
This year, we’re celebrating an extended Black History Month by highlighting a variety of rising artists who are creating history before our very eyes. Tahliah Barnett, better known as FKA Twigs, is making some of the most bewitching music in the world right now, and creating her own rules when it comes to artistic expectation.
Growing up in Gloucestershire, England, Twigs started off as a dancer and appeared in videos for artists like Ed Sheeran and Jessie J, among others. Soon, she realized that she wanted to make music full-time—and began working with some of the most forward-thinking names in music, including Arca, Sampha and Dev Hynes.
Debut album LP1 won raves from the indie blogosphere and mainstream press in 2014, vaulting Twigs onto year-end lists too often dominated by white artists. With a hypnotic stage show, eye-popping music videos, celebrity romance (with Robert Pattinson) and groundbreaking new EP last year (M3LL155X), FKA Twigs has shifted R&B music to a place where the rest of the pack is trying to keep up with her ideas.
The Faces of Future Black History
Each day from now until February 29 we're spotlighting musicians, actors, writers and more who we think are making moves now and are the future of Black history. Check back every day to see who's featured next!
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Jan. 28: Kendrick Lamar
"Kendrick Lamar is popular music's most forward-thinking, undeniable auteur. Other hip-hop artists have been able to command audiences this decade, but no other MC has been able to challenge the art form..."
more »Josh Brasted/WireImage

Jan. 29: Ava DuVernay
"DuVernay, best known for directing Selma, is quickly becoming much more than her most successful film project....In an industry full of white male auteurs, DuVernay's commercial and critical success proved downright inspiring..."
more »Heather Kennedy/Getty Images for SXSW

Jan. 30: Chadwick Boseman
"Boseman is creating his own legacy by highlighting the monumental achievements of other indispensable African-American leaders on the silver screen, and Hollywood is all the better for it...."
more »Ryan Miller/Getty Images

Jan. 31: Mike WiLL Made-It
"Mike WiLL Made-It has certainly engrained himself in musical history throughout the 2010’s—and not just within hip-hop. The Atlanta producer has expanded the sound of rap music while collaborating with some of the biggest names in pop...."
more »Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images

Feb. 1: Laverne Cox
"Laverne Cox is best known as Sophia Burset on Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black, but since the show premiered in 2013, the actress has become so much more, to so many people..."
more »VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty Images

Feb. 2: Leon Bridges
"Leon's time in the public eye has been short, his impact has been an enduring one; few artists have enjoyed the type of commercial and critical run the soul singer-songwriter is on right now..."
more »Jason Speakman/NYV/Voice Media Group via Getty Images

Feb. 3: FKA twigs
"FKA Twigs is making some of the most bewitching music in the world right now, and creating her own rules when it comes to artistic expectation..."
more »Mark Horton/WireImage

Feb. 4: Trevor Noah
"Comedy Central selected Trevor Noah for his sardonic humor and sharp take on current events. Sure enough, Noah has soared in the new role..."
more »Brad Barket/Getty Images for Comedy Central

Feb. 5: Viola Davis
"For over two decades, Viola Davis has been providing subtly unforgettable performances to a host of projects, from Doubt (where she outshone Meryl Streep) to The Help (where she provided the center of a sprawling production)..."
more »Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Feb. 6: Gugu Mbatha-Raw
"Gugu Mbatha-Raw is the definition of a rising star: An actress who has quietly engrained herself into Hollywood culture and improved every project she’s been part of, the 32-year-old Brit is making the leap to superstardom before our very eyes..."
more »Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images

Feb. 7: Cam Newton
"Since being drafted with the No. 1 pick in 2011, the 26-year-old Atlanta native has carved a space out for himself among the NFL elite—and, more importantly, at a position traditionally dominated by white players..."
more »Grant Halverson/Getty Images

Feb. 8: Big Freedia
"Big Freedia's unapologetic sense of self undoubtedly charmed Beyoncé—not to mention the country with her reality docu-series Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce, currently reigning as Fuse's biggest television show to date..."
more »Noam Galai/WireImage

Feb. 9: Todrick Hall
"In every video and TV episode, Todrick has an unabashed commitment to being himself. He's upfront about his sexuality, his likes, his dislikes, being bullied; nothing's off limits. That commitment to being himself has paid off..."
more »Leon Bennett/WireImage

Feb. 10: Retta
"Retta came to fame as the beloved Donna Meagle on Parks and Recreation, and has since turned into a comedian and actress who is as unforgettable online as she is on screen..."
more »Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images

Feb. 11: Janelle Monáe
"Janelle represents the unconventional outsider on so many levels and recognizes her spot: In 2013, she told Fuse her "Q.U.E.E.N." single was made "for people who feel like they want to give up because they're not accepted by society"..."
more »Paras Griffin/WireImage

Feb. 12: Zendaya
"Zendaya has continued to show a wisdom and poise beyond her years...All that gumption and she's still a teenager? This lady has so much to do and say, and she's only just begun..."
more »Christopher Polk/Getty Images

Feb. 13: P.K. Subban
"As one of about 30 active black players in a majority-white sport, NHL favorite P.K. Subban is not just playing hockey, but thriving...And P.K.'s leadership extends beyond ice-hockey..."
more »Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Feb. 14: Jessica Williams
"The Daily Show's first black female correspondent, Jessica Williams not only brings smart comedy to the Comedy Central staple, but does it with a fresh and necessary point of view..."
more »Brad Barket/Getty Images for Comedy Central

Feb. 15: J. Cole
"The 31-year-old Roc Nation rapper/producer, and Dreamville Records head, built his base with relentlessly hard, independent work right in front of our eyes..."
more »Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images for ESPN

Feb. 16: Uzo Aduba
"As Suzanne 'Crazy Eyes' Warren, Uzo Aduba brings tenderness, mental health awareness and heartfelt comic relief, characterizing much of the show's main concerns in a single wonderful character..."
more »Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

Feb. 17: The New Day
"The New Day are 'booked' on WWE TV as bad guys, but make no mistake, they are beloved by their audience and peers alike. All three members are incredibly gifted performers in the ring, and on the microphone they're just as skilled and entertaining..."
more »JP Yim/Getty Images

Feb. 18: Brittany Howard
"Alabama Shakes' Brittany Howard is not merely a great rock frontwoman, she’s a sonic force of nature with the deep pipes, emotional songwriting chops and killer riffs that can’t help but make you feel all the feels..."
more »Josh Brasted/FilmMagic

Feb. 19: Chance the Rapper
"Chance has made a point of doing things his way; he's been courted by every label imaginable and refused to sign. 'Label deals suck, that’s just the truth of it,' he told the Wall Street Journal in 2015..."
more »Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Feb. 20: Issa Rae
"Rae maintains an honest, hilarious, motivational and thought-provoking social media presence, giving prospective fans a great entry point into her singular point-of-view and talents..."
more »Mark Davis/BET/Getty Images for BET

Feb. 21: Ryan Coogler
"Coogler doesn't take his position in Hollywood—that of the still-rare black auteur with wide access and increasing influence—lightly..."
more »Mike Coppola/FilmMagic

Feb. 22: Ta-Nehisi Coates
"Ta-Nehisi Coates is...writing sociopolitical and economic injustices into digestible realities. The only way to glean understanding of the experiences of minorities is having them spell it out for you..."
more »William B. Plowman/NBC NewsWire via Getty Images

Feb. 23: Shamir
"Shamir became more than a modern proponent of house music and progressive pop, he became a face for those who don't believe in gender binaries..."
more »Lorne Thomson/Redferns via Getty Images

Feb. 24: Maria Borges
"Borges was one of the first black models booked by Dior and she's modeled for everyone from Balmain to Zac Posen. As far as magazines go, she's been featured in Marie Claire, Vogue, W and more..."
more »Taylor Hill/Getty Images

Feb. 25: Michael B. Jordan
"If anything, Michael B. Jordan has shown incredible diversity in his acting roles and has shown that revolutionizing an unforgiving industry doesn't mean you have to sacrifice your own life story..."
more »Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

Feb. 26: Hannibal Buress
"Buress is unapologetic in his takedowns of cultural touchstones, and he's only just begun a career of unwrapping the truth with humor..."
more »Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Feb. 27: Amandla Stenberg
"Stenberg is using her celebrity as a platform for change. She's very vocal about educating the masses on the difference between cultural appropriation and appreciation in a way that's open and honest, not condescending..."
more »Mark Davis/Getty Images for Women in Film

Feb. 28: Franchesca Ramsey
"Juggling her unique brand of information-via-comedy between national TV, YouTube, and social media platforms...Franchesca Ramsey is an important voice and face in our society's ever-changing and expanding collective conscious about equality and social justice..."
more »Rob Kim/Getty Images for ColorOfChange

Feb. 29: Willow Smith
"Willow is making art exactly the way she wants to, exactly the way it makes sense to her. We just have to keep up..."
more »Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images for vitaminwater
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