018 Incendiary Art: Poems Patricia Smith Winner [14]
My Mother Was a Freedom Fighter Aja Monet Finalist [14]
Silencer Marcus Wicker
The Drowning Boy's Guide to Water Cameron Barnett
Wild Beauty: New and Selected Poems Ntozake Shange
2019 Taking the Arrow Out of the Heart Alice Walker Winner [15]
Confessions of a Barefaced Woman Allison Elaine Joseph Finalist [15]
Ghost, Like a Place Iain Haley Pollock
Refuse Julian Randall
The Gospel According to Wild Indigo Cyrus Cassells

2020s

Award winners and finalists, 2020–present
Year Book Author Result Ref.
2020 Felon: Poems Reginald Dwayne Betts Winner [16]
A Bound Woman Is a Dangerous Thing: The Incarceration of African American Women from Harriet Tubman to Sandra Bland DaMaris B. Hill Finalist [16]
Honeyfish Lauren K. Alleyne
Mistress Chet'la Sebree
The Tradition Jericho Brown
2021 The Age of Phillis Honorée Fanonne Jeffers Winner [17][18]
Homie Danez Smith Finalist [17][19]
Kontemporary Amerikan Poetry John Murillo
Seeing the Body Rachel Eliza Griffiths
Un-American Hafizah Geter
2022 Perfect Black Crystal Wilkinson Winner [20][21]
Playlist for the Apocalypse Rita Dove Finalist [20]
Such Color: New and Selected Poems Tracy K. Smith
The Wild Fox of Yemen Threa Almontaser
What Water Knows: Poems Jacqueline Jones LaMon
2023 To the Realization of Perfect Helplessness Robin Coste Lewis Winner [22]
Best Barbarian Roger Reeves Finalist [23]
Bluest Nude Ama Codjoe
Concentrate Courtney Faye Taylor
Muse Found in a Colonized Body Yesenia Montilla
2024 suddenly we Evie Shockley Winner [24]
Above Ground Clint Smith Finalist [25]
So to Speak Terrance Hayes
The Ferguson Report: An Erasure Nicole Sealey
Why Fathers Cry at Night Kwame Alexander

Multiple wins and nominations

Wins

3 wins

Nominations

References

  1. ^ a b "2007 Image Awards". AALBC. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
  2. ^ McCarthy, Libby; Peters, Derek (2008-02-15). "'Debaters' dominates Image Awards". Variety. Archived from the original on 2023-12-25. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  3. ^ "The 39th NAACP Image Award Nominations". Variety. 2008-01-08. Archived from the original on 2023-04-08. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  4. ^ "Awards: Indies Choice Finalists; NAACP Image Winners". Shelf Awareness. 2010-03-02. Archived from the original on 2023-02-23. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  5. ^ Engelbrektson, Lisa (2010-01-06). "'Precious' tops NAACP nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on 2019-08-22. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  6. ^ "Awards: NAACP Image Awards; Arthur C. Clarke Shortlist". Shelf Awareness. 2011-03-07. Archived from the original on 2023-11-23. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  7. ^ a b Allin, Olivia. "2012 Image Winners". ABC7. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Couch, Aaron (February 1, 2013). "2013 Image Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 3, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  9. ^ a b Couch, Aaron; Washington, Arlene (February 22, 2014). "2014 Image Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 23, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  10. ^ a b Washington, Arlene (February 6, 2015). "2015 Image Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 3, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  11. ^ a b "2016 Image Winners". Variety. 6 February 2016. Archived from the original on 27 February 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
  12. ^ "Awards: NAACP Image Literature; Arabic Fiction". Shelf Awareness. 2016-02-09. Archived from the original on 2017-10-01. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  13. ^ a b Lewis, Hilary; Washington, Arlene (February 10, 2017). "2017 Image Award Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 10, 2024. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  14. ^ a b "NAACP Image Awards: Full List of Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. 14 January 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-01-15. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  15. ^ a b Lewis, Hilary (February 13, 2019). "NAACP Image Awards: 'Black Panther' Tops Film Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2024-03-09. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  16. ^ a b Schaffstall, Katherine; Howard, Annie (February 22, 2020). "NAACP Image Awards: Lizzo Named Entertainer of the Year; 'Just Mercy,' 'Black-ish' Among Top Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 23, 2020. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  17. ^ a b Bosselman, Haley (March 28, 2021). "NAACP Image Awards 2021: The Complete Televised Winners List". Variety. Archived from the original on 2021-04-12. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  18. ^ Jackson, Angelique (2021-03-25). "Chadwick Boseman, 'Black-ish' and 'Insecure' Win Big at Final Night of Non-Televised NAACP Image Awards". Variety. Archived from the original on 2021-03-23. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  19. ^ Carras, Christi (2021-02-02). "Netflix, HBO and Beyoncé lead 2021 NAACP Image Award nominations". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2021-02-28. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  20. ^ a b Spivey, Kemberlie (2022-01-20). "2022 NAACP Image Awards Nominations: The Full List". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2022-01-19. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  21. ^ Brathwaite, Lester Fabian (2022-02-27). "Angela Bassett, Will Smith, and Meghan Markle among 2022 NAACP Image Award winners: See full list". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2022-03-09. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  22. ^ Tinoco, Armando; Hipes, Patrick (2023-02-26). "Angela Bassett "Did The Thing" & Is Crowned As Entertainer Of The Year At NAACP Image Awards – Complete Winners List". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 2023-02-21. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  23. ^ Lewis, Hilary (2023-01-12). "NAACP Image Awards 2023: 'Wakanda Forever,' 'The Woman King' Among Top Film Nominees". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2023-01-23. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  24. ^ Hipes, Patrick; Tinoco, Armando (2024-03-17). "NAACP Image Awards Winners List: 'The Color Purple' Tops Night As Usher Takes Entertainer Of The Year Trophy". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 2024-03-27. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
  25. ^ Jackson, Angelique (25 January 2024). "Colman Domingo, Ayo Edebiri, Victoria Monét and Usher Lead NAACP Image Award Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on 2024-05-06. Retrieved 2024-06-10.