Kehlani has been photographed by Billboard for a cover story marking her as the publication's 2026 R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players R&B Artist of the Year. The shoot, held at Topanga Creative Acres in California, accompanied an interview conducted by fellow singer and longtime collaborator Leon Thomas, reflecting on her recent commercial and critical success.

The recognition follows the breakout success of her single "Folded", which gave the 31-year-old singer her first Billboard Hot 100 top 10 and two Grammy wins in February for best R&B song and best R&B solo performance, her first after seven prior nominations. Now double platinum, the track has spent 52 weeks on the Hot 100 and set a record with 20 weeks at No. 1 on the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart; her self-titled fifth album, released in April, debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.