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Major Takeaways
The 2026 Ebony Power 100 gala filled the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles on Monday night, November 9.
Kirk Franklin opened the evening with prayer and song before a room packed with Black power.
Maleah Joi Moon won the fan voted People’s Choice Award for her lead role at Hillman College.
A six member Court led by Brandy and Lena Waithe received special tributes on stage.
Inside The Ebony Power 100 Gala Night
Ebony Power 100 season reached its peak on Monday night at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles.
The annual gala honored the 2026 class under the theme The Stories We Shape.
The room held moguls, artists, athletes, doctors and organizers in one shared celebration.
It felt like a family reunion for Black excellence at the highest level.
Kirk Franklin opened the proceedings with a prayer and a musical performance.
The gospel giant later stepped into the crowd for a spirited dance with Debbie Allen.
T.I. closed the ceremony with a live performance of his own.
Franklin just released the first double album of his career earlier this month.
Our coverage of that Kirk Franklin double album tells the full story behind the music.
The Court Took Center Stage
Six honorees formed the 2026 Power 100 Court and accepted their honors in person.
Each Court member received a dedicated tribute on the Palladium stage.
The Court included Brandy, the singer and actress whose voice defined a generation.
Brandy brought her daughter Sy’Rai Smith as her date for the evening.
Media mogul Byron Allen stood beside culinary tastemaker Keith Lee in the Court.
Actress, producer and screenwriter Lena Waithe joined them alongside astronaut Victor Glover.
Glover piloted the Artemis II mission, traveling beyond low Earth orbit toward the Moon.
Basketball star and rapper Flau’jae Johnson rounded out the six member Court.
Waithe told the room that the theme is all about stories.
She said she is grateful to call herself a storyteller.
“All of us have something to say,” Waithe said.
Fans Chose Maleah Joi Moon
The loudest youth moment of the night belonged to actress Maleah Joi Moon.
Moon received the People’s Choice Award, decided entirely by fan voting.
She beat fellow finalists Bob the Drag Queen, Ciara Miller and Phaedra Parks.
At 24, Moon leads the new A Different World series on Netflix.
She plays Deborah Wayne, an incoming freshman at Hillman College.
Deborah is the youngest daughter of Dwayne Wayne and Whitley Gilbert.
Moon won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical in 2024.
That honor came for her Broadway debut as Ali in the Alicia Keys musical Hell’s Kitchen.
Debbie Allen saw Moon on Broadway and pictured her as Deborah.
Allen returned to A Different World as executive producer and director.
The sequel series premiered in September, 39 years after the original debut.
The show was renewed for a second season in October.
A Class Built On Owning The Story
The full 2026 class spans 11 categories of Black leadership and craft.
Music Innovators include Jay Z, Megan Thee Stallion, T.I. and Common.
Entertainment Powerhouses include Keke Palmer, Questlove and director Gina Prince Bythewood.
Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz earned recognition together as a couple.
Naomi Osaka and Nneka Ogwumike carried the flag for sports excellence.
The New York Knicks starting five also landed on the list.
That five is Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Karl Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges.
Jay Z marked 30 years since Reasonable Doubt with a three night Yankee Stadium run.
Megan Thee Stallion made her Broadway debut this year in Moulin Rouge! The Musical.
She also grew her swimwear line and entered the fragrance business.
The gala was produced with Jesse Collins Entertainment, the team behind major award spectacles.
Honorees posed in a portrait studio that adds this class to eight decades of record.
Why This Night Still Matters
Ebony was founded in 1945 by John H. Johnson in Chicago.
For more than 80 years the brand has kept the record of Black achievement.
Debbie Allen told the room that Ebony mattered to her at four years old.
“I used to drool over the pictures and seeing all the people from my community,” Allen said.
She spoke of learning about ourselves and celebrating our culture through its pages.
Chief executive Eden Bridgeman Sklenar urged guests to put down their phones.
She said doctors, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, titans, moguls, athletes and entertainers filled the room.
“Tonight, somehow, all of our lives are intersecting,” she said.
That is the deeper point of the Power 100 in 2026.
Ownership of the story means ownership of the image, the business and the future.
Nights like this remind the culture who holds the pen.
Browse more stories in our Entertainment section for the latest in Black film, music and television.
And revisit our Druski SNL history piece for another first worth celebrating.
