Listen to the sounds of the future with this playlist, curated by Wyclef Jean, Haitian rapper, producer, and philanthropist. Handpicked by Wyclef, these are the up-and-coming black artists you should be paying attention to, right now.

• Gaming is so ubiquitous amongst Gen Z and Millennials that calling someone a “gamer” today is like calling a Boomer a “TV-watcher.” (79% of Highsnobiety readers polled play video games)
  


• Gaming is a part of people’s lives but not an identity. To quote one of our experts: “People that wouldn't identify as gamers still spend a significant amount of time every week gaming, if you actually look at where they're putting their money and energy.”


• What important about gaming isn’t that there are more gamers in the world. Rather, it’s how the logic of gaming is completely reinventing the way products and ideas move through our culture.


• Creativity and self expression are central to gaming. Building your character is no different from how our generation relates to brands and uses them to craft their identity.


• Brands who enter into gaming must appeal authentically to the ideals of those platforms and communities. Otherwise, they simply look out of touch.


• Readers want to wear virtual skins of their favorite brands, and while few actually discover these brands in-game for the first time, it seems that re-discovery in-game is a valuable experience.


• It remains unclear whether gaming will disrupt luxury’s inherent exclusivity or inspire a turn toward accessibility. Some readers look to virtual luxury goods as an extension of real world clout, while others see the virtual world as an escape from that paradigm.


• The prominence of gaming, along the rise of NFTs and amateur stock trading, has created a scenario where the value of goods has been destabilized. Gucci sneakers cost $12, but crypto socks by a bedroom designer can fetch six figures.


• Another challenge to brands is finding a foothold in a world where our “real” lives are becoming less and less primary in terms of how we share ideas and use goods. This is compounded by the reality that traditional social media — Twitter, Facebook, Instagram — are becoming increasingly less important to gamers and early adopters, who prefer more cloistered social platforms.