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Now that Billboard’s R&B/hip-hop team has posted its Grammy predictions for four of the R&B categories in the 68th annual race — best R&B performance, best traditional R&B performance, best R&B song and best R&B album — it’s time to review the top prospects in the fifth and final category: best progressive R&B album.
Recent winners in the category include Lucky Daye (Table for Two, 2022), Steve Lacy (Gemini Rights, 2023) and SZA (SOS, 2024). Thanks to a tie, two winners took home the gramophone in 2025: longtime independent artist Avery Sunshine (So Glad to Know You) and the R&B/hip-hop super duo NxWorries comprised of Anderson .Paak and producer Knxwledge (Why Lawd?).
Formerly known as best urban contemporary album, the category was renamed best progressive R&B album in 2020. In recognizing “excellence in albums of progressive R&B vocal tracks,” per the Recording Academy’s definition, such entries are rooted in many of the elements comprising R&B but also embrace additional sounds including hip-hop, rap, pop, dance and electronic music. The rulebook further defines the category’s music as having “an emphasis on experimentation and innovation, often through unconventional song structures, dynamic production techniques and multi-genre influences that challenge traditional R&B conventions.”
Albums released between Aug. 31, 2024 and Aug. 30, 2025 fitting this category include familiar vets like Bilal (Adjust Brightness), Gallant (Zinc), Jessie Reyez (Paid in Memories), Kali Uchis (Sincerely) and Allen Stone (Mystery). A host of upstarts also waved the progressive banner in their own inimitable styles, such as SAILORR (From Florida’s Finest), Laila! (Gap Year), Jordan Adetunji (A Jaguar’s Dream) and Cautious Clay (The Hours: Morning).
In addition to those on-the-cusp contenders, there are others of note to consider. Chief among them is the group FLO (Access All Areas), KWN (With All Due Respect), Destin Conrad (Love on Digital), Fridayy (Some Days I’m Good, Some Days I’m Not), UMI (People Stories) and Kelela (In the Blue Light).
With such a cornucopia of projects to choose from, predicting the nods in this category isn’t an easy task. One scenario could have Kali Uchis, Destin Conrad, Fridayy and Jessie Reyez fighting for the last spot. Or perhaps there could be another surprise from left field a la Avery Sunshine at the 67th annual ceremony.
So which five albums will score nods for best progressive R&B album when the Recording Academy unveils its slate on Nov. 7? Check out Billboard’s predictions below.
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PARTYNEXT DOOR & Drake, $ome $exy $ongs 4 U
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Five-time Grammy winner Drake wasn’t a 2025 nominee. But this first-time collaborative album pairing with longtime creative colleague PARTYNEXTDOOR struck several high notes upon its Valentine’s Day release in the wake of the former’s rap beef with Kendrick Lamar. Those high notes include bowing atop the Billboard 200 (displacing Lamar’s GNX), giving PARTYNEXTDOOR his first No. 1 and Drake his 14th. Blending contemporary R&B, hip-hop and trap with some alt-rock, pop and regional Mexican music, the project also delivered two top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: “Gimme a Hug” and “Nokia.”
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Terrace Martin & Kenyon Dixon, Come As You Are
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Nominated in this category three times previously (2022, 2023 and 2024), could Terrace Martin win his first Grammy on Feb. 1? For this entry, the musician-rapper-singer-producer teamed up with singer-songwriter-musician Kenyon Dixon. Dixon himself is a three-time Grammy nominee, most recently in 2025 in the best traditional R&B performance category. Heavily inspired by both artists’ South L.A. upbringings and life experiences, the album is a potent mix of R&B/soul, jazz, hip-hop and gospel.
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Dijon, Baby
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It’s been a busy year for the singer-songwriter-producer and multi-instrumentalist. Dijon not only collaborated on Justin Bieber’s seventh and eighth studio albums SWAG and SWAG II, he was featured on the track “Day One” from Bon Iver’s latest album Sable, Fable. Dijon — now a first-time dad — returned to the solo artist front with Baby. The critically acclaimed project raises the visionary multi-genre bar Dijon intrepidly set with his 2021 debut studio album Absolutely.
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Durand Bernarr, Bloom
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The album title fits the latest chapter in Durand Bernarr’s career following his first Grammy nod— in this category — for 2024 EP En Route. Known for his backing/feature work (Erykah Badu, Anderson .Paak), Bernarr channeled his powerful vocals and energetic performance vibe into this album inspired by the ‘90s film Waiting to Exhale. In a Billboard interview, the singer-songwriter described his third album as “a kaleidoscopic look at the sanctity of friendship told through a fearless amalgam of genres ranging from rock and funk to gospel and dance.”
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Odeal, The Summer That Saved Me
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Since the success of his 2024 single “Soh-Soh” (No. 12 on Billboard’s U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart), Odeal has been steadily building fervent word-of-mouth chatter by way of this summer-released EP (featuring the single “Miami” with Leon Thomas) and compelling live performances. Along the way, Odeal has also racked up co-signs from Justin Bieber, SZA, Victoria Monét and Summer Walker, the latter of whom appears on his 2024 album Lustropolis.
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