2020 marks GQ’s 25th annual Men of the Year issue. And while it’s been a hell of a challenging year, the issue’s cover stars have brightened the dark moments: Megan Thee Stallion, George Clooney, and Trevor Noah.
The Rapper: Megan Thee Stallion
How much has Megan dominated our brainspaces this year? She hit us with two of 2020’s giant-est singles—Beyonce-featuring hit single “Savage” and the FCC-confounding empowerment jam “WAP” with Cardi B—and her debut album “Good News” (which, yes it is) doesn’t drop until this Friday. For her GQ cover, Megan spoke to Allison P. Davis about an incredible musical run in the midst of Megan’s vocal support for Black women, whether it’s on SNL, in the pages of The New York Times, or in everyday life. “I feel like men think that they own sex, and I feel like it scares them when women own sex,” she explains. Megan also talks about that night, and the damage she suffered beyond the physical pain—while showing the fortitude that’s taken her this far. Photographed by Adrienne Raquel, Megan Thee Stallion resonates with the strength and confidence that’s made her rise a highlight of an unforgettable year.
The Icon: George Clooney
GQ’s Zach Baron caught up with Clooney to talk about the Hollywood legend’s career, his family, and his new science fiction epic, The Midnight Sky, in which he plays a scientist who believes himself to be the last man left on a dystopian planet Earth. Meanwhile, on our (only somewhat dystopian) Earth, Clooney is both a once-in-a-generation film talent and a teller of honest stories—about surviving a motorcycle accident, knowing Joe Biden, and that time he allegedly gave a bunch of friends $1 million each in a bag. He’s a writer of angry letters. He’s also a wife guy, and a proud dad. And he’s cracked the code on being comfortable with himself. He’s George Clooney, and at a time when we as a nation can’t seem to agree on much, he’s one thing we can agree on. Though you’ve never seen him quite like this, thanks to photography by Jason Nocito.
The Newsman: Trevor Noah
In his Men of the Year profile, Trevor Noah talks to Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist Wesley Lowery about [deep breath] 2020’s Black Lives Matter protests, his controversial 2016 dinner with Tomi Lahren, his mental health, being biracial in America, where the American press has failed, and—relatedly—building (and evolving) his version of the Daily Show. In our confusing, noisy, pandemic-cloistered world, its become essential viewing by leaning into complexity and nuance. “What I’m doing on this show is I’m just gonna speak my truth…and say, ‘Yo man. A lot of things we’re gonna deal with in the world are messy and complicated,” says Noah. In a year where the news has gotten wilder by the week, Noah has been the voice America needs. Featuring photography by Shaniqwa Jarvis.