Making an appearance on Time‘s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world is a significant honor, and the publication just unveiled this year’s list. On the 2021 roster is a handful of folks from the music world, who had brief tributes written about them by their pop culture peers: Megan Thee Stallion wrote about Billie Eilish, Kid Cudi wrote about Lil Nas X, J Balvin wrote about Bad Bunny, Miley Cyrus wrote about Dolly Parton, Darius Rucker wrote about Kane Brown, Paris Hilton wrote about Britney Spears, Alicia Keys wrote about Angélique Kidjo, and Brandy wrote about Verzuz creators Swizz Beatz and Timbaland.
Introducing the 2021 #TIME100 featuring the 100 most influential people of the year https://t.co/NEApPrOrN0
— TIME (@TIME) September 15, 2021
Of Eilish, Megan wrote, “Billie Eilish is a unique soul, with a voice, style and attitude all unapologetically her own. I first met Billie at the Grammys this year. She had already achieved worldwide stardom, which might make some people have airs about them, but not Billie. She was so real and laid-back, even though her personality is so big. She is a rare spirit who speaks from her heart with no pretenses. I knew I had found a kindred spirit that night. One who is strong, but still learning and still growing. A woman who stands up for herself and advocates for women everywhere.”
Cudi also said of Lil Nas X, “Lil Nas X is a new twist on some of the themes I was riding on when I first started out: being true to yourself and not giving a f*ck what anyone says. What he’s doing is what we need right now. To have a gay man in hip-hop doing his thing, crushing records — that is huge for us and for Black excellence. The way he’s unafraid to make people uncomfortable is so rock ‘n’ roll. He’s a true rock star. […] I’m going to do whatever I have to do to let him know–you have my support. When we do our song together, however trippy the video is, let’s get sexy with it.
Check out the full list here.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.