Contributors

LisaROBINSON

"PAIR OF ACES," P. 114

"interviewing Alison Krauss and Robert Plant was a full circle moment for me," says V.F. contributing editor Lisa Robinson, who traveled with Plant on five Led Zeppelin tours. Robinson has interviewed hundreds of musicians; her book, Nobody Ever Asked Me About the Girls, published in 2020, is out in paperback this month.

SebastianJUNGER

"THE END OF FOREVER," P. 128

Junger—a best-selling author and codirector, with his late friend Tim Hetherington, of the acclaimed war documentary Restrepo—wrote about the U.S.'s calamitous exit from Afghanistan, a country he reported in and on throughout the course of its last 20 years of conflict.

AlexisOKEOWO

"EYES ON THE PRIZE," P. 94

Okeowo, who profiled New York Times writer Nikole Hannah-Jones, is a veteran journalist and author. They have long shared professional circles with Hannah-Jones, creator of the lightningrod 1619 Project, and found their conversation yielded new perspective. "Nikole was refreshingly open, funny, and as honest as ever," Okeowo says.

LachlanBAILEY

"A HAPPY NEW YEAR," P. 68

"it is somewhat intimidating to work with an actress of her caliber, but her laid-back energy in front of the camera made it easy," says photographer Bailey of this month's cover star, Jennifer Lawrence. A Los Angeles house once owned by Frank Sinatra helped capture "the sensuality and the sunshine" he hoped to evoke, drawing inspiration from classic French cinema.

SebastianKIM

"DOWN TO EARTH," P. 88 "ROCK STAR," P. 124

Kim, who photographed both Amazon CEO Andy Jassy and Louis Vuitton's Francesca Amfitheatrof, learned the "significance of connecting with a subject to tell their unique story" early in his career. The photographer's work, he says, is influenced by his experiences apprenticing for Richard Avedon.

MelissaJELTSEN

"SHE WAS WALKING HOME," P. 64

"Sarah's death tapped into a larger debate about how best to protect women from male violence," says Jeltsen of the death of Sarah Everard, the 33-year-old British woman murdered by a police officer in 2020. As a reporter, Jeltsen has long been fascinated by feminism's relationship to criminal justice, particularly which women the system prioritizes.