In partnership with

2021’s Dazed 100 is a global celebration of next-gen names leading change in their communities and across their fields, curated with a little help from Dazed 100-ers of years gone by. And this year, it runs as part of Open To Change, a far-reaching partnership between Dazed and Converse to increase opportunities, education and representation in the creative industries.

This is about the future; every name on 2021’s line up has been instrumental in enacting change in their field and looks at what’s next for the creative industry. Each entrant was asked, “How will you shape the future?” with Converse funding the winning project with a $30,000 fund and mentoring to bring their idea to life. The public vote will deliver 10 finalists from which Dazed and Converse will select the winner, announced in early July.

The Sierra Leone-born artist using poetry to untangle the most visceral moments of history and personal experience

Julianknxx

The sculptor subverting the notion of ‘American family values’ while exploring the history of the African diaspora

Hugh Hayden

I’d set up the Oseiwaa Angels Foundation, a symposium for young African women to share ideas and acquire new skills

Amaarae

We’d open a community space to cultivate the imagination of Black image-makers through free play, workshops & equipment

Black Image Center

I’d share the grant with 10 creative peers from the list and put on an exhibition showcasing our multiple voices

Aaron Kudi

The songwriting prodigy who’s got FKA Twigs and David Byrne calling is stepping into the limelight with his debut album

Ethan P Flynn

I want to make a safe creative space for artists and thinkers to exist under an umbrella concept; Pop Up Art School

Ivan Michael Blackstock

I’d create a series of photography workshops and provide cameras for young girls of colour in Los Angeles

Thalia Gochez

I’d create an initiative where LGBTQ+ youth in Cardiff can learn about their community through fashion design workshops

Paolo Carzana

I’d direct and fund a workshop for a small group of creatives from Jamaica, a space to learn and grow

Stalk Ashley

I want to provide relevant books for students in low-income schools, to help them become lifelong lovers of reading

Ciara Bravo

I’d work with charities around the country to help support single mothers in education, employment and entrepreneurship

BackRoad Gee

I want to support theatre writers and provide them with a stage or platform to show plays that are more intersectional

Enny

I’d build a skatepark in Ghana where people can practice skating safely and teach kids to be leaders in the community

Skate Nation

I’d create an accessible digital learning space offering a range of films, animations, games & graphics on Black history

The Black Curriculum

With arthouse smashes and Hollywood crowd-pleasers under her belt, Haas’ post-Unorthodox possibilities are endless

Shira Haas

We’d build a creative hub for the community in Lagos, giving artists from various disciplines access to a free space

The NATIVE

I’d create a collection of couture garments for 10-12 plus size models, shown as a series of images and a runway show

Michaela Stark

I want to shoot couples in love. People in China may not understand LGBTQ, but they will understand love, it is powerful

Huang Jiaqi

I’d put on an audiovisual show platforming trans & marginalised talent across art, music, film, fashion & dance

TAAHLIAH

I’d create a photographic series and exhibition celebrating SA people excelling across fashion, music and activism

Diet Paratha

I want to enable young people to have joyful cultural experiences by funding visits to galleries and exhibitions

Somaya Critchlow

The multidisciplinary artist and publisher centring Black women in the art world

Kandis Williams

I would donate the funds to underprivileged schools around the Dallas area

Erica Banks

It only took one song – “Sweating”– to solidify Alewya as a future nightclub staple

Alewya

I’d organise an ongoing event series where Tokyo creators can gather, in order to strengthen our creative community

Tohji

We’d expand the Flock Together Academy that teaches underprivileged children about the living things around them

Flock Together

I want to start a project to tackle homelessness across London by offering soup kitchens, workshops, mentoring and more

Gabriel Moses

I’d stage a fashion show with disabled models, with fabulous fashion, great hair & makeup artists and guest speakers

Ellie Goldstein

I’d partner with The Trevor Project to create a fund for a support system for queer youth living in regional areas

Zelda Barnz

I would make tombstones out of marble with positive affirmations engraved on them

Mats Andersen

I want to continue providing a platform for survivors to share their stories

Everyone's Invited

I’d create an art film fusing ancestry and futurism, exploring the history of Black hair from a Brazilian perspective

Janice Mascarenhas

The powerhouse behind the meme account fighting racial injustice and police violence

Patia

I want to use my record label Olive to create opportunities for young women and empower them in the music industry

Benee

I’d hold a Bristol Green Mela, an eco and nature festival for those living in the inner-city areas of Bristol

Mya-Rose Craig

With collaborators in Khalid and Wizkid, the Nigerian alté pioneer is the Next Big Thing

Tems

I’d create an educational series on working with Black hair and advocate for hair schools to use it in their programme

Yann Turchi

We want to produce our second full-length video, to set an example of queer representation in skateboarding and beyond

Glue Skateboards

We’d open our own dancer-owned and cooperatively operated strip club, for both gender-diverse strippers and clientele

Berlin Strippers Collective

I’d create the New Currency hub, a non-transactional space where the youth can hang out, create and put on art shows

Kazeem Kuteyi

I’d make a short film about Thai spiritual beliefs and how they affect the mental health and wellbeing of local people

Strongthe

I’d create a one-off merch line with 100% of the proceeds going to a charity working on the restoration of rainforests

glaive

I’d create a fashion film for my upcoming collection, championing my home Jamaica through my design stories

Theophilio

I’d make a film about LGBTQ+ relationships through a contemporary lens – part of mainstream storytelling not a category

Alice Pagani

I’d dedicate the grant to South African creatives who can’t afford to pursue their creativity via art school Open Window

Elsa Majimbo

I want to hold an online exhibition of products from four major African cities, emphasising how they are made

Nifemi Marcus-Bello

I’d make a film about a Hollywood make-up artist and his muse, with proceeds donated to an organisation for trans youth

Sam Visser

I’d set up a mentoring program for DJs and presenters from immigrant backgrounds with workshops, therapy & life coaching

Jyoty

The grant would help print Treat Me Like Your Mother, a book uncovering the history of queer communities in Beirut

Mohamad Abdouni

I’d expand my Match A Bag initiative organising community-led neighbourhood clean-ups

Teezo Touchdown

I’d use the fund for my new record label TRANCE, for creative and community projects including music videos and events

Talia Goddess

I want to set up a Covid-19 relief fund in India and help people who are struggling to get access to basic facilities

Adarsh Gourav

We’d set up a studio in Lagos to host workshops and provide an open environment for collaborations between creators

motherSun studio

I’d create a project using old Converse shoes; I would love to create a whole collection and shoot its campaign too

Cho Gi Seok

I want to keep cultivating space for people to share community, including redistributing resources to BIPOC businesses

Aaron Wiggs

No Signal is a transport network. There are so many places you can get on and get off

No Signal Radio

I want to provide grants to young creatives who have been impacted by inequality and the Covid-19 pandemic

Jeremiah Emmanuel

I’d host an Indigenous Youth Leadership Summit addressing social and environmental justice, Indigenous rights and more

Quannah Chasinghorse

I want to help give other young bipoc from similar backgrounds to me the same chance to learn musical instruments

cktrl

We want to create an AZEEMA hub and studio in London, to act as a base for our team and to have somewhere to call home

AZEEMA

I want to make a full-length skate video to celebrate twelve Queer individuals, including myself, within skateboarding

Kane Caples

I’d make a short film about my EP trilogy Last Year Was Weird & the 2020 we experienced alone and collectively

Tkay Maidza

I’d make a documentary exploring ancient African queer evolution from pre-and-post-colonial times to the modern day

Matthew Blaise

The Travis Scott-led label dominating pop culture and driving the hip hop zeitgeist

Cactus Jack Collective

We want to bring together around 20 brass players and blend western music with the street music traditions of Kinshasa

TSHEGUE

I’d create a photography book exploring my southern roots – religion, sexuality, land, love and Black life as it is

Kennedi Carter

I’d create sustainable false eyelashes that are 100% biodegradable, from the lash hair to the adhesive and the packaging

Cécile Paravina

I want to develop unisex athletic heels, to create shoes desired by all without the limitation of genders

Windowsen

The Toronto-born musician is dissecting grief and violence through empathy, lyricism and ‘inner city folk’

Mustafa

I’d create a book & exhibition for In The Life, my ongoing series which intimately explores Black queer life

Myles Loftin

The activist and musician fighting for inclusivity for deaf people – online and IRL

Gabriel Ocasio-Cortez

I’d fund an exhibition and book on Black fashion, style and culture, ensuring that we have ownership over our narratives

Antoine (Bibby) Gregory

I’d set up a donation-based festival in NYC with LGBTQ female or non-binary POC acts, in aid of Brown Girl Butterfly

Pretty Sick

I’d produce three major fashion short films with a full cast of Trans Queer creatives

WIMP

I’d create an artificial ‘nature’ environment that future humans might live in and do an editorial shoot in the space

Valentina Li

I’d create a summer camp and art residency in the Cayman Islands with plans to expand to other Caribbean territories

Jawara Alleyne

We want to launch a platform that helps artists from marginalized groups to show, sell and educate

Popoff Kitchen

I’d create a film shot on location in Trinidad exploring the root of my SS21 collection: carnival, sex and music

Maximilian Davis

A penetrating voice among a number of Black entertainment stars who spoke up for the Black Lives Matter movement

Justice Smith

The innovator at the intersection of Black creativity & technology tackling institutional racism in the tech industry

Charlene Prempeh

I’d set up mixed media exhibitions – one in London and one in Sri Lanka – providing a platform for South Asian artists

Priya Ragu

He quickly became a Drag Race fan favourite for his boundary-pushing drag looks, including the famous little black dress

Gottmik

We want to help put Greece on the map by shooting a short film, inspired by Kids, and recording an album soundtrack too

ATH Kids

I want to invest in a space to exhibit artists from different backgrounds who are otherwise neglected in the art world

Ellie Pennick

I’d launch a sustainable, biodegradable, cool AF wig line that would pay a living wage to the women who make them

Moonchild Sanelly

I’d run a project between artists, activists, and locals to fly kites addressing the immigration concerns of Flatbush

Daveed Baptiste

We want to hold our first festival, a two-week celebration of cinema by women from South-West Asia and North Africa.

Habibi Collective

I’d set up a creative & research hub in Jamaica providing democratic access and resources to the arts

Jeano Edwards

I’d like to get together cool young creatives and showcase excellence within young black and Asian talent in London

Griff

We’d run initiatives that support emerging creatives in Johannesburg including a gallery, a residency programme and more

Bubblegum Club

I want to create a food truck that will provide food, as well as hygiene products, for the homeless in a respectful way

Maitreyi Ramakrishnan

With new music on the way and fans in Drake, Young Thug and Lil Uzi Vert, the Atlanta prodigy is one to watch

Lil Keed

I’d set up a production house that amplifies minority voices using my experience creating videos for YouTube & TikTok

DJ Krystal Lake

We’d create a trans swim-and-underwear line for trans women to feel comfortable in their bodies at home and at the beach

Maddie & Margo Whitley

The winner of Season 13 of Rupaul’s Drag Race, Symone’s drag combines high fashion with politics

Symone

We want to curate a Ladies Music Pub festival that challenges the patriarchal landscape of the music industry

Ladies Music Pub

The Gen Z guitarist and songwriter rewriting the rules of music stardom – on TikTok and IRL

Towa Bird

I’d run mixed media art workshops for kids from minority backgrounds and present their work in an exhibition

Feben

I’d curate an audio & visual gallery exhibition that focuses on relaxation, breathing exercises & fighting anxiety

Yeek