December 6, 2021
Forbes Announces 2022's '30 Under 30' – Including LGBTQ+ Icons
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Forbes included an array of LGBTQ+ entertainers, sports figures, and others in 2022's "30 Under 30" list. Among them: Out NFL player Carl Nassib and "Dancing with the Stars" sensation JoJo Siwa.
Each year's list breaks down into categories according to profession, and each category includes 30 notable individuals. In a year that saw a number of professional athletes come out – and boasted a "Rainbow Olympics" in Tokyo, with more than 120 openly LGBTQ+ athletes taking part. Las Vegas Raiders player Carl Nassib, the NFL's first active player to come out as gay, also made the cut.
Another in the Sports category: Quinn, the out trans and nonbinary soccer player who helped Canada's team storm to the top and take the gold in Tokyo this past summer. Quinn, Forbes noted, "fights against anti-transgender legislation with Athlete Ally and serves as a player representative with the Canadian Soccer Players Association, ??pushing gender equity and inclusion initiatives."
Out recording artists Remi Wolf and Fletcher both appear on the Music list. Wolf "struck gold with a viral hit on TikTok last year called 'Photo ID,'" Forbes recalled, while Fletcher – whom Forbes called a "a beloved queer pop star" – "reimagined the Katy Perry pop classic 'I Kissed A Girl' to write 'girls girls girls' ahead of her upcoming 2022 album, and was nominated for a 2021 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist."
JoJo Siwa, who came out earlier this year, couldn't be confined to the Music category alone, and so was included on the "Hollywood & Entertainment" list. The teen powerhouse has, among other things, made history on "Dancing With The Stars" as part of the show's "first same-sex dance couple," Forbes noted.
Gender-nonconforming artist Rahm Bowen was included on the Arts & Style list, where it was noted that "Bowen's portraiture investigates a range of color combinations and facial constructions that make up Black skin."
To see who else made the list, follow this link.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
