The most influential African
Americans in 2020

The Root 100 is our annual list of the most influential African Americans, ages 25 to 45. It’s our way of honoring the innovators, the leaders, the public figures and the game changers whose work from the past year is breaking down barriers and paving the way for the next generation. This year’s list of honorees is a reminder of the beauty and brilliance of Blackness, at a time when the political and cultural landscape has grown even more hostile to the idea of Black achievement.Click here to learn more.

How did we arrive at the list? By using a unique algorithm, we calculate honorees’ REACH — the people they touch through media along with Twitter and Instagram followers — and their SUBSTANCE — the impact of their work, graded on a scale of 0 to 10 — to determine their INFLUENCE, which determines their ranking. Ultimately, we scored hundreds of people to determine The Root 100. Congratulations to this year’s honorees!