Kehlani: Photos From the Billboard Cover Shoot

8/20/2026 Check out pics of the R&B star. By Kehlani photographed July 27, 2026 at Topanga Creative Acres in Topanga, Calif. Zimmermann dress, Andrea Wazen shoes, Jacquie Aiche jewelry. Micaiah Carter It’s early afternoon on a sizzling, sticky late-July day in the hills of Topanga Canyon, high above the stretch of the storied Pacific Coast Highway that connects Santa Monica, Calif., with Malibu. But there’s a different type of warmth inside the orange-curtained cottage on this quiet, bucolic property, where a reunion between two longtime friends and collaborators is about to begin. Kehlani and Leon Thomas — two of the hottest artists in R&B right now — immediately hug. “I get to do this with someone I actually know and love,” Kehlani says with a wide smile. Clearly relishing his role today