Ranking the BET Awards nominees by number of Twitter followers

Kicking off our slideshow is 28-year-old Christian musician Sarah Reeves, who earned her very first nomination for the Best Gospel/Inspirational Award thanks to her contributions to Kirk Franklin’s hit song “My World Needs You.” The young Alabama native (who now lives in Tennessee) has already released three EPs and two studio albums, but could definitely use some love on Twitter!

Given the fact that A Tribe Called Quest formed all the way back in 1985, most people would think they probably don’t even have a Twitter account. At least that’s our explanation for why they only have 77,200 followers. After all, the hip-hop group is still plenty relevant, having just released their sixth studio album, “We Got It from Here,” in Nov. 2016. A win at the 2017 BET Awards could boost their support on social media, especially since they are up for Best Group.

Despite having only 121,000 followers on Twitter, Young M.A. is in the running for two separate honors at the 2017 BET Awards: Best New Artist and Best Female Hip-Hop Artist. Not bad for a 25-year-old who has yet to release a studio album. The Brooklyn-based rapper does, however, have two mixtapes (“M.A. The Mixtape” and “Sleep Walkin’”), an EP (“Herstory”) that came out this past April, and a hit song (“Ooouuu”) that peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

Although Tamela Mann has earned five BET Award nominations in the past, her only win came in 2014. However, the gospel singer and actress has two shots to win another in 2017, after already nabbing a Grammy in February. In addition to a Best Gospel/Inspirational Award nod for her own song, “God Provides,” Mann has another in the same category for being a featured artist on Kirk Franklin’s song “My World Needs You.”

Actor Omari Hardwick only has 192,000 followers on Twitter, but don’t base his career success on that. Hardwick has been in the biz for more than 15 years and has acted on both the big and small screens. Currently, you can catch him on Starz’s “Power” as James "Ghost" St. Patrick, and he also appeared on BET’s “Being Mary Jane” in the first season. As for film, you might recognize Hardwick from his roles in 2010’s “Kick-Ass” and “The A-Team,” as well as Spike Lee’s indie drama “I Will Follow.”

Like Sarah Reeves and Tamela Mann, Tasha Cobbs will also be at the 2017 BET Awards for her vocal contribution to Kirk Franklin’s “My World Needs You,” but the gospel musician has already been plenty successful on her own. In addition to releasing three studio albums in the last seven years and numerous singles (two of which hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Gospel chart), she also earned a Grammy for Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance at the 2014 event.

Issa Rae is still only 32 years old, yet she has already compiled credits as an actress, writer, director, producer, and web series creator. Her YouTube channel currently boasts more than 273,000 followers, which is actually more than her 269,000 Twitter followers. Most notably, the Best Actress nominee created the web show “Awkward Black Girl,” which later inspired the HBO series “Insecure,” which Rae created, co-writes, and stars in.

Remy Ma first broke into the music industry by appearing on rapper Big Pun’s 1998 album “Yeeeah Baby.” When Pun died of a heart attack two years later, she replaced him as a member of Fat Joe’s hip-hop group Terror Squad, and has been working on and off with Joe ever since (minus the six years she spent incarcerated for assault, illegal weapon possession, and attempted coercion). Their latest collaboration was the album “Plata O Plomo,” which was released on Feb. 17, 2017, yielded three singles (including 2016’s “All the Way Up”), reached No. 44 on the Billboard 200, and earned the duo a 2017 BET Award nod for Best Group and an additional nomination for Ma for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist.

Gospel singer Tye Tribbett is only a nominee for the Best Gospel/Inspirational Award because he was featured on Fantasia’s single “I Made It,” but that’s not the man’s only taste of fame. In fact, the “I Made It” singer already made it big on his own, as his 2013 album, “Greater Than,” earned him two Grammys. The New Jersey-based singer, songwriter, and keyboardist released his most recent album, “The Bloody Win,” last year.

2017 is set to be a big year for Texas-based singer and songwriter Khalid, who received a Best New Artist BET Award nomination around the same time as the release of his debut studio album, “American Teen.” As the name suggests, Khalid is a teenager who is currently just 19 years old, but based on the success of his hit song “Location” (which peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100), this is clearly only the beginning.

If you’re not into gospel music, you may have never heard of CeCe Winans. But that’s on you, as Winans is actually the most awarded gospel singer in music history. She has sold more than 12 million records, earned 10 Grammys, and has scored countless honors at the Stellar Awards and Dove Awards. CeCe has yet to win at the BET Awards, but that could change thanks to the success of her latest single, “Never Have to Be Alone,” which earned her a nod for the Best Gospel/Inspirational Award.

Although she has two nominations at the 2017 BET Awards, Cardi B is still very much a newcomer to the music industry. After getting her first taste of stardom on Instagram, Vine, and as a cast member on seasons 6 and 7 of VH1’s “Love & Hip Hop: New York,” the rapper has officially reached the big time with BET nods for both Best Female Hip-Hop Artist and Best New Artist.

It has only been two years since Rae Sremmurd’s debut album, “SremmLife,” first dropped, but the Mississippi-based duo already have eight Platinum singles, with the biggest hit being “Black Beatles” featuring Gucci Mane. Not only is the song certified 4x Platinum, but it has earned Rae Sremmurd two BET Award nominations for Best Collaboration and Viewers’ Choice, as well as a third for Best Group.

Point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith has earned a Sportswoman of the Year nod in four of the last five years, but has yet to win one. Hopefully the sixth time is the charm. Her first nomination actually came when she was still playing for Notre Dame, and the rest have been as a member of the Dallas Wings, who drafted her third overall in the 2013 WNBA Draft (back when they were still the Tulsa Shock). During that time, Diggins-Smith has earned an ESPY, two All-Star selections, and compiled an average of 14.7 points, 4.4 assists, and 1.3 steals per game.

Although she’s only 32 years old, Fantasia has been through an awful lot of ups and downs in her life. However, she now appears to be stronger than ever, and can boast five studio albums that have sold millions of copies, a Grammy win from 2011, and two nominations at the 2017 BET Awards for the Best Gospel/Inspirational Award (for “I Made It” featuring Tye Tribbett) and the Centric Award (for “Sleeping with the One I Love”).

Janelle Monáe’s 2017 BET Award nomination is for Best Actress, but she’s also a singer and songwriter who has three studios albums that have earned her six Grammy nods in the past. Monáe only crossed over into acting a few years ago, but she made huge splash over the last year by starring in two extremely popular and critically acclaimed films: “Moonlight” and “Hidden Figures.” She faces a lot of stiff competition, but it’ll be hard to top those two credits in 2017.

Fat Joe (who is noticeably less heavy after dropping nearly 100 pounds a few years ago) hasn’t released an official solo studio album since 2010 or a mixtape since 2013. However, as we previously mentioned, he and Remy Ma collaborated on “Plata O Plomo,” which earned the duo a Best Group nod at the 2017 BET Awards. Catch him on tour this summer with DMX, Eve, Swizz Beatz, The Lox, and Drag-On.

Where’s all the love for Viola Davis on Twitter? Sure, 950,000 followers is impressive, but she’s the only black woman to ever be nominated for three Academy Awards, and the only black actor to ever win an Oscar, an Emmy, and a Tony. Although Viola has been acting for 25 years, she’s still just as relevant as ever in 2017, owning a major role on ABC’s “How to Get Away with Murder” for the past three years and starring in the critically acclaimed film “Fences” alongside Denzel Washington (for which she won her Oscar).

Artistic gymnast Simone Biles positively owned the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, winning gold medals in the team, all-around, vault, and floor exercise competitions (a gymnastics record for the most golds at a single Olympic event), as well as a bronze on the balance beam. Of course, winning major medals is nothing new to the 20-year-old phenom, as she also owns 10 golds from the World Championships between 2013 and 2015, and another two at the Pacific Rim Championships last year. However, this is her first nomination for BET’s Sportswoman of the Year award.

21 Savage has a total of 969,000 Twitter followers, which is a respectable amount for someone in the Best New Artist category at the 2017 BET Awards. And when they say “new,” they mean it. 21 Savage has released two mixtapes and two EPs over the last two years, but has yet to make an actual studio album. However, two singles off his latest release, “Savage Mode,” have both reached Platinum status, suggesting that 21 Savage will be around for a while.

If Cam Newton didn’t win Sportsman of the Year when he was nominated in 2016 - just following a 15-1 run with the Carolina Panthers, a Super Bowl 50 appearance, and an MVP award - we’re not especially confident in his odds this year. Then again, it’s not like this past season was a total bust for the former Heisman Trophy winner, as he still managed to pass for 3,509 yards and 19 touchdowns, plus another five TDs on the ground.

Gymnast Gabby Douglas previously won both Sportswoman of the Year and the YoungStars Award at the BET Awards in 2013, and she has another shot at the former honor in 2017. A pretty good shot too, as Gabby recently nabbed a gold medal in team competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics. That makes a total of three golds for her in Olympic competition, plus another six more in at the American Cup and World, Pacific Rim, and National Championships.

Christian hip hop artist Lecrae hasn’t released a record since 2014’s “Anomaly,” his seventh, but the Texas-born musician didn’t let that keep him out of the 2017 BET Awards. Lecrae received a nomination for the Best Gospel/Inspirational Award for his non-album track “Can’t Stop Me Now (Destination).” This is his fourth nomination in the category, which he previously won in 2015. Although it might seem like his 1.17 million Twitter followers are the most among musicians nominated in the Christian/gospel category, Lecrae was actually barely edged out by another artist...

47-year-old Kirk Franklin is no stranger to BET’s Best Gospel/Inspirational Award, as he has received a total of eight nominations in the past and won in 2006, 2007, and 2016. He earned his ninth nod this year for “My World Needs You,” a single off of Franklin’s 2015 album “Losing My Religion” that featuring Sarah Reeves, Tasha Cobbs and Tamela Mann. In addition to 23 Stellar Awards and 16 Dove Awards, he also owns 12 Grammys - two of which he won earlier this year!

Bryshere Y. Gray could have appeared in almost any category at the BET Awards, as the 23-year-old is both an actor and a rapper. In 2017, however, his nod is for Best Actor, mostly thanks to his roles as Hakeem Lyon on FOX’s  “Empire” and Michael Bivins on the BET miniseries “The New Edition Story.” Although his career as a musician is mostly limited to songs performed for “Empire,” the show’s three seasons have already yielded at least five singles for the budding young star.

Two years ago, the rap trio Migos hadn’t even dropped their debut studio album, “Yung Rich Nation,” yet. Now, with the release of “Culture” on Jan. 27, 2017 and the unprecedented success of “Bad and Boujee” featuring Lil Uzi Vert (which Donald Glover/Childish Gambino called “the best song ever” during his Golden Globes acceptance speech), Migos are well on their way to superstardom. Their trip will include a stop at the 2017 BET Awards, where they are up for four different awards: Best Group, Best Collaboration, Video of the Year, and the Viewers’ Choice Award.

If Philadelphia-based rapper Lil Uzi Vert capitalizes on any of his three nominations at the 2017 BET Awards, he’ll have Migos to thank, as his Best Collaboration, Video of the Year, and Viewers’ Choice Award nods are all for his contributions to the trio’s hit “Bad and Boujee.” As for his own work, “Luv is Rage 2” is reportedly scheduled to drop sometime later this year.

Currently ranked No. 11 in singles competition, Venus Williams is often referred to as one of the greatest women’s tennis players in history, and her seven Grand Slam titles rank her twelfth on the all-time list. She is second in this last category among active players, only trailing her sister Serena for the lead. Venus also owns four gold medals, and is the only tennis player to have won medals in four separate Olympic Games. Williams is looking for her second BET Award for Sportswoman of the Year, after previously winning once (in 2006) out of 15 nominations.

“Atlanta” creator, writer, and star Donald Glover doesn’t have a Twitter account, but his rapper alter ego, Childish Gambino, has one. The account boasts 1.95 million followers, even though he barely ever uses it. And by “barely ever” we mean 18 tweets in eight years, all of which are now hidden. Glover, who recently won two Golden Globes for “Atlanta,” is up for his first BET Best Actor award.

In 2016, the New York Giants made the playoffs for the first time in five seasons (the last being their Super Bowl-winning effort in 2011), but were easily eliminated by the Packers in the wild card round. Don’t hold that against Odell Beckham Jr., however, as the young superstar wide receiver started all 16 games, broke all kinds of records (including becoming the fastest player to reach 200 receptions in NFL history), and finished the season with 101 receptions, 1,367 receiving yards, 10 touchdowns, a Pro Bowl selection, and his second-straight BET Sportsman of the Year nomination.

Solange may trail her older sister Beyoncé by more than 11 million Twitter followers, but she only has three fewer nominations at the 2017 BET Awards. Solange’s third and most recent release, “A Seat at the Table,” is in the running for Album of the Year, her song “Cranes in the Sky” is up for Video of the Year and the Centric Award, and the lady herself has a shot at Best Female R&B/Pop Artist.

Jay Z isn’t very active on Twitter, and he doesn’t even have a photo, but he can still boast 3.29 million followers on the social media site. He also won’t be very active at the 2017 BET Awards, as he only has a single nomination for his and Beyoncé’s contributions to DJ Khaled’s track “Shining.” Fans can expect to see more of Jay Z at the 2018 BET Awards, however, as his fourteenth studio album, “4:44,” is slated to drop at the end of this month.

Gabrielle Union has been acting professionally for nearly 25 years, earning roles in films such as “Bring It On” (2000), “Bad Boys II” (2003), “Cadillac Records” (2008), “Think Like a Man” (2012), and, most recently, “Sleepless” (2017) alongside Jamie Foxx, Dermot Mulroney, and T.I. And that’s to say nothing of her multitude of TV appearances, including her regular role on BET’s “Being Mary Jane,” which is now in its fourth season. Despite seven previous nods, Union has yet to win a BET Award for Best Actress.

With all the time he spends as an internet and social media superstar, it’s a wonder that DJ Khaled still manages to produce and perform on various records. Yet the big guy has released nine studio albums over the last 11 years, and a tenth is set to be released on June. 23, 2017. That album, entitled “Grateful,” is the one containing his aforementioned hit song “Shining,” which features both Jay Z and Beyoncé.

Everything is Gucci for Gucci Mane right now, as the Atlanta rapper has managed to stay out of trouble since his May 2016 release from prison, he has dropped two albums in the past 11 months, he just released a new single (“Tone It Down”), and he’s up for three awards at the 2017 BET Awards. In fact, he actually has two nods in the same category. Mane is featured on Rae Sremmurd’s “Black Beatles” and Chris Brown’s “Party,” both of which are up for both Best Collaboration, as well as a Viewer’ Choice Award nomination for “Black Beatles.”

Future won his first BET Award with Drake last year for Best Group, and he’s looking to add another in 2017 in the prestigious Best Male Hip-Hop Artist category. We like the Atlanta-based rapper’s chances as he has already released two new albums this year: “Future” (his fifth, on Feb. 17) and “Hndrxx” (his sixth, on Feb. 24). This is an impressive feat already, but it’s even more impressive when you consider that Future is the only artist in Billboard history to release two albums in consecutive weeks that both topped the Billboard 200 chart.

2 Chainz and Lil Wayne are longtime friends and collaborators, which is why it comes as no surprise that the duo are sharing their only two nominations at the 2017 BET Awards. The first is for “No Problem,” which is technically Chance the Rapper’s song, and the second is for Best Group, because Chainz and Wayne have basically become a duo at this point.

It’s actually a bit puzzling that Chance the Rapper only has 4.34 million Twitter followers, considering he can now be seen anywhere from the 2017 Grammys (where he was nominated for seven honors and won three) to commercials for Kit-Kats and even Twitter itself! He has four shots at the BET Awards this year, which include Best Male Hip-Hop Artist, Best New Artist, Best Collaboration (for “No Problem” featuring 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne), and Album of the Year (for his fifth mixtape, “Coloring Book”).

Russell Westbrook is a six-time NBA All-Star and was a back-to-back All-Star Game MVP in 2015 and 2016 as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Although his team was knocked out by the Houston Rockets in the playoffs earlier this year, Westbrook still deserves some recognition for the 2016-17 season as he was the league’s leading scorer and amassed an astonishing 79 triple-doubles, passing Wilt Chamberlain for fourth-place on the all-time list. Oh, and he also averaged a triple-double over the course of the entire season (31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 10.4 assists), something no one has done since Oscar Robertson in 1961-62. This is his first nomination for BET’s Sportsman of the Year award.

Taraji P. Henson has thus far earned nominations for three Emmys, two SAG Awards, and an Academy Award, but has yet to win at these events. She did, however, earn a Golden Globe, as well as a Best Actress BET Award in five of the last 10 years. Thanks to her ongoing role on “Empire” and her recent performance in “Hidden Figures,” we think a sixth award is a safe bet for Henson in 2017.

It has been 12 years since Missy Elliott released her last studio album, but that doesn’t mean she’s been in hiding. Elliott has been working behind the scenes as a producer for a number of artists over the past few years, including Fantasia, Monica, Jennifer Hudson, and Jazmine Sullivan. Missy’s seventh record is still in the works, but in the meantime we’ve been treated to the singles “WTF (Where They From),” “I’m Better,” and “Pep Rally,” while being a featured artist on tracks for J. Cole, Fantasia, Faith Evans, and Fall Out Boy.

The Weeknd has only won one BET Award prior to this year, but he’ll get two shots in 2017. In addition to earning a nod for Best Male R&B/Pop Artist, fans could also hand him a Viewers’ Choice Award for “Starboy,” the title track off his third album, which was co-written and co-produced by Daft Punk.

Mary J. Blige already has 13 studio albums, nine Grammys, and a handful of BET Awards, and this year she has the chance to add two more at the 2017 event. In addition to Best Female R&B/Pop Artist, Blige also earned a Centric Award nomination for “Thick of It,” the lead single off of her latest record, “Strength of a Woman,” which was released on Apr. 28, 2017.

In the six short years since releasing his debut album, Kendrick Lamar has released three additional records (all of which are certified Platinum), earned seven Grammys, and collaborated with everyone from Dr. Dre and Drake to Rihanna and Taylor Swift. He also appeared on Beyoncé’s song “Freedom,” which earned him a 2017 BET Award nomination for Best Collaboration. Between this and his latest album, “Damn.” (which was released on Apr. 14, 2017), Lamar also generated enough fanfare to warrant a shot at Best Male Hip-Hop Artist.

In regard to the nominees for Sportswoman of the Year at the 2017 BET Awards, Serena Williams has the most Twitter followers by far, and leads the second-place person (her sister Venus) by almost 7 million people. Of course, when you own four gold medals, and hold the record for most Grand Slam titles in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles among active players (and third all-time), that tends to happen. 2017 is already an especially memorable year for Serena, as she not only won the Australian Open for a record-setting seventh time, but also revealed that she is pregnant and was eight weeks along at the time of her victory. If she wins another BET honor, it’ll make a total of 12 for the tennis champ.

Steph Curry won Sportsman of the Year in 2015 and 2016, and his odds of a three-peat are obviously strong since he led the Golden State Warriors’ to an NBA Championship (his and the team’s second in three seasons) earlier this year. Then again, it’s clear that Curry has a shot almost every season, especially when he puts up numbers like he did in 2017: 25.3 PPG, 6.6 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.8 steals in 79 starts while leading the league in three-pointers for the fifth-straight year. And don’t forget about his recent MVP awards in 2015 and 2016, or his All-Star selections in each of the last four years either.

J. Cole has two nominations at the 2017 BET Awards, and they’re two of the biggest categories: Best Male Hip-Hop Artist and Album of the Year. Although J. Cole has been up for six awards at the event in past years, he has yet to win one. His latest release, “4 Your Eyez Only,” dropped in Dec. 2016 and has already reached Platinum status thanks to the singles “Deja Vu” and “Neighbors” - both of which made the top-15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

When he isn’t busy releasing albums (five in six years), hitting the top of the Billboard charts (his latest, “I Decided,” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200), and entering Waldo lookalike contests (or whatever is going on in the attached photo), Big Sean also makes the rounds at various award shows. Although he has yet to nab a Grammy, Big Sean won his first BET Award in 2012 for Best New Artist, and he has a shot at two more (Best Male Hip-Hop Artist and Video of the Year for “Bounce Back”) in 2017.

With Trey Songz’s “Tremaine” album dropping just three months ago, the singer hasn’t had much time to accumulate BET Award nominations in terms of songs or videos, yet he’s still up for Best Male R&B/Pop Artist. That might seem a bit premature, but the guy has 11.8 million Twitter followers and “Tremaine” debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, so there’s no doubting his popularity.

After eight studio albums and 38 years on this Earth, Usher is still plenty relevant in 2017. His latest record, “Hard II Love,” debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200, and it has yielded a Best Male R&B/Pop Artist nomination for Usher at the 2017 BET Awards. The singer, songwriter, and dancer has two additional nods as a featured artist for Best Collaboration with Chris Brown and Gucci Mane on “Party,” as well as the Centric Award with Yuna for “Crush.”

It’s no surprise that Beyoncé, who leads all BET nominees with seven nods, is also one of the most popular artists on Twitter. The Beyhive currently stands at nearly 15 million strong, and their support has put Queen Bey in contention for everything from Best Female R&B/Pop Artist and Album of the Year (“Lemonade”) to Best Collaboration (“Freedom” featuring Kendrick Lamar) and Video Director of the Year (for “Sorry” with co-director Kahlil Joseph). Having just given birth to twins, Beyoncé’s 2017 is shaping up to be even better than her 2016.

Chris Brown’s eighth studio album, “Heartbreak on a Full Moon,” hasn’t even been released yet (look for it in July 2017), yet its lead single, “Party” featuring Usher and Gucci Mane, was successful enough to earn Brown a nod for Best Collaboration and Best Male R&B/Pop Artist. “Party” only hit the airwaves in Dec. 2016, yet it has already reached Platinum status thanks to his legion of fans, which include almost 21 million followers on Twitter.

Nicki Minaj’s fourth studio album is still a ways away, but on Mar. 10, 2017 she dropped three singles on the world in the form of “Regret in Your Tears” (with Gucci Mane), “No Frauds” (with Lil Wayne), and “Changed It” (with Lil Wayne and Drake) - which explains how she landed a nomination at the 2017 BET Awards. (Plus, 21 million Twitter followers can’t be wrong.) However, Minaj isn’t up for Best Collaboration, as you might expect, but instead the coveted category of Best Female Hip-Hop Artist.

We’ve already covered Lil Wayne’s two nods at the 2017 BET Awards (see 2 Chainz’s page earlier in this slideshow), and given his history, we’d put our money on him winning at least one. After all, Lil Wayne already owns 10 wins at the event from previous years, out of about 20 nominations. Sounds like some good odds to us.

Bruno Mars doesn’t have as many nominations as Beyoncé, but he has more than twice as many Twitter followers. Fresh off the release of “24K Magic” last fall, Mars is up for Album of the Year, Best Male R&B/Pop Artist, Video of the Year (for “24K Magic”), Video Director of the Year (for “That’s What I Like,” which he co-directed with Jonathan Lia), and the Viewers’ Choice Award.

Drake has an astounding 36.6 million Twitter followers, which is quite impressive for an artist who is only 30 years old. Although his latest studio record was 2016’s “Views,” he released another collection of songs in early 2017 on an album called “More Life,” which he referred to as a “playlist.” Thus far it has yielded five singles, the first of which was “Fake Love,” a song that’s up for a Viewers’ Choice honor at the 2017 BET Awards. Drake also earned a nod for Best Male Hip-Hop Artist, which, in total, makes nearly 50 lifetime nominations at the event for the Canadian-born rapper.

LeBron James didn’t win it all with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017, but he was a champion in 2016, 2013, and 2012 (and a Finals MVP each year), he’s a four-time MVP, and he has appeared in a total of 13 All-Star games. LeBron has also won Sportsman of the Year at the BET Awards six times in the past, so it’s never safe to count out King James - especially when he has more Twitter followers than any other nominated athlete.

Rihanna’s one and only nomination at the 2017 BET Awards is for Best Female R&B/Pop Artist. Considering the fact that her last album, “Anti,” was released all the way back in Jan. 2016, this is actually quite the accomplishment. Then again, with more than 74 million followers on Twitter, there would probably be a fiery revolt if the Barbados-born musician wasn’t recognized by the network. If she manages to beat the likes of Beyoncé, Kehlani, Mary J. Blige, and Solange, it will be Rihanna’s sixth win in the event’s history.