Every creative strives to innovate, adding their twists to existing ideas and pushing to stand out from their peers. But true disruption lives through individuals brave enough to break every rule about “making it” so that they can invent their playbooks.
To earn a spot on Complex’s inaugural list of Cultural Disruptors across fashion, technology, and sports, these creatives have done more than pioneer a one-off idea. Instead, their game-changing output is built upon new processes, forms of communication, and approaches to business.
Disruption requires radical self-belief in one’s vision. It means making meaningful art, even if it’s ahead of its time. People are only now starting to revisit Doechii’s 2019 “I got fired, thank God” video, and Plaqueboymax’s 2021 manifestations of becoming a top streamer. Disruptors trust their intuition when betting on themselves and those around them. Just look at Dave Free’s long-standing support of Kendrick Lamar. Their friendship began way before Kenny became a household name, and their professional partnership continues to grow. Or sports agent Nicole Lynn’s ability to secure the highest-paid non-quarterback contract in NFL history for defensive end Myles Garrett. The spirit of a disruptor may remain an internal quality for years before others recognize it and achieve cultural resonance.
The distinction in being a game-changer versus a changing force also lies in these disruptors' abilities to constantly push past their accomplishments. Through humor and humility, these creatives are inspirational not only for what they do, but how they do it.
Doechii
Following Doechii's impressive win for Best Rap Album at the 2024 Grammys, she captivated audiences with a powerful speech centered on being "exactly who you need to be." She's the third woman to ever win in this category, trailblazing in the realm of music highlighting Black queer identity. Her unwavering self-belief guides experimentation through music, inspired by multiple genres, and motivates fans to shatter expectations and stereotypes.
Nicole Lynn
Working as the President of Football Operations at Klutch Sports Group, Nicole Lynn constantly surpasses her past accomplishments in a male-dominated industry. In 2019, she was the first Black female agent to represent a first-round pick in the NFL draft. By the 2025 draft, Klutch Sports Group represented five first-round picks, with Lynn securing three selections. She’s also responsible for DMing Jalen Hurts to secure an initial meeting with him, then helped him become, at the time, the highest-paid player in the NFL with his contract with the Eagles in 2023. As a passionate champion of women in sports, she represents athletes such as Jennifer King, who is the first Black woman to be named a full-time coach in the NFL.
Clint419
The first Corteiz T-shirt said "RULES THE WORLD." After broadcasting this prescient message, Clint419 orchestrated city-specific drops to grow his brand's international following. Each release is a multi-stage event that returns magic and mystery to streetwear and sneaker culture, with London's TravelCards, geographic coordinates, or a secret NYC bus route for its recent Nike Air Max 95 "Honey Blacks.” Mutual trust between Clint and his community drives experiments like the Da Great Bolo Exchange of 2021, where fans traded in high-end outerwear for unseen, unpriced Corteiz puffers. He’s known to throw up a middle finger, but ultimately, Clint is a man of the people. He’s donated jeans to youth charities and pivoted a Twitter beef into an open call to guest-design Corteiz’s next collection.
Plaqueboymax
Following his meteoric rise to winning the "Best Creative Arts Streamer of the Year" award in 2024, PlaqueBoyMax leads a new class of streamers who are artists themselves. Earning credibility for his engineering skills, Plaqueboymax's original livestream format pulls the curtain back with top musical talents—Who could forget hearing Lancey Foux's voice without autotune or seeing Fred Again's entire production layout? Co-signed by streamers like Kai Cenat and hip-hop heads like Cole Bennett, Plaqueboymax aims for the stars while innovating music streaming.
Matthieu Blazy
Before joining Chanel as its new artistic director of fashion activities, Mattieu Blazy has quietly advocated for true craft over industry gimmicks at top fashion houses. In 2007, Blazy’s first job after graduating was under Raf Simons, then he worked at Maison Martin Margiela, where his anonymity was shattered by Suzy Menkes’ review for British Vogue. It’s only in recent years that fans have revisited his contributions in defining Celine's minimalist aesthetic as Senior Designer under Phoebe Philo from 2014 to 2016. Blazy's tenure as Bottega Veneta's creative director is widely celebrated for balancing the house's style codes with casual aesthetics, leather innovations, and modern twists on signatures like the intrecciato weave. Leading subtle but radical brand evolutions, Blazy is a prime example of the power of moving in silence.
Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier
In 2023, a year before the WNBA Championship showdown, New York Liberty's Breanna Stewart and Minnesota Lynx’s Napheesa Collier—Stewie and Phee, as the two players are affectionately known—linked to form Unrivaled. This three-on-three league allows WNBA players to play in the United States during the off-season at salaries that surpass those earned during the regular season. Unrivaled provides equity for players and initiatives like a Sephora-sponsored glam room. After raising a whopping $35 million in investment from top athletes, including Megan Rapinoe, Steve Nash, and Steph Curry, Unrivaled is in a unique position where it can carefully make future decisions on navigating its future growth.
Dave Free
A trusted friend and creative partner to Kendrick Lamar since high school, Dave Free has an elusive leadership position in the pgLang universe. And as Kendrick’s status ascends to superstar heights, Free’s skill set continues to climb, too. His work with the GNX artist combines creative direction, filmmaking, and more. Guided by the belief that music and visuals are complementary art forms, Free has helped transform Top Dawg Entertainment artists like SZA, Schoolboy Q, and more into superstars. He upholds high-quality art while expertly navigating deals with commercial pursuits, such as TV spots or The Pop Out concert, which brought a free live stream of Kenny’s Juneteenth concert across Amazon's channels.
Wisdm Kaye
Wisdm Kaye rewrote the rulebook on how to become a successful internet influencer. As a result, the Nigerian-American model has become one of the highest-paid social media personalities. Before being scouted by IMG or being invited to the 2024 Met Gala, Wisdm Kaye found inspiration through embracing his reality: styling looks that "would get death stares in [his] southern hometown.” Here, Wisdm paid homage to anime characters and wore interpretations of emojis, fonts, flags, or TikTok sounds. After amassing a massive following (7.5 million on Instagram and 13.6 million on TikTok), Kaye continues to skillfully lean into controversial garments and parodies around influencer practices.
Ryan Coogler
Filmmaker Ryan Coogler's Sinners is another hit in an ongoing creative partnership with Michael B. Jordan, which includes Creed and Black Panther. Coogler's groundbreaking deal with Warner Bros. establishes a definitive marker in the history of Black autonomy, ownership, and creative control in the film industry. This deal guarantees Coogler a share of box office revenue and full ownership of the film after 25 years. For film aficionados, Sinners is also the first film to be shot simultaneously on Ultra Panavision 70 and IMAX 65 film cameras, which Coogler enthusiastically explains in a recent video. As a born disruptor, Coogler's reinvention of the film industry includes advocating for more women in directorial roles, such as hiring Autumn Durald Arkapaw as a cinematographer for Sinners, which marked the first woman to shoot a feature in IMAX 65mm.
Taylor McNeill
You may be wondering why this headline says Taylor McNeill, but the photo is of Timothée Chalamet. Well, the celeb stylist likes to keep a low profile, letting the looks she styles, like this one, do the talking. McNeill is the not-so-secret force behind the buzziest celebrities' current style renaissances like Kendrick Lamar, Timothée Chalamet, Lorde, Margaret Qualley, and even Billie Eilish. Pulling off massive moments like Kendrick’s Super Bowl halftime show, McNeill's unrivaled taste is apparent in not only Kendrick’s custom Martine Rose varsity jacket but also his unexpected size 29 Celine women's jeans. Her sensational curation has also gone viral with Chalamet's Telfar pink puffer and Lorde's recent penchant for masculine styling. No matter how big, celebrities become a vessel for McNeill to lay out cultural references that people can't stop talking about.