On Wednesday, Time announced their 2021 Time100 Next List, highlighting 100 of the most influential people who are up next and dedicated to shaping the future and defining leadership in their own unique way.
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Per a press release sent to The Root, this yearβs list features over 50 women, several doctors and public health professionals, emerging leaders dedicated to climate and political change, political figures, and various activists, advocates and philanthropists dedicated to the fight for equality and justice. Also featured are a handful of artists across various mediums who are using their platform to not only entertain the masses, but inspire and educate them as well.
βAmid a global pandemic, deepening inequality, systemic injustice and existential questions about truth, democracy and the planet itself, the individuals on this yearβs list provide βclear-eyed hope,β as actor, composer and director Lin-Manuel Miranda puts it in his tribute to poet and Time100 Next honoree Amanda Gorman,β Time CEO and Editor-In-Chief Edward Felsenthal explains. βThey are doctors and scientists fighting COVID-19, advocates pushing for equality and justice, journalists standing up for truth, and artists sharing their visions of present and future.β
As usual, Time selected a diverse group of individuals to grace the cover. The 6 figures chosen this year include New York Times bestselling author Brit Bennett, fashion designer Telfar Clemens, professional English football player Marcus Rashford, rising actress Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, pop artist Dua Lipa, and Finlandβs Prime Minister Sanna Marin. Aside from National Youth Poet Laureate Gorman, other notable honorees who comprise the Time100 Next list include COVID-19 vaccine developer Kizzmekia Corbett, Lovecraft Countryβs Misha Green, Bridgerton star RegΓ©-Jean Page, CNN Senior Political correspondent Abby Phillip, rapper Lil Baby, comedian Amber Ruffin, actor LaKeith Stanfield, U.S Senator Raphael Warnock, Tenet star John David Washington, activist Jessica Byrd, ChloexHalle, and #EndSARS activists Feyikemi Abudu, Odunayo Eweniyi and Damilola Odufuwa.
Following the ever-popular trend of public figures interviewing public figures (no shade, but actually some slight shade because Black journalists and writers deserve these amazing opportunities, too), this yearβs Time100 Next list features dynamic pairings for personal profiles on each honoree. Check out a few snippets of some of those profiles details per Timeβs press release:
Tayari Jones on Brit Bennett: βRacial passing, the Βphenomenon at the core of her astonishing novel The Vanishing Half, is as familiar to American literature as βLush Lifeβ is to the American songbook. Yet Bennett is informed and inspired by the intensities and complexities of our present moment. If race is a construct, what about gender? What are the limits of self-Βdefinition? How can one delineate its wages and costs? In jazz, many artists sing the standards, but in literature only the most gifted can re-voice the classics, rendering them recognizable yet, well, novel. Brit Bennett, take a bow.β
Solange Knowles on Telfar Clemens: βThrough his namesake line, he has created a universe of his own that transcends fashion. Where the industry restricts identity with outdated expressions of presentation, correctness and exclusivity, Telfar has created a new language of truth, through designβ¦.Telfarβs approach to business and art is an affirmation of how we can fully and confidently show up in the world while uplifting those who have made us who we are.β
Lewis Hamilton on Marcus Rashford: βIn 2020, Marcus Rashford took his many talents beyond the football fieldβ¦ to respond to a national crisis: child hungerβ¦. In a year that showed us the power of working together toward a common goal, he was a galvanizing force behind uniting people across the U.K. in the effort to ensure that no child goes hungry.β
Shonda Rhimes on RegΓ©-Jean Page: βYou might dream of him, the one we call the Duke of Hastings. But in reality, RegΓ©-Jean Page is finer than fiction and better than any dream. He is that rare actor, one who brings an intensity, an intelligence and a precision to his work, providing endless depth to any sceneβ¦. Few actors craft their moments so beautifullyβor steal our attention so quickly.β
Lin-Manuel Miranda on Amanda Gorman: ββWhat was the poetβs name?β βWho was that incredible young woman?β Iβll never forget hearing those questions roll through the audience of the Geffen Playhouse in 2018 when Amanda Gorman stepped off the stage. It was a star-studded Hollywood fundraiser for arts and education programs, a night full of boldface names. But as Amanda delivered her tightrope-taut verse with impossible poise, the room was hers. Sitting in the second row that night, I became a fan for life.β
Seth Meyers on Amber Ruffin: βAmber Ruffin has been ready for this moment for a long time, but thereβs never been a moment we have needed her more. Sheβs a hilarious writer, gifted sketch performer, talented singer, so-so dancer (Donβt be mad, Amber! TIME fact-checked it!) and loving truth teller. People have correctly noted that 2020 was not the finest of years, but it did give us The Amber Ruffin Show, and for that we should look back fondly and smile. Itβs what Amber would do!β
For the complete Time100 Next list, head on over to time.com/next.
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