Welcome to the Culture Clash issue of Dazed – and it really is a clash of cultures. From the baile funk scene in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo to the New Year’s parties of Kyiv and the school proms of Cape Town, this issue offers up a snapshot of youth culture around the world.
This includes our cover lineup, which is basically informed by our office playlist. We’ve got fakemink, the British-Algerian-Indian artist leading the UK underground scene; 2hollis, the 22-year-old Californian towering over contemporary pop (literally, he’s 6ft 6in); Lil Uzi Vert, the rapper from Philly who has cemented themselves as one of the most charismatic MCs alive; Oklou, the French singer and producer who seduced us all with her debut studio album choke enough; and beabadoobee, the British-Filipina musician reinventing what it means to be indie in 2026. Elsewhere in the issue you’ll meet Effie, an artist at the bleeding edge of Korea’s underground rap scene, who is proving that the country has a lot more to offer than hyper-polished pop, along with a host of other musicians who proudly perform in their native tongues.
Meanwhile, in a clash between man and machine, Brazilian-Kiwi model Angelina Kendall and robot HMND Alpha star side-by-side in a fashion story exploring our complex relationship with tech. In one image, Kendall kisses HMND Alpha while a car burns in the back-ground, which feels like a perfect metaphor for our times: the world on fire while we stare lovingly into our devices. But hey, at least we’ve got good music to listen to.
