Little Simz, Olivia Dean, and Jim Legxacy among nominees for 2026 MOBO Awards

The nominees for the 2026 MOBO Awards have been unveiled, with Little Simz, Olivia Dean, kwn, and Jim Legxacy leading the way with four nods each.

Simz and Dean are both up for the biggest prize of the night - Album Of The Year - thanks to the storming success of their latest LPs, ‘Lotus’ and ‘The Art Of Loving’ respectively (both of which ranked among DIY’s 2025 Albums of the Year, too).

Central Cee, FLO, Ezra Collective, and Kojey Radical are also in contention to scoop AOTY, while nominees for other categories include: kwn, PinkPantheress, and Sasha Keable (Best Female Act); Elmiene, Jim Legxacy, and Skepta (Best Male Act); and Raye, Myles Smith, and AJ Tracey (Song Of The Year).

The 2026 MOBO Awards will take place on Thursday 26th March in Manchester’s Co-Op Live arena, as the MOBO Organisation celebrates its 30th anniversary.

Find out more and check out the full list of nominees - which span a whopping 20 categories - below.

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BEST MALE ACT IN ASSOCIATION WITH PROSTATE CANCER UK:
CENTRAL CEE
ELMIENE
JIM LEGXACY
NEMZZZ
ODEAL
SKEPTA

BEST FEMALE ACT IN ASSOCIATION WITH got2b:
FLO
KWN
LITTLE SIMZ
OLIVIA DEAN
PINKPANTHERESS
SASHA KEABLE

ALBUM OF THE YEAR IN ASSOCIATION WITH AMAZON MUSIC:
CENTRAL CEE - CAN’T RUSH GREATNESS
EZRA COLLECTIVE - DANCE, NO ONES WATCHING
FLO - ACCESS ALL AREAS
KOJEY RADICAL - DON’T LOOK DOWN
LITTLE SIMZ - LOTUS
OLIVIA DEAN - THE ART OF LOVING

SONG OF THE YEAR:
AJ TRACEY FEAT. JORJA SMITH - ‘CRUSH’
DONAE’O FEAT. OMAR, LEMAR & HOUSE GOSPEL CHOIR - ‘NIGHTS LIKE THIS’
FRED AGAIN, SKEPTA & PLAQUEBOYMAX - ‘VICTORY LAP’
JIM LEGXACY & DAVE - ‘3X’
KWN - ‘DO WHAT I SAY’
MYLES SMITH - ‘NICE TO MEET YOU’
OLIVIA DEAN - ‘MAN I NEED’
PINKPANTHERESS - ‘ILLEGAL’
RAYE - ‘WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!’
TIM DUZIT - ‘KAT SLATER’

BEST NEWCOMER:
DC3
ESDEEKID
FINESSEKID
JIM LEGXACY
KWN
NAMESBLISS
NIA SMITH
SEKOU
SKYE NEWMAN
YT

VIDEO OF THE YEAR IN ASSOCIATION WITH VEVO:
POZER - ‘SHANGHIGH NOON’ (DIRECTED BY BAS HASELAGER)
FKA TWIGS - ‘EUSEXUA’ (DIRECTED BY JORDAN HEMINGWAY)
JIM LEGXACY - ‘FATHER’ (DIRECTED BY LAUZZA)
LITTLE SIMZ - ‘FLOOD’ FEAT. OBONGJAYAR & MOONCHILD SANELLY (DIRECTED BY SALOMON LIGTHELM)
RAYE - ‘WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!’ (DIRECTED BY THE REIDS)
SKEPTA & FRED AGAIN - ‘BACK 2 BACK’ (DIRECTED BY DOMAMANIC and SKEPTA)

BEST R&B/SOUL ACT:
ELMIENE
FLO
KWN
ODEAL
OLIVIA DEAN
SASHA KEABLE

BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ACT:
ALT BLK ERA
BLOOD ORANGE
HAK BAKER
MICHAEL KIWANUKA
NOVA TWINS
RACHEL CHINOURIRI

BEST GRIME ACT SUPPORTED BY TRENCH:
CHIP
JAYAHADADREAM
KASST 8
RUFF SQWAD
SCORCHER
WILEY

BEST HIP HOP ACT:
AITCH
ASCO
CATCH
CENTRAL CEE
D-BLOCK EUROPE
KOJEY RADICAL
LITTLE SIMZ
LOYLE CARNER
WRETCH 32
YOUNGS TEFLON

BEST DRILL ACT:
36
BOOTER BEE
CHY CARTIER
ESDEEKID
K-TRAP
LEOSTAYTRILL
NEMZZZ
POZER
TWIN S
WOHDEE

BEST INTERNATIONAL ACT:
AYRA STARR
CARDI B
CLIPSE
GUNNA
KEHLANI
LEON THOMAS
MARIAH THE SCIENTIST
MOLIY
TYLA
VYBZ KARTEL

BEST MEDIA PERSONALITY:
BEMI OROJUOGUN (BUS AUNTY)
DJ AG
IN MY OPINION
MELISSA HOLDBROOK-AKPOSOE (MELISSA’S WARDROBE)
NADIA JAE
NIKO OMILANA
PK HUMBLE
REMI BURGZ
UCHE NATORI
WINNERS TALKING

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A TV SHOW/FILM:
AARON PIERRE - MUFASA: THE LION KING
ASHLEY THOMAS - HOSTAGE
ASHLEY WALTERS - ADOLESCENCE
CYNTHIA ERIVO - WICKED
DAMSON IDRIS - F1
DAYO KOLEOSHO - EASTENDERS
LENNIE JAMES - MR LOVERMAN
MARIANNE JEAN-BAPTISTE - HARD TRUTHS
STEPHEN GRAHAM - ADOLESENCE
WUNMI MOSAKU - SINNERS

BEST AFRICAN MUSIC ACT:
ADEKUNLE GOLD (NIGERIA)
AYRA STARR (NIGERIA)
DAVIDO (NIGERIA)
JOSHUA BARAKA (UGANDA)
MOLIY (GHANA)
REMA (NIGERIA)
SHALLIPOPI (NIGERIA)
TIWA SAVAGE (NIGERIA)
TYLA (SOUTH AFRICA)
WIZKID (NIGERIA)

BEST CARIBBEAN MUSIC ACT:
AYETIAN
LILA IKÉ
MASICKA
SHENSEEA
VYBZ KARTEL
YUNG BREDDA

BEST JAZZ ACT:
CKTRL
EGO ELLA MAY
EZRA COLLECTIVE
KOKOROKO
NUBYA GARCIA
YAZMIN LACEY

BEST ELECTRONIC/DANCE ACT SUPPORTED BY BEMA & MIXMAG:
FKA TWIGS
JAZZY
KILIMANJARO
PINKPANTHERESS
SALUTE
SHERELLE

BEST GOSPEL ACT SUPPORTED BY PREMIER GOSPEL:
ANNATORIA
DC3
FAITH CHILD
IMRHAN
SONDAE
STILL SHADEY

BEST PRODUCER:
INFLO
JAE5
MILES CLINTON JAMES
P2J
SAMMY SOSO
ZACH NAHOME