CHICAGO BLACK EXCELLENCE AWARDS, HONORING BLACK ARTS AND ARTISTS SINCE 2001, ANNOUNCES NEW PERMANENT FEBRUARY TIMELINE


CHICAGO BLACK EXCELLENCE AWARDS, HONORING BLACK ARTS AND ARTISTS SINCE 2001, ANNOUNCES NEW PERMANENT FEBRUARY TIMELINE

 

2026 Chicago Black Excellence Awards Ceremony to be held Saturday, February 13, 2027,at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts

 

Chicago, IL — The Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago is proud to announce key enhancements to the Chicago Black Excellence Awards (CBEA), an annual event dedicated to honoring, celebrating, and promoting Chicago’s premier Black artists and arts organizations. Moving forward, the CBEA will permanently take place every February to align with Black History Month and further distinguish it within Chicago’s cultural awards landscape. Honoring the achievements of 2026, CBEA will be held on Saturday, February 13, 2027, at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, 915 E. 60th St., Chicago.

 

Since its inception in 2001, the CBEA has presented more than 500 awards spanning all major creative disciplines, including theatre, dance, music, film, visual arts, and literary arts. To ensure a rigorous and equitable selection process, the Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago utilizes a network of 40 active committee members divided into specialized subcommittees. These committees follow newly defined and formalized guidelines to review local theatre productions, dance concerts, music showcases, visual galleries, and literary events throughout the year. For guidelines and procedures, contact Executive Director, Doc Wheeler, at doc@bacachi.org. The guidelines will also be available soon at bacachi.org.

 

In tandem with these awards, the Alliance continues to grow the Chicago Black Hall of Fame, established to recognize the lasting legacies of both local icons and nationally renowned Chicago artists.

To date, the Chicago Black Hall of Fame proudly includes:

•             Dance: Julian Swain, Amaniyea Payne, Joel Hall, Darlene Blackburn, Najwa I

•             Film: Pemon Rami, Troy O. Pryor

•             Literary & Visual Arts: Dorian Sylvain, Lerone Bennett, Richard Hunt, Earl Calloway, Andre and Frances Guichard, Angela Jackson, Haki Madhubuti

•             Music: Herb Kent, Phil Cohran, Dee Alexander, Oscar Brown Jr.

•             Theatre: Abena Joan Brown, Useni Eugene Perkins, Ernest Perry, Chuck Smith, Runako Jahi, Val Gray Ward, Kemati Porter

•             Arts Administrators: Amina Dickerson, Masequa Myers-Rami, Carol Adams, Monica Haslip

•             Radio Personalities: Melody Spann-Cooper, Richard Steele

•             Museums: Dr. Margaret Burroughs

Get Involved & Request a Review

To learn more about the Chicago Black Excellence Awards, or to request an official committee review for an artist, arts organization, theatre production, dance concert, or special artistic event, email info@bacachi.org. Submissions should include full contact details alongside production or event information.


About the Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago

The mission of the Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago is to collectively advance excellence in the work of the Black arts and culture sector. The Alliance works to increase interaction, communication and development of black arts organizations and artists, while delivering programs that increase their visibility, marketability, stability, and sustainability. The Black Arts Directory of Chicago (Chicago’s own Greenbook for the Arts) is a key component of Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago.

 

The Black Arts & Culture Alliance of Chicago (BACA) board consists of leaders from the Chicago arts and theater community, including President Jackie Taylor, Vice President Sydney Chatman, Roxanna Conner, William Gill, Portia McFarland, Ericka Ratcliff, Shawn Wallace, and Daryl Brooks.  The staff is Executive Director Doc Wheeler, Development Director ILesa Duncan and Management Consultant Luther Goins.

 

For more information, visit bacachi.org.

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