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player ready...This year’s Soul Train Awards are coming home to Chicago, with the ceremony taking place at the Harris Theater in Millennium Park.
The annual awards show will air at 7 p.m. Nov. 27 on BET and will be simulcast on CBS for the first time.
According to an announcement from BET, the awards show will be “taped in the city where Don Cornelius launched the original ‘Soul Train’ more than 50 years ago,” as a Chicago-born television show that celebrated Black music, dance and style.
“Chicago is where the ‘Soul Train’ story began, and bringing the awards back to my hometown is a full-circle moment,” BET president Louis Carr said in a statement released Monday by Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. “Soul Train helped shape how the world experienced Black music and culture. This partnership honors the city that helped make that legacy possible and reflects BET’s commitment to celebrating the people, places and cultural contributions that continue to move us forward.”
The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Chaka Khan, from Chicago, will receive the 2026 Classic Soul Honor in the ceremony, to be hosted by actor and comedian Anthony Anderson. Additional performers and honorees for 2026, as well as more details about the taping at the Harris Theater, will be announced in the coming weeks.
Also new this year, fan voting will help decide the categories of R&B/Soul Song of the Year and Spotify’s RNB X International Artist, with voting on BET and the Spotify app, respectively. Nominees in the song category include Brent Faiyaz, Bruno Mars, Chris Brown and Bryson Tiller, Daniel Caesar, Justin Bieber, Kehlani, Mariah the Scientist & Kali Uchis, Olivia Dean, Tems and Tyla; more at hub.bet.com.
The “Soul Train” television show was created by Cornelius in 1971 and broadcast performances by R&B, pop, soul, funk, gospel and hip-hop artists. The final episode aired in 2006. BET acquired the brand in 2016.