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Ib Kamara introduces Dazed Spring 2025, the New Gen issue featuring Doechii, Rema and more.

It’s a new year, and we’re already halfway through a decade born out of turbulence. The nostalgia gap is closing in on us as we struggle to face an uncertain future and instead cling to the definitive past. But as we cycle through eras at lightspeed, we’re slowly, but surely, exhausting what was. When the time comes, the burning question on everyone’s lips will undoubtedly be: What’s next?

Across these pages, we’ve done our best to answer that question. Dedicated to a new wave of young, talented and hopeful individuals, the New Gen issue is full of stories that speak to the urgency of the current moment. At a time when people’s rights are being undermined and taken away, how can youth culture respond? For the issue, I challenged the team and myself to produce imagery that speaks of newness in Dazed, yet remains timeless at the same time. I’m a sucker for things that you can relate to both now and in a distant future.

Kicking things off strong, Doechii – fresh from her big night at the Grammys – is being heralded as the future of rap. Dazed editorial director Kacion Mayers caught up with her in LA, even though she’d barely had the time to catch up with herself. Rema, whose surprise album HEIS ricocheted around the world toward the end of last year, is ready to explode. His energy is unmatched, and his sky-high ambitions are helping him carve his own path in the future of Afrobeats and beyond. Then there’s the fresh cohort of musicians redefining the sound of now: Chy Cartier, Jim Legxacy, Zino Vinci, BXKS, Niko B, YT, Ashbeck, Kwes E and Victory Lap founder Joseph McDermott. It’s beautiful to witness the crosspollination of ideas as they develop and push one another to new heights of success.

Erika Kamano and Zara Mirkin went to New Zealand for a five-day shoot capturing the local Māori community. The 26-page special highlights the beauty of culture, community and defiance – it’s a story to be both seen and heard. In the same breath, Harron Walker speaks to the trans community across the United States, giving them a platform as their voices are being silenced by the current administration. Then there’s Amelia Grey, who ran around the Centre Pompidou in nothing but gold body paint and some panties to celebrate the launch of Louis Vuitton’s newest linkup with Takashi Murakami. Finally, Diane Chiu graces the cover in the latest North Face × Cecilie Bahnsen collaboration.

Inside, we speak directly to the next generation of high-schoolers in a west London suburb. It’s an enlightening read. We also travel to LA to speak with Nettspend, whose pet monkey was seemingly just as confused as the rest of us, and investigate men’s PR problem in a revealing deep-dive on boys who date. Roly Walmsley is fashioning a future out of his older brother’s hand-me-downs. Intrigued? Check it out. Rising beauty influencer Golloria shows how her road to success can inspire us all, and in Lithuania, young people from the alleged happiest nation in the world (for under-30s, that is) tell us how to party like it’s 2025.

We hope it’s an issue that reminds you to be bold, speak your truth, and be yourself – even when it feels like the world wants you to do the opposite. Take it from us, who know a thing or two about these things.