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21 Savage

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Lauren Groff

Her novels would have been enough. The Vaster Wilds, Matrix, Fates and Furies—flights of imagination and dives into history that keep readers turning pages late into the night. Her collection Florida (my personal favorite) won...

Brooks Headley

Before he was a chef, Brooks Headley was a drummer. To follow his journey from hardcore-punk clubs to fine-dining kitchens to the forefront of culinary innovation is to reconsider not just how we view cooking,...

Jenny Holzer

I first encountered Jenny Holzer’s Truisms anonymously plastered in the Lower East Side where we both lived. We were members of the artist collective Colab and for a time lived in the same building. Jenny...

Dev Patel

I first met Dev Patel at the very first read-through for Skins, before he ever got on TV. He was so full of life, and we both couldn’t believe we were missing school to do...

Jeffrey Wright

The first time I watched Jeffrey Wright act, I wanted to devour all his work. An actor who can disappear inside a role is, to me, the hallmark of genius. I believed him in The...

Da'Vine Joy Randolph

The first time I saw Da’Vine Joy Randolph perform was during an early preview of Ghost the Musical. The ease with which she existed on that stage and the power she commanded in that room...

Hayao Miyazaki

I discovered Hayao Miyazaki’s Toei Animation films as a child—films like The Wonderful World of Puss ’n Boots and series like Heidi and Marco, in which his style and influence became increasingly identifiable. Encountering My...

Kylie Minogue

Kylie Minogue was one of the first people I ever met from TV. She was a pop star, and I had watched her in Neighbours every day for a decade. So when she came to...

Frank Mugisha

In the face of death threats and intimidation, of lost jobs and lost friends, and as one of the few out gay people in Uganda, Frank Mugisha has never backed down from fighting for LGBTIQ+...

Leslie Odom Jr.

I didn’t know Leslie Odom Jr. the night I watched him take the stage as Aaron Burr in Hamilton, but his performance hit me like a ton of bricks. I was hypnotized. Little did I...

Mark Cuban

Mark Cuban is a true visionary, changemaker, and friend. He has demonstrated bold entrepreneurial spirit that fueled the rise of streaming media and continues to leave an indelible mark on the world. But perhaps his...

Thelma Golden

Every once in a while, my good friend Thelma Golden will meet someone who is shocked to learn this tiny, energetic, and dynamic woman is a paradigm-­shifting curator. Some would find this disheartening. But not...

Suzanne Simard

Human beings may pride themselves on the buried webs of wire and fiber-optic cables that allow far-flung populations to keep in touch, but the trees beat us to it—by many millions of years. That is...

Motaz Azaiza

For 108 days, Motaz Azaiza acted as the world’s eyes and ears in his native Gaza. Armed with a camera and a flak jacket marked “PRESS,” the 25-year-old Palestinian photographer spent nearly four months documenting...

Sakshi Malik

In early 2023, a handful of India’s most celebrated wrestlers gathered at Jantar Mantar—a popular protest site in Delhi. Notable among them was 31-year-old Sakshi Malik, India’s first and only female wrestler to win an...

Burna Boy

Ten years ago or so, when young African musicians would come to me for advice, I would tell them, “You don’t need to mimic American artists! The world needs the amazing richness and beauty of our...

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