KELSEA BALLERINI
30 Old soul
By Shania Twain
Kelsea Ballerini and I first met at a country-music awards show. I remember thinking back then how talented she was as a songwriter at such a young age. She's an old soul in many ways. As a veteran songwriter, I'm always looking for authenticity, and I'm really inspired by clever songwriting-songwriting that is not only thought-provoking and meaningful but most of all original. Kelsea writes with all those qualities. She isn't afraid to be vulnerable and really brave with her songwriting. She's also a great friend. We have such a special relationship that is just so real, and that can be rare in our industry. I watch her work incredibly hard and challenge herself, but she also has fun, and that is wonderful to see. At this year's CMT Awards, she performed with a full troupe of drag queens as her backup dancers, which was fabulous. She has a powerful sense of self in those moments: she knows exactly where her heart is, and she always leads with love and inclusivity.
Twain is a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter
COREY HAWKINS
34. Transformative joy
By Suzan-Lori Parks
I've been a fan of Corey Hawkins for forever, so I was thrilled when he agreed to play Lincoln in my play Topdog/Underdog last year. Some actors get up onstage and it's OK to be just OK. But that's not an option for Corey.
This story is from the September 25, 2023 edition of Time.
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This story is from the September 25, 2023 edition of Time.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
TV SHOWS
An artistic triumph. A record-breaking 18 Emmy wins. An all-time viewership high for FX.
MOVIES
If you read only the synopsis of Babygirl before seeing it, you might imagine it's an erotic age-gap thriller about the workplace power dynamic between men and women.
BOOKS
Percival Everett's reimagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which won a National Book Award, is a sweeping story centering on Jim, the enslaved sidekick in Mark Twain's classic adventure tale.
ALBUMS
Singer Beth Gibbons hasn't released much music in the 30 years since her iconic band Portishead stormed out of the gate with seminal trip-hop record Dummy. Nor has she spoken to the press much, gaining a reputation for intense privacy.
PODCASTS
The most engrossing podcast Dan Taberski has produced since Missing Richard Simmons, Hysterical investigates a mysterious illness that spread among high school girls in Le Roy, N.Y., beginning in 2011, in what is believed to be the largest case of mass hysteria since the Salem witch trials.
Elton JOHN
Elton John has no address. Visitors to his home are given three names: the name of a house, the name of a hill, and the name of a town, which is near Windsor, as in Windsor Castle, where King Charles III lives.
Caitlin CLARK
A Fever coach has tasked me with standing under the basket to retrieve her misses. But as Clark, the two-time college national player of the year for the University of Iowa, reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year from the Indiana Fever, and emergent American sports icon, runs all over the court to launch long-range bombs, I barely have to move. Swish, swish, swish. She hits 14 shots in a row. A dozen in a row. Eleven in a row. Nine in a row. Another nine.
Lisa SU
It's the day after the U.S. presidential election, and like much of the nation she was awake until the early hours, transfixed as the results came in, only tearing herself away once it became clear that Donald Trump had won.
Donald TRUMP-THE CHOICE
A once and future President whose influence dominated this year
Mental Health Levels Up
2024's progress hints at things to come
