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Here Are Special Award Recipients & Performers for the 2026 Soul Train Awards: Updating List
BET has announced three special honourees for the 2026 Soul Train Awards: Elmiene, Durand Bernarr and Chaka Khan. Elmiene and Bernarr will also perform, with Bernarr hosting the digital red carpet show; their recognition highlights emerging and established contributions to R&B.
Hosted by Anthony Anderson, the two-hour ceremony will be taped in Chicago on 5 November and broadcast on 27 November at 8 p.m. ET/PT, with its first simulcast on CBS alongside several other channels. It is the first Soul Train Awards since 2023, and will feature two fan-voted competitive categories as well as a fan poll to choose the greatest R&B song of the 2020s. Elmiene, a British Sudanese artist from Oxford, released his debut album *Sounds for Someone* this spring; Bernarr won the 2026 Grammy for best progressive R&B album for *Bloom*.
In short
- Elmiene, Durand Bernarr and Chaka Khan will receive special honours.
- Elmiene and Bernarr are also set to perform.
- The awards return on 27 November with a first-time CBS simulcast.
Explained simply
The Soul Train Awards celebrate achievements in R&B, soul and related music, with competitive categories as well as special honours. The ceremony is produced by BET and is named after Soul Train, the long-running American music and dance television programme.
The honourees represent different stages of R&B careers. Elmiene is a British Sudanese singer from Oxford, while Durand Bernarr is an American singer whose album Bloom won a Grammy for best progressive R&B album; Chaka Khan is a veteran singer known for her work with Rufus and as a solo artist.
The awards bring together established performers and newer artists, and give fans a role through voting in selected categories. This year’s ceremony also marks the programme’s return after a break since 2023.