'Soul Train Awards' Revived After Three-Year Pause, on BET and CBS
variety.com • • entertainment
Key Points:
- BET is reviving the "Soul Train Awards" after a three-year hiatus, with the 2026 ceremony airing on Friday, Nov. 27 at 8 p.m. on both BET and CBS, marking the first time CBS will broadcast the event.
- The awards show will be taped in Chicago, the birthplace of the original "Soul Train" series launched by Don Cornelius in 1971, and will also air on VH1, MTV2, Logo, and BET Her.
- BET plans to reimagine the "Soul Train Awards" with a bold new format that honors the legacy of R&B and soul artists while highlighting the genre's future direction.
- Jesse Collins Entertainment returns as producer, with Spotify as the exclusive music streaming partner and Toyota as a key sponsor supporting the event's legacy and cultural significance.
- The last "Soul Train Awards" aired in 2023, and the hiatus was attributed to BET's efforts to rethink the show amid a changing media landscape, according to former BET CEO Scott Mills.
