OUT100: 2018

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Brandon Garr
Styling assistant: Kerene Graham
Groomer: LaSonya Gunter
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Brandon Garr
Styling assistant: Kerene Graham
Groomer: LaSonya Gunter
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Coat by Christian Siriano
Sweater and pants by Mr. Turk
Shoes by Giuseppe Zanotti

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Brandon Garr
Styling assistant: Kerene Graham
Groomer: LaSonya Gunter
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Shirt and pants by Bottega Veneta
Glasses by Native Ken
Necklace by Dior Homme

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Mindy Le Brock
Makeup: Christina Waltz
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

Shirt by Diane von Furstenberg

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Mindy Le Brock
Makeup: Christina Waltz
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

Shirt by Diane von Furstenberg

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Mindy Le Brock
Makeup: Christina Waltz

Shirt by Diane von Furstenberg

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Michael Cook. Makeup by Zac Hart using Charlotte Tilbury Cosmetics
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller.
Styling by Michael Cook.
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Sweater by Acne Studios
Pants by A.P.C

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Katie Woolley and Aneila Wendt
Hair and Makeup: Kristin Kent
Photographed at Stageport KC, Kansas City

Read the cover story, here.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Katie Woolley and Aneila Wendt
Hair and Makeup: Kristin Kent
Photographed at Stageport KC, Kansas City

Dr. Renée Richards doesn’t quite relate to the modern state of queerness. She is quick to acknowledge that, in her day, “calling someone queer was an invitation for a punch in the nose.” Yet, this 84-year-old has been honored for years by human rights and LGBTQ entities (including SAGE, which gave her a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006). She is most widely known for her links to professional tennis, and a landmark court case that ultimately allowed her to compete as a woman in the 1977 U.S. Open — despite the discrimination she’d faced when she was outed for being transgender. She’s never quite felt like an advocate because she never quite had an official “coming-out,” at least in the way it’s currently defined. But all that aside, Richards’s life is one of profound heroism and self-affirmation, lived at a time in which people like her dared not be visible. Today, she still practices her first passion of ophthalmology, seeing patients at her home, where she lives with her two dogs, Rocco and Romeo. And while her views may not fully align with the LGBTQ zeitgeist, she has one thing to say to our oppressive administration: “41 years a man. 43 years a woman. Do not erase!"

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Richards's Home in Carmel, N.Y.

When it comes to LGBTQ visibility in politics, we’d never seen anything like Cynthia Nixon’s very public run for New York governor against incumbent Andrew Cuomo. Nixon didn’t beat Cuomo, but she shattered traditional notions of who can run for office. “It felt great to be running as a woman, but especially as a queer person and a mother of a trans man during a time when having a voice is so important for our community,” says Nixon, who bowed out with grace and a heroic message of encouragement for “young people, young women, and young queer people who reject the gender binary.” Nixon continues her dedication to progressive ideals, and she walked away from her experience with priceless lessons. “The things I’ve faced may be small compared to what many others have gone through,” she says, “but life teaches me to have compassion for myself first so I can really hear what other people tell me about their truths and challenges.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Grant Woolhead
Hair: Rebekah Forecast at The Wall Group
Makeup: Matin at Tracey Mattingly
Nails: Liang at Honey Artists
Dress by Salvatore Ferragamo
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Designer Jeremy Scott has touched almost every aspect of fashion. He operates as the creative director for both his namesake label and the Milan-based high-fashion brand Moschino, and this year, he launched a collaboration with H&M. And though he serves up the typical red carpet fare for models and celebrities, Scott frequently imbues those looks with powerful messaging and the aesthetics of queerness. “Being a queer person today means being vocal about what’s right, shining light on others who deserve it, and supporting causes and people — in every domain — that are championing us,” says Scott, who’s trumpeted inclusion by casting the likes of Teddy Quinlivan and fellow Out100 honorees Aquaria and Mj Rodriguez for his H&M campaign. “It means trying to broaden the vision people have of our community.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Justin Tyme
Photographed at the Studio, Los Angeles

With more than a million weekly viewers, and nine Emmys under its belt (five of them awarded this year alone), RuPaul’s Drag Race has become a household phenomenon, bringing a historically countercultural art form into the living rooms of countless mainstream viewers. RuPaul may be the (impeccably beat) face of the show, but Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey, the two men at the helm of Los Angeles-based production company World of Wonder, are the media masterminds behind the juggernaut. Barbato and Bailey launched World of Wonder in 1991, and since then, from Party Monster to Drag Race, they’ve been championing queer projects that impact the way we’re all perceived by the broader population. The longtime creative partners are visionary trailblazers, and they know the benefits of both learning from the past and championing the advancement of young queer people. “They’re the future,” Bailey says. “And the survivors from Stoneman Douglas High, in particular, are an endless inspiration to us.” Adds Barbato: “All generations can learn that age is a state of mind, but whatever age we are, we stand on the shoulders of others who came before, and we owe so much to them for their sacrifices.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Erik Torppe
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

Roughly two years ago, Indya Moore feared they might descend back into homelessness. Instead, they’re thriving as one of the brightest breakout stars of Pose, this year’s beloved ode to ballroom culture. Moore has helped bring the stories and struggles of trans women, past and present, to TV viewers around the world. “My mom understands experiences I have so much clearer now,” Moore says of the Pose exposure. “I feel respected in a way I definitely deserve. I know part of it is my mom being proud, but most of it is the themes in the show that drew us closer as a family.” Moore credits trans pioneers like Leiomy Maldonado, Isis King, Laverne Cox, and Janet Mock for making them feel more human, and Moore adamantly uses their voice offscreen to raise awareness and inspire action regarding trans and GNC rights.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Keisuke Chikamoto
Makeup: Zac Hart
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

In the 2017 election, Delegate Danica Roem’s meteoric rise in her home state of Virginia claimed her a seat at the table — a historic first for the country. Roem says, “As the first out-and-seated transgender state legislator in the United States, I have an enormous responsibility to deliver on the core quality-of-life issues my constituents need me to prioritize — like traffic, jobs, schools, and health care — while setting a good example so the next generation of LGBTQ leaders know that they can succeed because of who they are and not despite it.” Roem voted to expand Medicaid to 400,000 Virginians across the commonwealth, including 3,800 of her uninsured constituents in the 13th District. And she’s not finished. “It’s a great feeling to know that come January 1, thousands of my constituents will have access to quality, affordable health insurance,” she says. “But I also know thousands more still won’t be able to afford private health insurance while earning too much for Medicaid. This means we have a lot more work to do to make health care a right in our commonwealth, not a privilege.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Zac Hart
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

In the spirit of the Underground Railroad, Rainbow Railroad is a Canadian charitable organization that helps LGBTQ people around the world seek freedom from the state-sponsored violence and persecution they face in their home countries. It has aided more than 500 people in need, and at its head is Kimahli Powell, who since joining as executive director in 2016, has led the organization through successful interventions in Chechnya and Egypt. “My personal highlight of the year,” he says, “was seeing a group of Egyptians (who were either arrested or faced prosecution just for raising the rainbow flag at a Mashrou’ Leila concert in Cairo last year) reunited after making it safely to Toronto this summer. As the band played onstage, we watched them dance together, wrapped in rainbow flags, hugging and crying.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

One of the hottest entertainment happenings this year was the return of Roseanne, and many didn’t know that Wanda Sykes was one of the creative forces behind it. She had been working as a writer and consulting producer for the ABC series, but quit after Roseanne Barr wrote a racist tweet comparing former Obama aide Valerie Jarrett to an ape. (Sykes was first to cut all ties, before the network fired Barr.) Her mere existence as a queer woman of color in the comedy world has sparked social progress, but Sykes looks to the student survivors from Parkland for her own inspiration. “I believe they will make positive change in not just gun laws, but in human and equal rights for all,” she says. “In general, younger queer people are doing it: They are organizing. They are a force. Older people can learn from them to be more daring, be bold, be impatient.” Sykes recently struck a deal with Netflix for her fifth comedy special, which is scheduled to hit the streaming service in 2019, with Sykes center stage and in
the spotlight, where she belongs.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Patrick de Fontbrune for MCH using Tarte Cosmetics
Photographed in Los Angeles

When Julio Torres envisions his future, he sees bridal couture. “I know that, as a comedian, wedding dresses are so not my problem, but...I don’t know...I feel like I have some ideas,” Torres quips, noting that, in addition to starring alongside Fred Armisen and Ana Fabrega in HBO’s upcoming Spanish-language series Los Espookys, he’s also down to try his hand at designing for brides. “I just fear that if I go down that rabbit hole, I won’t come out of it the same,” he says. On a more serious note, the Saturday Night Live writer, who has quirky comedy and offbeat humor down to a tee, believes these are dire times we’re living in. On what it means to be LGBTQ in 2018, he says, “It’s about realizing that we’re in a state of emergency, caring about issues beyond those in our immediate community, and having empathy for the plight of others.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Makeup: Elizabeth Yoon
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

There may be no better sign of the times than Hayley Kiyoko. Three years ago, the pop singer arguably risked her career when she dropped the same-sex anthem, “Girls Like Girls”. But instead of backfiring in a world fraught with ignorance, the release turned out to be, quite possibly, the best decision of Kiyoko’s life — its success proving that there is indeed a large audience for an out, proud, Asian-American, lesbian singer. This year, she’s catapulted further into the spotlight with the release of her debut album, Expectations, and an MTV Video Music Award for Push Artist of the Year. “I am literally pinching myself daily,” Kiyoko says, adding that while she’s been on tour, her devout fans have shared “their personal stories of overcoming their own struggles and finding the courage to love themselves.” Those same fans have dubbed Kiyoko their “Lesbian Jesus,” helped to popularize her viral hashtag #20GayTeen, and, perhaps, cemented her place in the echelons of pop stardom.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Nicolas Klam
Hair: Gui Schoedler for Exclusive Artists using Oribe Haircare and Varis
Makeup: Marla Vazquez
Coat by Bottega Veneta
Photographed in Los Angeles

Two moments changed Mj Rodriguez’s life this year: The first was the announcement that her hit breakout show, Pose, would be renewed for a second season. The other? Seeing queer pop queen Janelle Monáe perform for the first time. “She stands for something,” Rodriguez says. “She’s a freedom fighter and always has been.” The power of playing Blanca Rodriguez-Evangelista — a trans, HIV-positive woman of color — on Pose is not lost on Rodriguez, and she looks forward to many more stories like it. “Now, more narratives will be told,” she says. While she’s excited about new happenings, like her November opening in American Repertory Theater’s ExtraOrdinary, a retrospective nod to a decade of musical theater, the actress also looks back to how the trans women who came before her shaped her ability to succeed. “Queer youth can learn the history of how we persevered,” she says, “and how our ancestors marched and fought for
the rights we have today.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Nate Juergensen
Makeup: Zac Hart
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Best known for her playful caricatures of Hillary Clinton, Kellyanne Conway, and Jeff Sessions, Kate McKinnon does impressions of politicians to make an impression on politics as a whole. “I love doing [impersonations] of politicians because the task is always to imagine the private lives of these people whose job it is to project an image of staunch, unflinching leadership and grace,” McKinnon told Vanity Fair last year, “and that’s just not how human beings, in their heart of hearts, work.” SNL’s first-ever openly lesbian cast member is also the show’s foremost source of salvation: In a world rife with fake news, partisan reporting, and staggeringly tone-deaf output from elected officials, comedy — and often McKinnon’s comedy — has become a rare beacon of truth. This year, she starred in The Spy Who Dumped Me opposite Mila Kunis and graced the cover of GQ’s comedy issue alongside Sarah Silverman and Issa Rae. The Upright Citizens Brigade alum is now prepping to play Grunhilda in the film version of the graphic novel The Lunch Witch while working on an untitled movie about Fox News’ Roger Ailes.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Joseph Maine at Jed Root
Makeup: Victor Henao at Bernstein & Andriulli
Photographed at Bathhouse Studios, New York City

Earlier this year, animator and visual artist Jacolby Satterwhite opened his solo exhibition “Blessed Avenue” at Gavin Brown’s Enterprise in Chinatown. Highly acclaimed, the show transported viewers to another world — an Afrofuturist queer fantasy where dancers mix voguing with martial arts — and continued Satterwhite’s trend of maternal inspiration. (Reifying Desire, his six-part video series that displayed at the Whitney Biennial in 2014, explored sex and philosophy through his mother’s drawings of objects.) “I feel like I have ultimate agency as a creative human being living my authentic truth,” Satterwhite says of his queerness, which has always factored heavily in his work. He is currently collaborating with Spanish architect Andrés Jaque on a piece for a 2019 London exhibition, preparing three more solo shows, and working on a top-secret music video for a high-profile artist. He feels that younger LGBTQ folks should focus on learning “the principles of stoicism, patience, and restraint” from older generations, who in turn can learn from our youth “to expand, blur, and interrogate the language of identity and desire.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in Brooklyn, N.Y.

“Do not squeeze that anxiety accelerator,” warns Daniela Vega. “Enjoy the transitions because they are an organic and natural part of the human experience. Don’t fear them.” The actress is talking about transitions in the broader sense — whether it be gender, sexuality, or simply a new chapter in life — but she could just as well be reflecting on her own journey. This year, the Chilean breakout star appeared in the Oscar-winning film A Fantastic Woman, and made history as the award ceremony’s first-ever openly transgender presenter. “As a community, we can expand the horizons — expand the limits of empathy and tear down walls,” she says. Vega is next slated to star in the Chilean crime drama La Jauría, as well as in Netflix’s adaptation of Armistead Maupin’s queer classic Tales of the City.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Nate Juergensen
Makeup: Zac Hart
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Rupert Everett has major staying power. Breaking onto the scene in the early 1980s, Everett has been an outspoken, out-and-proud actor and writer for decades. In a significant way, he’s seen firsthand the cultural sea change in attitudes toward the LGBTQ community. In a recent interview with Vulture, Everett said, “Now is a moment of great opportunity for everyone. It feels to me that, for [the younger] generation, the future’s up for grabs. When you see what’s happening, you can’t [help but] be thrilled.” And this year — after nearly 10 years of industry pushback and financial roadblocks — The Happy Prince, a biopic written by, directed by, and starring Everett as poet and queer icon Oscar Wilde in his final days, finally hit theaters. Speaking to a packed audience at a Manhattan screening of the film, the director said, “Wilde is a very important figure — a gay person who worked in a largely heterosexual world.” Everett can relate.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Natasha Smee for Exclusive Artists using Aurelia Skincare
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City.

This year has been fruitful for Nneka Onuorah. In addition to working as a field producer on Viceland’s My House, she served as a field director on Netflix’s First and Last, which surveys America’s criminal justice system. She also bought a home and worked on her first narrative film with Dee Rees, whom she calls “the most amazing black lesbian director.” Onuorah is powering ahead with her work as she moves into 2019. She’s co–producing a new show for Viceland Paris with directing partner Giselle Bailey about immigrant communities in the French ballroom scene, and she’s directing a documentary feature, hinting that it “will break open a lot of issues around oppressed people who struggle with the idea of freedom” and “discuss things we’ve been afraid to admit in society,” Onuorah says. “Through defying what social constructs were indoctrinated in me, I have been able to become a truly free person, and to not define myself by what I see around me, but to live in my own innate beauty.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Marci Rodgers
Hair: Myers Lansky
Makeup: Alexa Angelopoulos
Photographed in New York City

Michelle LeClair spent years as a devoted member of the Church of Scientology, reportedly donating millions to the religion and serving as a spokesperson. But, as she outlines in her memoir Perfectly Clear, LeClair was humiliated by the church when she came out as gay — discrimination that led her to defect and to choose her wife, Tena Clark, over what had become a stranglehold. “Sharing my love story with millions of people,” LeClair says, has been this year’s highlight. Clark (who’s also a film-score composer) released a memoir this year, too, called Southern Discomfort, about her coming of age in the oppressive rural South. With their joint book tours, and LeClair’s multiple TV appearances, these two women brought their stories to the masses this year. The duo imparts wisdom and expresses admiration as they observe different generations of the LGBTQ community. “I would hope that younger people will never forget the struggle we have been through and never take it for granted,” says Clark. Meanwhile, LeClair observes, “It’s so amazing to see how this generation is so much more accepting of everyone. Older generations, like mine, can learn a great deal from the way young queer people accept things and see both themselves and sexuality as fluid.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

It was a few years ago, in the aftermath of Ferguson, that DeRay Mckesson came to the forefront as one of the key voices associated with the Black Lives Matter movement. But this activist continues his work fueling important conversations, this year in particular around issues of race and mass incarceration. In Texas, he worked with the Austin Justice Coalition to battle a troubling police union contract, and on his podcast, Pod Save the People, he uncovers news and narratives that are often missed or ignored by the mainstream. “I want to be able to live as loud as possible, in the fullness of who I am — every day, in every space — and in 2018, I feel closer to that than I’ve ever felt before,” Mckesson says. This year, he also released his debut book, On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope. “[Queer people] are opening up new space every day and filling that space with sounds that were once forbidden.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“These days, we could all use more empathy in our lives,” Yen Tan says of how people can learn from one another. That’s evident in his latest movie, 1985, which tells the holiday homecoming story of a closeted man struggling to reconcile his orientation and HIV status while visiting his conservative family. But Tan has never shied away from queerness. His 2002 feature debut, Happy Birthday, depicts five characters, scattered across the globe, who grapple with the potential dangers of gay love. Meanwhile, his 2014 short, Until We Could, celebrates the United States Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage. A brave defector from the Hollywood idea that queer films don’t resonate with audiences, Tan envisions great change. He says, “It’s been tremendously inspiring to see the collective uprise of different movements across the country to resist what’s happening in our world.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Last year, when Amber Hikes opted to add two new colors to Philadelphia’s pride flag — brown and black, to represent people of color — little did she know she’d spark a national conversation about race and racism in the LGBTQ community. At this year’s Met Gala, Lena Waithe made a bold statement by wearing a version of the flag as a cape on the red carpet. The executive director of the Philadelphia Office of LGBT Affairs, Hikes says, “After the mind-blowing impact of the More Color More Pride flag my office introduced in June 2017, it’s been humbling to witness people all over the country and world having honest, and often challenging, conversations about the reality of racism within our own community. This past year, I watched us move beyond the symbolism of the added stripes and to the task of real inclusion — beginning with interrogating the systems that serve to oppress so many of us.” She adds, “I am proudest of the work the people have done to shift power into the hands of the community.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City.

This past summer, Panic! at the Disco frontman Brendon Urie broke the gay Internet with his announcement that he identifies as pansexual. The statement validated a generation of adolescent crushes that began when Urie’s band released its 2005 single “I Write Sins Not Tragedies.” Even before his declaration, the
31-year-old singer had built up a decade’s  worth of LGBTQ street cred. He has released sexy anthems like “Girls/Girls/Boys,” stepped into a pair of Kinky Boots on Broadway, and pledged $1 million to GLSEN to support schools working to create student-led GSA clubs.
Now, months later, Urie is still soaking in the feeling of being out and letting it merge with the rest of his life. “I feel free,” he says. “Being able to not allow one thing to define you is a beautiful thing.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Devan Weitzman
Photographed in Los Angeles

This June, Ryan Murphy changed entertainment history when his FX series Pose debuted with the largest cast of trans actors — and the largest assemblage of trans crew members — since the dawn of television. It was a landmark in representation, putting rarefied and sensitive experiences (gender identity, ballroom culture, the AIDS crisis) into the hands and mouths of people who have lived them — and still do. In May, Murphy told The New York Times, “I’ve always been interested in underdogs,” but at this stage in the utterly tireless creative’s career, that feels like an understatement. From Nip/Tuck to Glee to American Horror Story, Murphy has been barreling toward intensified inclusion of not just underdogs but every kind of other, be they queer, non-white, non-cis, people with disabilities, or — as Out100 cover star Billy Porter says — “the forgotten.” Murphy put a name to this inclusion with Half, his initiative to fill 50 percent of his production teams with women and minorities. In addition to Pose, he revived The Boys in the Band for Broadway this year with an all-queer cast, and peeled back the devastating layers of 1990s homophobia with the Emmy-winning American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. By the time you read this, he’ll surely have done something else worth celebrating.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Joseph Turla
Groomer: Erin Anderson
​Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“Big corporations have a key role to play in making the world an inclusive place,” says Sue Nabi, who co-founded the Orveda luxury skin-care line and serves as the company’s CEO. “They should invest millions to make sure everyone is trained to learn and understand the diversity of our world, especially in terms of gender choices.” Nabi, who previously served as president of Lancôme and L’Oréal, knows what it’s like to be misgendered, as she was earlier this year on a train between London and Paris. “It was a negation of who I am,” she says. Looking forward, Nabi is excited to expand Orveda in the United States, and she specifically hopes the LGBTQ community will support the brand’s “green, clean, vegan, and genderless” products. What does it mean for Nabi to be LGBTQ in 2018? “It means I am a normal, healthy, and free person,” she says. “And 100 percent part of our society.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Nabi’s home in London

In this year’s film Hearts Beat Loud, Kiersey Clemons plays Sam, a young woman grieving the death of her mother and exploring her sexuality with her girlfriend Rose, played by fellow queer actor Sasha Lane. Sam’s orientation is never addressed in the movie, but in real life, Clemons is vocal about her queerness — and about how LGBTQ people of all ages can be more inclusive: “I think, young and old, we can do better at making the voices of marginalized people our priority,” she says. Now 25, Clemons previously played a recurring character on Transparent and a lesbian tomboy in the 2015 film Dope, about a group of self-proclaimed geeks in a tough Los Angeles neighborhood. Now booked for several upcoming roles — she’ll be the voice of Darling in Disney’s live-action remake of Lady and the Tramp and will appear in Fox’s live production of Rent — Clemons says she feels inspired by the love of her girlfriend. “My partner and I talk about how much of a privilege it is to love each other,” she says. “And not just because we’re queer, but because we are not all guaranteed
the experience of love.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Randy Storghill at Opus Beauty
Makeup: Samuel Paul at Forward Artists
Photographed in Los Angeles

In September, Chella Man became the first trans man ever signed to IMG Models, but the highlight of his year, he says, was easily January 10 — the day he got top surgery. “I will never forget or take for granted the love that I woke up to on that day,” says Chella, who also identifies as genderqueer and is pictured here with his girlfriend, photographer and performance artist MaryV Benoit. He adds, “I am forever grateful for this privilege, as I know the positivity of a moment like this is rare.” That positivity came from the thousands of followers he has amassed since May 2017, when he began publicly sharing his transition on YouTube and Instagram. His perspective is an intersectional one — he is a deaf, Jewish, Chinese teen — and it’s become an integral component of his art, much of which is based on self-portraiture. After being a notable presence in protests combating Trump’s recent threats against trans and GNC rights, Chella will take part in a series of speeches and panels across
the United States.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Chella Man's home in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Few things are more indicative of the phenomenon of drag than the rise of drag kids. If there’s a leader of that movement (a RuPaul Jr., if you will), it’s 11-year-old Desmond Napoles, who goes by Desmond Is Amazing and whose motto “Be yourself, always,” has inspired many children to defy bullies and become their authentic selves. This year, Desmond was a featured speaker at the Teen Vogue Summit, performed at Wigstock 2.HO with Lady Bunny and Neil Patrick Harris, and is currently working on a children’s book. Of his generation, Desmond says, “We are proof that things are getting better, and in my opinion, it’s also good to speak with your LGBTQ+ peers, since we are all going through similar life experiences. People should support each other more and shade less.” Amen.

Photography by Martin Schoeller

After coming to prominence in the fashion industry by styling multi-talented superstar Zendaya, picking up new clients like Céline Dion and nabbing a gig as a judge on the revamped America’s Next Top Model, Law Roach doubled down on his work this year. For the Oscars, he put Tom Holland in Hermès (marking his first major red carpet collab with a male client), and he styled Anne Hathaway for the entirety of her Ocean’s 8 red-carpet run. Looking beyond fashion, at the broader evolution of queer culture, Roach says, “I think older people can learn tolerance from the younger generation — and I think it’s already happening. Vice versa, younger people can learn patience. They want everything instantly, but things don't always happen overnight.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Sweater and pants by Yohji Yamamoto
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

This past June, when Netflix released a filmed performance of her stand-up act, Nanette, it took only 69 minutes for Hannah Gadsby to change the way we think about a lot of things: her, ourselves, Picasso, and, most of all, comedy. Though she threw in brilliantly timed tidbits of levity, the unfiltered Tasmanian was largely seen pouring her soul out onto the stage of the Sydney Opera House, angrily confronting toxic masculinity, courageously addressing sexual assault, and defiantly condemning the tradition of self-deprecation for marginalized comics. It was a tear-inducing triumph that garnered rapturous praise, and Gadsby — who, today, is spending her time writing a book and gardening — says, “I am overwhelmed by the support I’ve been shown for telling my own story.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Molly Greenwald
Photographed at Richard Neutra's Hailey House, Los Angeles

Alana Mayo is redefining Hollywood with broad strokes and bold moves. The 34-year-old is a 12-year veteran of the film industry, spending much of her career at Paramount, where she worked on films like Selma and Fences. Earlier this year, she joined actor Michael B. Jordan to help build out his media company, Outlier Society, and together they’re producing a variety of TV, film, and digital projects, all with an inclusion rider. In September, inspired by Jordan and Mayo, WarnerMedia announced it was also launching a company-wide commitment to diversity and inclusion in front of and behind the camera. “There are always practical lessons to be gained from the failings and triumphs of a previous generation,” says Mayo, “but that connectivity is what’s most important to me: knowing that your experience—good or bad—is not simply your own, but shared by many of those who came before or after you.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Makeup: Janice Kinjo
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

When Natalie Morales sees older queer people at Pride parades, she bawls. “I think about all they probably went through, and it simultaneously breaks my heart and makes me so happy,” she says. “I feel lucky that so many people before me paved a road that’s less rocky than theirs was.” Known for her roles in Parks and Recreation and Battle of the Sexes, Morales (who’s also a writer and director)grew up with no queer Latina role models. So when she came out last year on social media, she did it to fill a gap in representation. “There are still so many kids and adults who need to see themselves represented publicly,” she says. In August, she organized The ___ Variety Hour, a night of musical numbers and sketch performances that raised more than $23,000 for the March for Our Lives. She’s currently in production on NBC’s new sitcom Abby’s, about a makeshift backyard bar, in which she plays the title role.

Photography by Martin Schoeller 
Styling by Kimmy Erin Kertes
Styling Assistant: Maria Zakhar
Hair: Addie Markowitz
Makeup: Myriam Arougheti
Photographed in Los Angeles

Suit by Chaiken
Jewelry by Dana Rebecca Designs
Shoes by Casadei

Deep in the desert of Southern California, a goddess with a shenis and a taste for the bombastic has cultivated a queer utopia. Her name is Love Bailey—self-professed “Hollywood Hooker” and mother matriarch of the Slather Studios art collective. Her Savage Ranch has become as iconic as she has, and this year, it was on that stretch of land where she collaborated with the likes of Violet Chachki, Dita Von Teese, and Bebe Huxley to create music videos, films, and more. It’s also where she’s broken through what she calls “veils of shame” with her mother, who’s since embraced her as a trans woman. “We’ve built a life together on the Savage Ranch,” Bailey says of her mom, “and we’ve turned it into an artist residency for others to experience their own stories of liberation.” Produced by Nowness, a documentary about that very union can be seen on YouTube. “We can all learn from each other,” Bailey says, “regardless of our age.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in Los Angeles

Janet Mock is rewriting our cultural narrative one project at a time. Over the summer, Mock made history as the first trans woman of color to write and direct for a television series when she worked behind the camera on Ryan Murphy’s Pose. The show had already made headlines for assembling the largest cast of trans actors ever, but with Mock as part of the crew and in the writers room, Pose cemented its status as one of the most important shows on TV. A pillar of her community and pop culture at large, Mock released her second book, Surpassing Certainty: What My Twenties Taught Me, last year, and one thing she’s learned is that different generations of queer people need each other. “Younger folk can learn about herstory and the collective struggle for liberation,” she says. “Older folk can be challenged and pushed to evolve with the times, learning to embrace more experiences and identities.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Gabi Lopez
Makeup: Saisha Beecham
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

“I don’t really give a fuck — call me whatever you want,” Bella Thorne says in regard to her preferred gender pronoun. That candor, fearlessness, and open-mindedness are what define this former Disney star, who’s challenging what it means to be a contemporary ingenue in Hollywood. With four films out this year and more than 18 million followers on Instagram, the 21-year-old is among the most-watched people on earth. And in August her return to music was revealed, signing with Epic Records for What Do You See Now? — her debut album. Being queer, Thorne says, means being part of a group that “accepts me for all of my quirkiness, all of my flaws, all of me.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Mikiel Benyamin
Hair: Ian James
Jacket and shorts by Marcelo Burlon
Photographed in Sherman Oaks, Calif

Top by Meshki

“I see so many young queer people living their true lives so unabashedly and unapologetically, and it makes me immensely proud,” says Olympic medalist Gus Kenworthy. “To be an LGBTQ person in 2018 is to be visible. We’ve come a long way, but it’s important for young queer people to recognize that generations before them fought and died to get us to where we are now.” Kenworthy’s sense of obligation to community and openness has helped other queer folks feel more seen, and he’s not finished: Next summer, he’ll bike the 545-mile AIDS/LifeCycle down the California coastline. He’s pledged to raise $1 million for the cause. “I have friends and people in my life who are HIV-positive, and I’ve seen the stigma that surrounds the disease,” he says. “I want to do what I can to
fight for those affected.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“You don’t have to wait, or ask for permission, to be who you are,” Albert Imperato says of being queer in 2018. But the fact that the world’s attitude toward LGBTQ people has changed so much over time still astounds the native New Yorker, who’s worked in the music and recording industry for more than 30 years. “I would have never imagined that someone who grew up as closeted as I was would be able to live a life openly with a guy, much less marry one,” he says. A co-founder of 21C Media Group, which offers publicity and consulting services in music and the performing arts, Imperato specializes in fostering the work of classical musicians, and his clients have included Audra McDonald and queer tenor Nicholas Phan. The diehard Beethoven lover also writes, and he’s working on a podcast and a memoir about his family — particularly his brother, who died from AIDS complications. Imperato is encouraged by the daring of queer youth. He says, “We must all be vigilant, not only about protecting our rights, but the rights of anyone who is being oppressed.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at E's Bar, New York City

Baby Yors is a singing, dancing, and gyrating embodiment of the notion that the American dream may not be dead after all. Born in a small city in Argentina, where his talent and theatricality were stifled, the artist pushed himself to hone a multitude of crafts — from guitar and piano to acting and ballet — until he got himself to New York City. Now 27, Baby has released four singles and two music videos this year (which he also directed and co-produced), and he’s finishing work on a debut album (dropping in 2019 ), but he says, “The most memorable moments happened onstage.” The Bowie-esque performer is particularly inspired by the “love and communication” of young activists like Out100 cover star Emma González. He wants to think about queerness on a global scale. “It’s imperative that we’re aware of queer people in other parts of the world,” he says. “Some places haven’t seen any change, and we have to use our voices and resources to shine a light on them, because they need it and deserve it.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller 
Hair: Keisuke Chikamoto
Makeup: Seiya Iibuchi
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Jacket by The Blonds

“Be in gratitude, be angry, fight like hell, bring a look,” says Silas Howard, celebrated trans director of top shows Transparent, Pose, High Maintenance, and This Is Us. “I am so impressed by our LGBTQ youth,” he says. “I’m blown away by the art and activism in our community.” Howard’s own art practice flourished this year: His latest feature film, A Kid Like Jake, which tells the story of two Brooklyn parents with “a 4-year-old gender-expansive child,” is a poignant view into the complicated nature of identity. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to a standing ovation. “Young queer people intuitively know things older generations had to work to understand,” Howard says. “It’s cliché, but elder queers really need to listen and extend opportunities to our youth right now.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Zac Hart
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

The airwaves are are packed with a slew of podcasts (even queer ones), but best friends and co-hosts Kathy Tu and Tobin Low have managed to set themselves apart. In their podcast Nancy for WNYC, the pair, who are both Asian-American and gay, concentrate on issues surrounding sex education, pop culture, and politics, especially as they relate to their own lives. Of his life, Low says, “It’s a small victory, but I took my shirt off multiple times this past summer. And no, I had not worked out especially hard to get a summer body. It felt like a personal accomplishment in a lifetime of body image insecurities.” That frank self-awareness is what bridges the gap between this duo and their thousands of weekly listeners. They’ve shared their coming-out stories and have encouraged listeners and guests (like last year’s Out100 Artist of the Year, Lena Waithe) to do the same. This past fall, they started a listener-driven confessionals segment they find especially impactful. “It’s a project called ‘I’ve Been Meaning to Tell You…’ inspired by one of our episodes,” Tu says. “We got a lot of different responses — funny, sad, strange, and moving. We love hearing from the Nancy community, and are always looking for ways to share our stories with each other.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at WNYC Studios, New York City

As the creator, host, and co-producer of the podcast Making Gay History (now in its fourth season), Eric Marcus knows that, though the LGBTQ community has overcome daunting obstacles before, plenty more lie ahead. Inspiring listeners with tales of heroes from the past, the podcast dips into our community’s folklore in hopes of creating — and maintaining — an educational channel between older and younger generations of LGBTQ people. “Younger people can learn from us older folks that they’re not alone,” he said. “They have a proud history, and there’s a decades-long road map of resistance they can draw on to fight the battles of today and tomorrow.” Marcus is also founder and chair of the Stonewall 50 Consortium, a group of organizations and institutions that plan exhibitions and programming linked to the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising. “We can’t take our hard-won rights for granted,” Marcus adds. “We have to organize, vote, and actively
fight for our place in the world.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

As someone who’s mounted large-scale parties from New York to Las Vegas, Jake Resnicow is used to seeing LGBTQ people revel in the results he’s worked for behind the scenes. But in 2018, nothing compared to producing the main floor of Vienna’s Life Ball. There, Resnicow and his team from the international party brand Matinée Group, unleashed life-size robots, marionette-like dancers, and a diverse lineup of guests, all in the name of raising global funds for — and awareness of — HIV/AIDS. “I have family and friends who have been personally affected by HIV,” Resnicow told Out in June. “I see the real difference Life Ball is making each year around the world and continue to be inspired and motivated to do more and continue to give back.” He’s now planning a lineup of events to celebrate WorldPride NYC 2019 and the 50th anniversary of Stonewall.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

As the head of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), Steven Kolb has brought his background of nonprofit service (previously raising funds for HIV/AIDS and cancer) and put it to tirelessly effective use. In addition to managing CFDA efforts like Fashion Targets Breast Cancer and its Health Initiative (addressing concerns about underweight models), this year, Kolb partnered with Glamour on “The Glass Runway,” a study about gender inequality and workplace safety. He also worked with clothing giant PVH on an inclusivity and diversity conference, which united fashion’s leaders to, as he says, “create steps toward greater representation in our industry.” He believes “there is more power and life” in older queer people leaving their comfort zones, and he saw that firsthand at Telfar Clemens’s recent NYFW show. “The audience was a multicultural and multigenerational mix,” Kolb says, “with Telfar’s unisex clothes and a performance by queer South African duo Fela Gucci and Desire Marea. It felt like the future had arrived.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

All clothing by Tom Ford

“We need more positive queer narratives in the world — it’s vital,” says Mia Lidofsky, creator and director of Strangers, a queer comedy-drama series about love, life, and the things we do to make both work, starring Zoë Chao and Meredith Hagner. Hosted on the Facebook Watch streaming service, Strangers is now in its second season, has earned industry accolades, built a dedicated audience, and easily found its place among Facebook Watch’s most popular shows. “Between making season 2 of Strangers and marrying the love of my life, 2018 has been big for me,” Lidofsky says, referring to her longtime partner — and now wife — dancer and choreographer Celia Rowlson-Hall. “I feel lucky to be a gay woman and a filmmaker in 2018, and to have the rights, privileges, and acceptance that I do. It’s my mission to tell stories in which queer lives and love are celebrated. I want to see queer characters win.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at lidofsky home in Brooklyn, N.Y.

With dramatic, anime-esque undereye makeup, generous pearl appliqués, and bright colors blended to otherworldly perfection, Berlin-based queen Hungry creates surreal “distorted drag” looks (as aptly defined by her Instagram bio). It was Hungry’s brush — and glue stick — that transformed Icelandic pop icon Björk into a preternatural alien orchid for the cover of her album Utopia and subsequent European tour. Crypto-cosmic illusions culled from the darkest fever dream, Hungry’s looks showcase a detached femininity in which “gender has lost its relevance completely,” and this is emblematic of a future she envisions. “It is, of course, important to tend to everyone’s personal identity in daily life,” she says, but she hopes that we’re “getting to a point where gender is not even a relevant question or categorization anymore.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Hungry's home in Berlin

THE ’90s Child star of Matilda, Mara Wilson transformed perceptions when she came out as queer in 2016 — specifically, a Kinsey scale 2 with a crush on Janelle Monáe. In the past few years, the Big Hero 6 series voice actor and author of Where Am I Now? True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame has become a sharp-tongued Twitter superstar, especially for the young people who follow her. “This coming generation seems to be a lot more thoughtful and considerate than mine was, and their activism and knowledge of the world go so much deeper,” Wilson says. She adds that young LGBTQ people can teach older generations that gender and sexuality exist on a spectrum, but noted that labeling oneself as part of the queer community is also a right that’s earned. “These labels are a part of who we are,” she says. “It’s important to understand the history behind them and the bravery it took to embrace them.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair and Makeup: Danielle Chrysohoisis
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

In season 2 of his thought-provoking Netflix series Dear White People, a satire that dissects the experiences of black students at a predominantly white university, creator Justin Simien dives into gay life through the lens of a newly out, black student. And though that storyline was powerful in its own right — it pushed back on the commonly depicted, easy-breezy coming-out tale — Simien points to shooting Bad Hair, his second feature film, as the highlight of his year. The movie, an offbeat tribute to black women, is now in production, and as Simien looks ahead, he also reflects. “The generation before ours inherited hard-fought tools to turn their passions into plans and fight for the rights of queer people,” he says. “The younger generation is expanding culture to make space for myriad ways to define gender and sexuality, as they struggle on to turn outrage into action.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

Styling by Douglas Hickman, Jr.
Shirt: Slate Denim Co.
Hat: Goorin Bros.

This year, David and Phillipe Blond celebrated 18 years of professional partnership, and they capped things off by collaborating with Disney, which backed their appropriately outrageous S/S ’19 NYFW show, “Disney Villains x The Blonds.” The duo—who are also a couple—sent everyone from Paris Hilton to fellow Out100 honoree Dominique Jackson down the runway in especially fantastical twists on the intricately bejeweled, rock-inspired looks that have become hallmarks of their label. Nodding to the fact that this pair have always woven their mutual love of cult pop culture into their clothes, David, the creative director, says the show “was a childhood dream come true.” And despite dressing virtually every prominent pop diva in music, Phillipe, the designer, says his key highlight was The Blonds’ collaboration with MAC. “We created a line of cosmetics that’s universal and genderless,” he says, “so anyone can wear it.” David and Phillipe have long cracked the norm, but they know that’s not easy for everyone. “In 2018, it’s great to be queer because we now have certain freedoms,” David says, “but there are still many threats to our way of life, and people all over the globe are still fighting for basic human and civil rights.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Zac Hart
hotographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“Younger queer people can learn to be more compassionate and resilient,” E.T. Chong says of what his generation can learn from those who’ve come before. The founder of Onegaishimasu, a monthly queer Asian-Pacific Islander S&M party in Brooklyn, Chong continues, “Creating and connecting communities is no easy task — imagine doing the work without the platform and information of the internet.” But through his recurring event, Chong does that work by not only donating 100 percent of Onegaishimasu’s profits to charities, runaway youth centers, and shelters, but also by giving his spare time toward those same efforts. Moving into 2019, he’s looking forward to a residency at RecessArt, where he hopes to begin planning the world’s first LGBTQ K-pop
music festival.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

After wrapping her performances in Troye Sivan’s Bloom tour (which saw her team up with the “My My My!” singer in more than 25 cities), Kim Petras says the highlight of her year was seeing all her fans. “I love them so much!” exclaims the German-born artist, who in 2017 topped Spotify’s charts with her debut single, “I Don’t Want It at All.” Spotify named her a RISE artist, and risen she has, becoming the most visible trans pop star in history and dropping bop after bop this year, from “Can’t Do Better” to “Heart to Break,” which climbed the Billboard charts. Though her first full album is still in the works, the 26-year-old released a self-produced mixtape in October called Turn Off the Light, Vol. 1, which pays homage to scary movies and guest-stars Elvira. Of the state of the LGBTQ community, Petras says, “The general population has become increasingly accepting of us, but younger queers must activate to continue this progressive trend — especially now, in the face of the current administration’s attacks on trans rights as well as trans and HIV-positive people in the military.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Matthew Mazur
Styling Assistant: Vittorio Pugliano
Makeup: Melissa Murdick
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Dress by Eric Schlosberg.

When MNEK (born Uzoechi Osisioma Emenike) dropped his debut album, Language, this past September, it was the culmination of a lifelong dedication to both absorbing and making music. Now 23, the London-born artist has been producing since he was around 8, and he’s been fascinated with ’90s icons like Janet Jackson and Mariah Carey since he was 5. “Releasing an album is something I’ve always wanted to do, and I’m so proud of it,” he says. MNEK has just completed a mini U.K. tour tied to that album, and now he’s collaborating with Clean Bandit and Little Mix while planning more shows for next year. His music isn’t only fulfilling him; it’s affecting people’s lives. “Someone tweeted me—a black man in his 30s,” MNEK says, “and he told me my album helped him come out, which I thought was so amazing. The fact that my music helps anyone is so humbling and rewarding.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by PC Williams.
Styling Assistant: Sharifa Rose
Photographed at Haze Studio, London

Jumpsuit by Orange Culture
Necklace by Lovisa

Landing a guest spot on a culturally acclaimed TV show is any actor’s dream, but for Jesse James Keitel, the honor came with a double dose of prestige. This summer, the actor jumped from a quick cameo in the Netflix film Alex Strangelove to a role on TV Land’s beloved series Younger as the pansexual, homo-romantic, genderqueer personal assistant Tam — helping to usher in a new era of diversity for genderqueer characters. Still, for the actor and drag performer, this year has been as much about bringing visibility to TV and film as it has been about embracing their own identity. “I had to unpack many years of internalized queerphobia to become who I am today and I’m grateful that the bad brought me good,” Keitel explained of their journey. Through all that, they’ve embraced the “privilege, joy, and goddamn responsibility” of being queer in 2018.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“I try to help my clients embrace all parts of themselves because it opens up more space for living,” says Nick Fager, co-founder of Lighthouse, an organization connecting queer people with LGBTQ-affirming medical professionals and specialists. “So many of the problems we see in the world today happen because people are clinging to outdated, binary thinking about what it means to be a man or a woman, or to be gay or straight.” But Fager sees a bright future ahead: Expansive Therapy, his private practice, became bicoastal this year (serving clients in New York City and San Francisco), and he’s been finding inspiration in his fellow queers — notably Out100 Newsmaker of the Year, Emma González. “Her sense of self and the strength of her voice fighting injustice as a young queer woman is truly remarkable and shows how far we’ve come as a country,” Fager says. “She gives me so much hope about our queer, feminist future.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

For Aquaria, 2018 has been a year of big wins. On season 10 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, the New York-based club queen stunted (pretty) as she charged toward an explosive finale that saw her crowned the winner. And what she’s done since her coronation has also left us starstruck. One of the fastest queens from the franchise to crack 1 million Instagram followers, the 22-year-old also headlined a breathless North American tour that hit more than 30 cities. “Being able to perform across America, as well as abroad, has brought me so much validation and pride,” she says. Moreover, Aquaria recently signed with IMG Models in New York, has a book in the works, and — of course — more tour dates on the horizon. She’s a hardworking, self-made superstar, but she also wields vital awareness. “Being LGBTQ in 2018 means you must be a fighter,” she says. “It means being registered to vote and taking every opportunity we have to exercise this right. It means not forgetting any letters in that acronym, whether they apply to you or not.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

At 24, Jaboukie Young-White is sitting on top of the world. The newly minted Daily Show correspondent has his hand in myriad projects, frequently appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon while also writing for Netflix’s American Vandal and Big Mouth. A comedian whose stand-up is built on what it’s like to be gay and black today, Young-White uses his viral prowess to turn the microscope on underrepresented experiences. “For me, there’s a weird duality to being an LGBTQ person in 2018,” he says. “Our cultural contributions, past and present, are slowly gaining more mainstream recognition. I think that makes people point to media representation and say, ‘See, things are better!’ To a certain extent, they are, but LGBTQ employment discrimination and the whole gay-trans ‘panic’ murder defense are still legal in much of America. Things are getting better, but we can accomplish a lot more.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

When reflecting on memories of Family Week, the world’s largest annual gathering of LGBTQ parents and their kids, Stan Sloan points out the story of a straight dad and his 7-year-old gay son. “He wanted to bring the family there so his son could see that his future could be as normal as anyone else’s,” Sloan says. As the head of a national queer nonprofit, Sloan works to advance legal equality for queer families at the state and federal levels. He interacts with some of our community’s youngest members, who Sloan says have a lot to teach the world about questioning gender and sexual orientation, including older folks who understand that legal change comes through patience and hard work. For Sloan, the most important issue facing queer families in 2018 is poverty, which he says disproportionately affects LGBTQ people. “Now is our opportunity to make sure all people at all economic levels are reaping the benefits of increased acceptance
and visibility.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Almost exactly one year ago, many Americans didn't know Adam Rippon. Today, Rippon is practically a household name, thanks to his moves on the ice at the 2018 Winter Games in South Korea (where he snagged a bronze medal) and his unwavering resistance outside the rink. Rippon very publicly denounced the choice of Vice President Mike Pence to lead the United States Olympic delegation, given Pence’s support for antigay legislation. The Olympian also brought politics into an arena that’s known for political neutrality, forcing the nation to experience a dialogue about LGBTQ acceptance, whether they were ready or not. His brazen beliefs, actions, and authenticity earned him a spot on the Time 100, as well as a correspondent job on Good Morning America and a judging gig on Dancing With the Stars: Junior. It’s our youth who help keep Rippon motivated, like fellow Out100 honoree Seth Owen. “Here’s a valedictorian who was rejected by his parents because of his sexuality,” Rippon says. “To see the support of the community helping him achieve his goals was truly inspiring.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Michael Cook
Hair: Nate Juergensen
Makeup: Zac Hart
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Pants by Valentino

Munroe Bergdorf is a force to be reckoned with. The 30-year-old beauty uses her voice to advocate for LGBTQ and POC communities. Earlier this year, her first major documentary, What Makes a Woman?, aired on British network TV. “It was a deeply personal film that felt very much like the beginning of a new era for me,” Bergdorf says. More recently, she has been using her platform to shine a light on the discrimination people face on dating apps, especially “POC and trans users.” Her criticism resonated so loudly that it helped prompt Grindr to release the video series Kindr, a diversity and inclusion initiative aiming to combat “racism, bullying, or other forms of toxic behavior.” She’s proof that if you’re loud enough, you can’t be ignored.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Nate Juergensen.
Makeup: Zac Hart.
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“I feel more of a responsibility to represent my experience through my work, and I feel it’s a very exciting and important time to be doing so,” says Broad City star Abbi Jacobson, who came out as bisexual in a Vanity Fair interview earlier this year. The revelation came shortly before Jacobson released her new book, I Might Regret This: Essays, Drawings, Vulnerabilities, and Other Stuff, in which, amid rambling recounts of hilarious and emotional experiences, she writes about her first breakup with a woman. Alongside co-creator Ilana Glazer, Jacobson is about to enter Broad City’s final season in January, but she’s also working on a few other television projects, including a reboot of the 1992 feminist classic A League of Their Own. She says one of her hopes is that queer people strive to take note of their history — and their future: “Older queer people remind us how far we’ve come; younger queer people are showing us 

where we’re going.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Peter Butler at Tracey Mattingly using Oribe.
Makeup: Rebecca Restrepo at Tracey Mattingly using Surratt Beauty.
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

With a 4.61 GPA and an acceptance letter from Georgetown University, Seth Owen’s childhood dream of going to college seemed within reach. However, when he received his financial aid package from the school, a different reality set in: It had been sent based on an expected contribution of tuition from his family — who’d kicked him out of their home for being gay. But Owen’s story has a happy ending. Teachers at his high school rallied together and created a GoFundMe for the valedictorian, raising $141,636 to send him to college. Since then, Georgetown has amended his parental contribution to $0, and even Ellen DeGeneres (who also featured him on her show) awarded him an additional $25,000. In turn, Owen plans to pay it forward with his leftover money. He explains, “I’m currently setting up a scholarship foundation for students who’ve shown a capacity to be resilient and who’ve overcome obstacles
in their lives.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in New York City

Three-time WNBA champion, four-time Olympian, and superstar Seattle Storm point guard Sue Bird crossed yet another threshold this year: She and her partner, professional soccer player Megan Rapinoe, became the first openly gay couple to appear on the cover of ESPN magazine when they graced the publication’s Body Issue. “A huge part of what I’m doing is encouraging others and inspiring the next generation of ballers,” Bird says. “I now know the importance of coming out and being myself...for others and for my own well-being. If I can be an example of a person living their truth, and it can encourage others to do so, the ways LGBTQ people are viewed will continue to change and normalize.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Zac Hart
Photographed in New York City

For Adrian Salpeter, being queer today means acknowledging his own “luck and opportunity,” remaining “aware and vigilant,” and remembering the past. “Queer people are writing their own histories, so the exchange of ideas from one generation to the next is key to survival,” he says, pointing to the fact that even two decades after the murder of Matthew Shepard, five states (including Wyoming, where Shepard died) have still not passed hate-crime protection laws. The five-time Tony-nominated theater, film, and TV producer worked on the recent Broadway production of Mean Girls, turned 40 this year, and toiled away at upcoming projects, like Beetlejuice: The Musical (which opens on Broadway in April 2019 ) and Española, a one-hour crime drama directed by José Padilha. This year he was most inspired by the Russian LGBT Network, a hotline and support group that helps queer people fleeing violence in Chechnya, and he’s grateful that he can use his platform as a collaborator for queer and non-queer people alike. “As a creative producer, I get to support and enable many artists,” he says, “all in the pursuit of storytelling.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Having been a member of the ballroom community since 1993, Dominique Jackson helped bring that scene, its culture, and the art of voguing to TV screens the world over via her fictional House of Abundance on Ryan Murphy’s Pose. As Elektra, the sharp-tongued mother of the house, she plays a key role in the show’s presentation of a complex and nuanced tale of trans women in the 1980s. “I was deeply inspired by LeBron James including me in his Instagram post about women of color on magazine covers,” Jackson says. In August, James posted a series of covers featuring women of color who, in his words, are “setting great examples.” The post featured Jackson’s Out cover with Indya Moore and Mj Rodriguez. “It spoke volumes to respect and inclusivity,” Jackson says. “He was unapologetic in including us, and as an amazing role model, he is setting a new tone for how trans women of color are viewed in communities of color.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Kiesuki Chikamoto
Makeup: John Mendez
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

According to the UCLA School of Law, upwards of 700,000 people in the United States have received some form of harmful conversion therapy. Mathew Shurka, co-founder of the Born Perfect campaign, wants to bring that number down to zero. “Failing conversion therapy and being in a committed relationship with a man has been my greatest success,” Shurka says. He has worked tirelessly to galvanize public support for a nationwide ban on conversion therapy, testifying at a dozen hearings and speaking with more than 160 legislatures this year alone. Now, even Hollywood is paying attention: Shurka consulted on The Miseducation of Cameron Post and Boy Erased, two major, acclaimed films about queer teens grappling with these issues. “The world has really transformed,” says Shurka. “We are living in a time when LGBTQ people are more free than ever before, and are able to have a voice among families, friends, and governments.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Nico Santos: Crazy Rich Asians made history (and saw tremendous success at the box office) as the first contemporary English-language Hollywood film with an all-Asian cast in 25 years. In the ensemble was Nico Santos, playing the role of Oliver, a self-described “rainbow sheep of the family.” The character served as a rare supportive face for the film’s lead, and the role furthered Santos’s mission to show the spectrum within the queer and Asian community. “The success of Crazy Rich Asians and other movies like Black Panther and Love, Simon is truly inspiring,” Santos says. “I keep hearing stories that other projects centering on POC or LGBTQ characters are being greenlit by studios and networks. It’s because these movies have proven time and again that people are thirsty to see themselves reflected back in culture.”

Zeke Smith: Last year, Zeke Smith had no idea that a fellow Survivor castaway—and an LGBTQ one at that—would out him as trans to both the show’s contestants and its national audience. But the moment changed Smith’s life forever. He returned from the game to a life of activism and a regular writing gig at the Hollywood Reporter. “I’m awed by the freedom allowed to me by the Survivor team to turn my outing into a moment that advanced acceptance of trans people and provided much-needed visibility of trans men,” Smith says. Today, he tours college campuses and companies to teach people about queer allyship, and he views the world around him as one full of potential. “To be queer is to be a trailblazer,” Smith says, adding that his boyfriend, Nico Santos, taught him to love himself.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: James Dunham
Makeup: Ashlee Mullen
Photographed in Los Angeles

When Nicolas Endlicher helped found Herrensauna, a queer-run party collective that stands out even in the infamous nightlife scene of Berlin, he had no idea it would grow to such popularity. But the 27-year-old DJ’s first party raged, and soon he was hosting them across Europe, creating safer spaces for wild enjoyment. Endlicher spent the last year traveling, shuttling most frequently between Paris and Berlin to work on his sets. (He also made a memorable appearance in Drew Lint’s erotic gay thriller M/M.) Endlicher is currently both excited and nervous about an upcoming gig on Berlin’s music channel Boiler Room. He says queer people of all ages need to learn to listen to each other. “One of the most important aspects of intergenerational communication is to actually stop talking and to truly pay attention to others,” he says. “We’re used to others not listening to us or not caring about us. Let’s at least treat each other better than that.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in Berlin

In addition to being one of the WNBA’s top point guards, the Connecticut Sun’s Layshia Clarendon is one of the league’s most vocal advocates for LGBTQ rights and visibility. Clarendon — a devout Christian, lesbian, gender-nonconforming b-baller — bravely joined the #MeToo movement in January when she filed a civil lawsuit against the regents of the University of California, citing negligence after she was assaulted by an athletic department employee. “Women have been fighting back and speaking up, but finally the veil was lifted and some very powerful men were held accountable for their actions,” she says. “I am inspired to continue to rage against the system.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Matilde Campos
Photographed in Los Angeles

“I’m always grateful that I have the opportunity to be in constant conversation with artists of color around the world,” says art critic Antwaun Sargent. Profiling some of the industry’s top names — like fellow Out100 honoree Mickalene Thomas and past honoree Kehinde Wiley, whose portrait of Barack Obama hangs at the Smithsonian — Sargent has, in his writing, increased visibility and awareness for contemporary black artists. This year marked his first foray into curation with Aperture Foundation’s “The Way We Live Now,” which brought together 18 emerging photographers whose works explored sexuality, gender, race, and representation. “Labels are for cans,” Sargent says. “Younger queer people seem less concerned with maintaining arbitrary definitions of how to act, and I think that has made the community a little less transphobic, racist, and sexist.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Sweater by Pyer Moss

With her stand-up special Rape Jokes, in which she shares her own experience as a survivor of sexual violence, Cameron Esposito is making sure the national conversation around sexual assault emphasizes the voices of survivors. Online sales of the special have raised more than $75,000 for RAINN, the nation’s largest anti–sexual violence organization, and with sales of the album version during her fall tour, she expects the funds raised to exceed $100,000. Of those who’ve come before her, Esposito says, “I have learned patience and how to find joy in dark times from queer folks older than me.” And in highlighting LGBTQ luminaries on her podcast, Queery, she’s pushing for a brighter, safer future for queer folks of all ages. “I’m here to fight for you and with you,” she says, “but also to share joy and love.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Makeup: Rachael Vang
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles

Peppermint had us hooked the moment she walked through the workroom doors last year on season 9 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, where she proved to mainstream audiences that being a drag queen and a trans woman are not mutually exclusive. Since then, the New York star has used her platform to make an impact on the entertainment world, strutting from the gay bars of Hell’s Kitchen to the theaters of Broadway, and starring as Pythio in the original cast of Head Over Heels. According to the producers of the jukebox musical (which features songs from the catalogue of the Go-Go’s) Peppermint is the first trans woman to originate a principal role on Broadway. “Overwhelming discrimination and lack of opportunities have plagued the trans community for a very long time,” she says. “But we’ve crossed a threshold, and we’re starting to hear inspirational stories of trans women of color being invited into spaces and industries we have not been welcome in: film, television, and, now, Broadway.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Jason LeBlond
Hair: Paul Warren
Makeup: Deja Smith
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City.

Dress, Breastplate, and Neckpiece by Xtian de Medici
Crown by Kova by Sascha. Necklace (worn as headband) by Castlecliff NYC

Last September, 155-mile-per-hour winds ravaged Puerto Rico — where Justin Torres’s family traces their heritage — and in the year since, the U.S. government’s inaction and the LGBTQ response to the crisis have left the writer envisioning a lengthy path to justice. “The mainland queer community has paid attention to the island’s queer community,” he says, “but it will be a very long recovery.” In 2011, Torres authored We the Animals, a heartfelt and semiautobiographical novel about three Puerto Rican-American brothers becoming men (whatever those are), and this year, he worked with director Jeremiah Zagar on releasing the film version. It opened in August to widespread critical acclaim, after netting a NEXT Innovator Prize at Sundance. Torres — who says queerness means celebrating difference and showing solidarity for marginalized people — believes young people should continue to demand to be equally cared for, while older queer people should focus on transferring their knowledge. “It is the job of the old to discern,” he says, “to transform experience into wisdom and to keep alive the lessons available from queer history.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Torres's home in Los Angeles

As one of the leading cast members on Elegance Bratton’s My House, Viceland’s award-winning docuseries about today’s New York ballroom community, Brielle Rheames brought her own narrative into the spotlight. Viewers came to see her vogue under the ballroom name  —  007 but stuck around for the very real conversations she had with her friends and even her mother about her identity as a trans woman of color—and what that means as she moves through the world. “LGBTQ culture is reaching a pivotal moment within mainstream media,” she says. “For years, we’ve been used and haven’t gained any recognition for our talents or culture. But now, we’ve showed up, showed out, and put our feet on their necks. And we aren’t letting up.” 

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Makeup: Seiya Iibuchi
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies, Michael Ausiello’s memoir of his late husband Kit Cowan’s battle with neuroendocrine cancer, has touched millions since its release last year. It brought Ausiello’s relatable story of hope, humor, and loss onto mainstream America’s bedside tables. A film adaptation of the book is currently underway, with The Big Bang Theory’s Jim Parsons starring and producing. Another exciting recent development? “J.J. Abrams and Ben Stephenson at Bad Robot [Productions] told me they want to turn my childhood into a television show,” says Ausiello, who’s also the creator and editorial director of TVLine. The yet-to-be-named series will chronicle Ausiello’s television-obsessed, closeted childhood in 1980s New Jersey. All these queer narratives, Ausiello says, are tantamount to our safety: “We can no longer afford to be complacent. Our community is under attack, and it’s more important than ever for us to be visible and tell our stories.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Rain Dove recently made headlines for shaking up the #MeToo movement, having released text messages that detailed how Asia Argento, a #MeToo advocate, allegedly had a sexual encounter with an underage colleague. “I did not want to be complicit in something that could be a crime,” Dove told CNN in August. But, then, Dove has always had the courage to cause a stir. The proudly androgynous model, who’s landed spots in both menswear and womenswear campaigns, has been a vocal critic of beauty standards and the fashion industry’s confusion about what to do with someone like them. (It’s fitting that they’re now dating another rebel, Rose McGowan.) Dove is comfortable being addressed as any gender as long as the intent is positive, but they realize the power of pronouns. “I respect people’s identities with their own personal labels,” they told the Guardian in September. “But I think the world would be better off if we saw people as intentions and vessels.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

When professional soccer midfielder Collin Martin decided to come out on Twitter just hours before his Minnesota team was set to host a Pride match in support of their local LGBTQ community, he couldn’t have known the outcome. But his announcement garnered international attention, as he’s currently the only out male athlete in any professional sports league. Other major league players have come out in the past, but industry pressure, intense public scrutiny, and a lack of team support tend to force players into early retirement. “I feel like a lot of older queer people have had to persevere a lot in their professions to earn respect and achieve great things,” says Martin. “I’m extremely proud to be gay, and I feel very fortunate to live in Minneapolis, a city that has an amazingly supportive LGBTQ community.” Perhaps times are changing? Martin’s coming-out experience may count as one indicator.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

“I’m black first,” Blair Imani told Tucker Carlson on Fox News last June when he asked if she would identify as American before all of her other identities. In the same interview, Imani, a convert to Islam, came out as queer. The founder of Equality for HER, an organization that offers free online resources about health and education for women and nonbinary people, she’s spent the past year getting her new book, Modern HERstory: Stories of Women and Nonbinary People Rewriting History, into the hands of every young person she could find, while drawing inspiration from the activism of the Parkland shooting survivors. “I try to use my platform as an out queer Muslim to show others that we exist,” she says. “We are proving to the world that you can be a queer person of faith and be touched by the love and light of Allah.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

Creator of Amazon’s Transparent, Jill Soloway sees a stark divide between queer generations in 2018. “I don’t feel younger queer people have anything to learn from older queer people. We are so backwards and behind and stuck in our ways,” Soloway says. “Older people have so much to learn from young people — like how to use social media. If Jesus, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King could change the world without social media, we had better figure out how to do that with social media, and soon.” Their new memoir, She Wants It: Desire, Power, and Toppling the Patriarchy explores Soloway’s family dynamics, the creation of Transparent, their nonbinary identity, and of course, fighting The Man. “We have to come up with new ways to fight the patriarchy," Soloway says. “It’s my belief that creating an intersectional power movement of other-ized people — women of color, trans people, disabled people, and many others — is our next move.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Justin Tyme
Photographed at Soloway's office in Los Angeles

While her architecture-inspired swimwear and activewear are notable on their own, Becca McCharen-Tran, founder of the label Chromat, has earned her fair share of applause for the decision to consistently cast a highly diverse roster of female and femme-identified models for her runway shows, spanning race, age, body size, and shape. And it’s not just on the runway: This year, Chromat expanded its size range to 3X through a partnership with Nordstrom. As much as the Brooklyn resident gives her models and collaborators a platform, she also learns from them. Of working with Ericka Hart, a sexuality educator, activist, and model who appeared in Chromat’s F/W ’18 show, McCharen-Tran says, “I have learned so much about how to be a better white ally and how to leverage my privilege from watching her Instagram stories and hearing more of her perspective as a queer black femme. She is an inspiration to me, and I am so glad to have had the opportunity to collaborate with her.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Makeup: Zac Hart
Models: Geena Rocero and Veronica Pomee at IPM
Photographed in New York City

Keiynan Lonsdale continues to be a refreshing, and even sweet-natured, revolutionary. This past summer, the actor played a key role in Love, Simon, the first gay teenage rom-com ever to be released by a major studio. Lonsdale’s preferred pronoun is “tree, since we all come from nature anyway.” He’s one of many peaceful warriors in his generation, as evidenced by his wide-minded views on sexuality and gender identity, and his nonconforming approach to expressing himself and dressing up. (In June, he rocked a drapey, golden showstopper at the MTV Movie & TV Awards, where he accepted the “Best Kiss” award for Love, Simon.)  He’s soon slated to appear in Weetzie Bat, the film adaptation of Francesca Lia Block’s cult 1980s Los Angeles novel, but he has his eyes on another passion project. “What’s taken up most of my time and energy right now is my debut album,” he says. “It’s been an emotional and spiritual rollercoaster. It’s made with the deepest respect for love and the world, and I really can’t wait to share it.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Katie Qian
Groomer: Nathaniel Dezan
Photographed in Los Angeles

Robe by Mina BineBine
Pants available at Now PR
Necklace by Benitez Jewelers

If being in drag is a form of protest, then Marti Gould Cummings is working double time. The New York City drag-queen-turned-politician found her civil voice after the 2016 election, and has been projecting it through the nearest microphone or megaphone ever since. Today, she’s as regular a face at protests and rallies as she is at nightclubs and gay bars. She’s also the rare queen with a legit government seat, working on the mayor’s Nightlife Advisory Board. “I want to get young people involved in politics as I figure out my future in politics,” she says, “and possibly become a candidate for office myself.” Before that, Cummings is celebrating her 2018 highlights: performing for Cynthia Nixon during her gubernatorial campaign and being a featured guest at the revival of Wigstock, New York’s massive drag festival. “[Wigstock] felt like being at a really fun high school reunion where all the misfits got back together,” she says. “Being in the green room with so many iconic queens was a dream come true, and being able to see them perform for a whole new generation was beautiful and inspiring.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Roxy Nail Salon, New York City

Lauren Jauregui is ready to fly solo. The singer, who got her start with popular girl group Fifth Harmony, is soaring to new heights with her own career, recently releasing her first single, “Expectations,” with the promise of more tracks and a full album soon to come. “My personal highlight of this year,” she says, “has been being granted my freedom to explore myself creatively and write these songs and make art I can put my soul into.” The outspoken artist spends her free time penning open letters to the current administration, protesting everything from the Muslim ban to the Kavanaugh nomination. When asked what it means to be LGBTQ in 2018, Jauregui firmly responds, “It means being a human.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Jennifer Austin
Hair: Justine Marjan
Makeup: Carlene Kearns
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles.

In August, designer Chris Habana celebrated a decade of his namesake jewelry line in trademark fashion: goth, but glamorous. Also serving as the brand’s S/S ’19 presentation, the show was gorgeously macabre, and with models of all stripes and sizes rocking Habana’s art — which can be worn virtually anywhere on the body — it was strikingly diverse. “There have been a lot of hard events this year,” he says, “and it’s inspired me to be as vocal in my work as I can.” Habana grew up between the Philippines and the United States. When he moved to New York in the early 2000s, he set to work as a clothing designer but, by 2007, decided to focus on jewelry instead. Since then, Habana has released a secondary line, MY ENEMY, comprising mostly gold pieces with religious symbols. His aesthetic, albeit beautiful, speaks to dark trends he sees impacting queer lives. “In 2018, racism, sexism, classism, and dictatorships have all taken center stage,” he says. “We queer people who’ve had defense mechanisms from a young age are realizing there are other things worth fighting for.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City

An unapologetic and resilient figure, Ashlee Marie Preston is leading conversations many are too shy to have, some of them at the national level. One example of this fearless dialogue was her TEDx Talk in Pasadena titled “Effective Allyship: A Transgender Woman’s Take on Intersectionality.” Her #ThriveOver35 campaign is pointing out social determinants and barriers that lead to many black trans women not living beyond 35 years old. She’s also currently preparing to launch a campaign that holds TSA accountable for the transphobia, xenophobia, and ableism they perpetrate under the guise of “national security.” She says, “In 2018, LGBTQ has become synonymous with possibility. For generations, we feared our identity to be an impediment on our ability to survive, but today, our tenacity and perseverance set us up to thrive. We have the capacity to do and be anything.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City.

Though 95-year-old Scotty Bowers has been out of the business for years, his reputation as an Old Hollywood hustler and pimp has stayed with him, particularly in regard to how he catered to the proclivities (sexual and otherwise) of the stars of yesteryear, male and female alike. A former Marine, Bowers—as a litany of stories attest—was a key figure in the era of the Celluloid Closet, allegedly finding same-sex dates for the likes of Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn. This was during a time when studios laced their contracts with morality clauses (while the police raided gay clubs), meaning that Bowers’s services proved invaluable for Los Angeles’s burgeoning queer community. Much of this was outlined in this year’s documentary Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood. “Several people said nice things to me at the theater about how I changed their lives,” says Bowers, who also served as a source for sexologist Dr. Alfred Kinsey. “I didn’t know these people, but they were saying thank you, and that I helped them, and that they’re not in the closet anymore. That’s inspiring, baby.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Ananda Tuyes
Photographed at Chateau Marmont, Los Angeles

Earlier this year, Diana Tourjée received a GLAAD Media Award for her in-depth Vice documentary on another of this year’s Out100 honorees: Danica Roem, the first openly transgender woman elected to the Virginia General Assembly. A journalist who came out as trans as a kid, Tourjée chips away at gender binaries and cis-heteronormativity in her columns for Broadly, while her video work highlights the diverse perspectives and contributions trans people are making to culture and politics. For younger queer people, she cautions against viewing history as irrelevant. “Elder queer people are one of our most valuable resources to understanding the state of modern politics and culture,” she says. Tourjée is currently writing a book about legendary drag queen Flawless Sabrina’s investigation into the Houston Mass Murders of 1973.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Over the span of her two-decade career, Mickalene Thomas has become known for adding black women into the fine art canon as fully realized muses. The artist creates large-scale, highly stylized, rhinestone-encrusted, collaged representations, that evoke the richness and texture Thomas sees in these women, be they celebrities or her own mother. It’s a highly original aesthetic that, in 2018, led to her shooting Cardi B for W and creating collages of her partner, Racquel Chevremont, for Harper’s Bazaar. Similar collages and paintings will exhibit in Thomas’s first Canadian museum solo show at Toronto’s Art Gallery of Ontario, opening November 29. “To be LGBTQ in 2018 is to use your voice to provide opportunities for other LGBTQ people that don’t have the resources,” Thomas says. She does this herself with Chevremont via Deux Femmes Noires, a platform that debuted this year to increase visibility for queer artists and artists of color.

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Kat Typaldos
Styling Assistant: Melanie Wainwright
Makeup: Emily Amick using MAC Cosmetics
Shirt by Dries Van Noten
Photographed at Thomas's studio in Brooklyn, N.Y.

What would the national conversation around LGBTQ issues sound like without Will & Grace? Certainly, not nearly as funny. “Being a member of the LGBTQ community is far and away the greatest gift of my life,” says Max Mutchnick. “It’s given me everything I cherish.” In 2018, the multi-award-winning NBC comedy was revitalized by Mutchnick and his creative partner David Kohan after nearly 11 years off the air, bringing old friends Will, Grace, Jack, and Karen back to prime time. As revolutionary — and hilarious — as ever, the show affirmed the pair’s ability to write masterfully across gay generations. “We could learn to stop searching for what makes us different and get more in touch with what makes us the same,” Mutchnick says about the relationship between younger and older queer people. “We all want to be loved as we are, and we all want a good parking spot.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Danielle Walch
Photographed on the set of Will & Grace in West Hollywood.

Francesca Cavallo is creating a progressive female-centric future one page at a time. For the author, who co-created Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls with fellow queer writer Elena Favilli, there is no other option. She helped to craft these stories — 100 bedtime tales about 100 extraordinary women — because she knows the power of female role models. And she made sure they were gay as hell, too. “I work as hard as I can to normalize homosexuality and to inspire children all over the world to embrace their identity, free of guilt or shame,” says Cavallo, who grew up in southern Italy. With their mix of cultures, eras, genders, and orientations, the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls books have sold millions of copies, been translated into more than 30 languages, and nabbed the 2018 Publishers Weekly Star Watch award. Says Cavallo, “It was a great honor to receive a prestigious award from the leaders of the very industry we are here to disrupt.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Jessica Margolis
Suit by AKRIS PUNTO
Shirt by Frame denim
Photographed at the studio, Los Angeles

The President of Jujamcyn Theaters, Jordan Roth is one of the most influential figures on Broadway. This past season, his company’s five venues played hits like Frozen, Mean Girls, and The Book of Mormon, while he also served as a producer on the Tony-winning revival of Angels in America. Regarding who inspired him this year, Roth cites another Out100 honoree. A pivotal moment, he says, was “watching Hannah Gadsby allow herself to be wholly seen [on her Netflix special Nanette], not just by expressing who and why she is, but by questioning comedy, the very form of expression that, until that moment, had allowed her to be seen.” Roth is now working on a monthly magazine, Warmly Jordan, which will explore “the theatrical wherever it exists in our culture — in politics, media, fashion, art, technology, and beyond.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Johnny Caruso
Coat by Givenchy
Photographed backstage at the Walter Kerr Theatre, New York City

“Day by day, I see young queer people redefining identity, redefining sexuality, and following their hearts in full confidence and compassion,” says Kehlani, reflecting on the generational differences between the old queer guard and the new. Confidence and compassion are virtues that have also been key to this singer’s own path. Nominated for a Grammy this year for her track “Distraction,” the 23-year-old is redefining what it means to be a young pansexual woman. She’s become an advocate for mental health; helped run a nonprofit called WATERisLIFE, which aids indigenous communities across the world; and launched a wellness app called Flora. She’s also pregnant, a development the candid artist shared with her fans in October. “I never felt true comfort with my femininity until I got older,” Kehlani says. “Today, I truly realize how beautifully feminine my masculinity is, and how beautifully masculine my femininity is.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Styling by Danasia Sutton and Nicolas Klam
Hair: Cesar Deleon Ramirez.
Makeup: Troye Batiste
Photographed at the studio, Los Angeles

Earlier this year, when ABC reporter and on-air personality Karl Schmid came out to the world  as HIV-positive, he had no idea of the response he would receive. “My inbox is still being flooded with messages of thanks and support from total strangers all around the world, from Pakistan to Russia, Venezuela to the Philippines,” he says. This worldwide embrace culminated when Schmid participated in the first-ever Positive Flame torch procession through the streets of Amsterdam, along with fellow torchbearers like Nobel Laureate Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, activist Peter Staley, and the only known person to be cured of HIV, Tim Brown. “Now more than ever, we need a new conversation about HIV,” he says. “Undetectable equals untransmittable, and people need to understand that. The dangerous and unnecessary stigma must stop. But only by talking about it can we break down that stigma.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed at Richard Neutra's Hailey House, Los Angeles

When he’s not modeling for Thom Browne or Calvin Klein, or walking runway for Pyer Moss (as he did at the F/W ’18 show in February), Yves Mathieu is volunteering at homeless shelters, senior citizen homes, and centers for troubled LGBTQ youth. “What the young can learn from the old,” he says, “is that it’s OK to worry, but don’t stress too much over your current situation. Older queer people were once young, too, and they’re here now, so it’s possible to make it out, no matter how much darkness is thrown your way.” Mathieu — who’s also pursuing music — seems adamant to be kind, and the very best version of himself. Seven years sober, he also rescues abandoned pit bulls and nurses them back to health, and a highlight of his year was joining New York’s Women’s March in January, where he carried a sign that read, “Trans Women Too.” For him, being LGBTQ in 2018 means, “Inclusion, inclusion, inclusion! We’re so damn diverse, so we should celebrate that diversity and not hide it. We don’t all look alike, we don’t all act the same, and that’s a beautiful thing.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in New York City

When she woke up on November 9, 2016, Samantha Ronson feared being queer for the first time in nearly two decades. (The last time had been when Ellen lost her sitcom after coming out.) “We went from a president who lit up the White House like a rainbow, and supported the LGBTQ community, to a new administration that was — well, I don’t need to tell you,” she says. A Jewish lesbian from a family of music-makers, Ronson began her DJ career almost by accident in 2002, when clubs she frequented offered her a turn on the mixer. Since then, she has appeared in the music videos of Usher and Alicia Keys and worked with other artists like Wale and Slash. She’s spent the last year touring with her band, Ocean Park Standoff, and waiting for Donald Trump to resign. “It’s a scary time to be queer in America, but it’s also a beautiful time,” she says. “There are so many people working to suffocate all that hate with light. It gives me hope that this is the last breath of the old America fighting for air.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Andy LeCompte at The Wall Group
Makeup: Dusty Starks
Photographed at Richard Neutra's Hailey House, Los Angeles

It’s been more than a year since Adam Eli launched Voices 4, an activist group committed to “advancing global queer liberation,” with a 600-person march from Stonewall Inn to Trump Tower to protest the torture of queer Chechens. Since then, the Jewish activist — sporting his signature pink yarmulke — has become one of the most prominent young faces in a wave of contemporary activism not seen since ACT UP reminded the world that “Silence = Death” 30 years ago. Eli’s indefatigable passion has led him from the streets of Manhattan and Washington, D.C. (to protest the sale of firearms and Muslim bans), to London and Paris (to foster an international network of like-minded organizers). For Eli, being queer means taking action. “Hate does not discriminate,” he says, “and prejudice has shockingly low standards for its choice of subject. None of us are safe until all of us are safe.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
​Photographed at Eli's home in New York City

Eli: T-Shirt by Zach Greer.

For Anthony Rapp, being LGBTQ today means “being vigilant, awake, and aware of the backlash that continues to mount against our community.” The actor — who originated the role of Mark in Broadway’s Rent and still makes music with castmate Adam Pascal — took a stance on justice for sexual trauma survivors last year when he accused Kevin Spacey of climbing on top of him in bed when he was 14. (Since then, in the momentum of #MeToo, several others have come forward to accuse Spacey.) But Rapp has forged ahead with his career, amping up TV’s queer representation as chief engineer on CBS All Access’s Star Trek: Discovery. With fellow queer actor Wilson Cruz, he delivered the first-ever onscreen gay kiss in the franchise’s history. As for what young queer people should seek to learn from older generations, he says it’s “focused, organized, grassroots activism.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Groomer: Erin Anderson for Exclusive Artists using Dior Beauty
Photographed at Schoeller Studio, New York City.

“The personal highlight of my year was my rebirth,” says Jerome LaMaar, who has had a long history as a designer — working for various brands when he was as young as 15 before launching his own Bronx-based venture. “I wanted to show that I was more than just a fashion designer,” he adds. That he did, co-directing and producing a web series for Uniqlo and inking deals with Puma, Google, Panorama Music Festival, and more. His consulting and creative directing work has dovetailed with his exploration of a variety of other new territories. “I’m really focused on elevating our approach to sustainability and eco-friendly, futuristic ideas,” he says. “I feel blessed to be able to create newness everywhere I go.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Photographed in the Bronx, N.Y.

In a coming-out essay published on Time.com in August, Josie Totah made an announcement, writing, “My pronouns are she, her, and hers. I identify as female, specifically as a transgender female.” Already known for her roles in Glee, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Champions, Totah continued, “When my friends and family call me Josie, it feels like I’m being seen. It’s something everyone wants: to feel understood. I believe that I am transgender to help people understand differences. It allows me to gain perspective, to be more accepting of others, because I know what it feels like to know you’re not like everyone else.” Totah’s bold coming-out was her personal highlight of the year. She says, “Being an LGBTQ person in 2018, I feel empowered and ignited to fight harder for change and acceptance within and around the community.”

Photography by Martin Schoeller
Hair: Tiffany Daugherty
Makeup: Amy Chance
Photographed at The Studio, Los Angeles