• by Ray Schultz , September 30, 2021

Ebony is relaunching its Ebony Power 100 list to celebrate African-American achievement. An awards ceremony will be held in Los Angeles on October 23.

The awards, which debuted in 1971 as the “Most Influential Black Americans List,” will span 10 categories this year, from business, sports, media, activism, music and entertainment. 

“After what has been a most challenging and turbulent year, this year’s nominees and honorees represent a wide range of people who persevered and continue to do the work,” states Ebony CEO Michele Ghee. “And, in so doing, they have contributed immensely to their respective fields and communities—making a significant impact on the cultural landscape each in their own way.”

These special awards will be presented at the event:

Rising Star--Actress Storm Reid

Innovator of the Year--Dr. Kizzmedia Corbett, viral immunologist and lead scientist of the Vaccine Research Center’s coronavirus team at the National Institutes of Health (Innovator of the Year)

Trailblazer--MC Lyte, hip hop icon and entrepreneur (Trailblazer award)

Game Changer--Deion Sanders, NFL Hall of Famer and head football coach for HBCU school Jackson State University 

Entertainer of the Year—Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith and Adrienne Banfield-Norris

Corporate Citizen—P&G executives Marc Pritchard, Damon Jones and Stephanie Headley

Ebony, a magazine serving Black readers since 1945, was revived earlier this year, along with Jet, in digital form.  

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