Is Edward Enninful really Britain’s most powerful Black Briton?

Image copyright: Edward Enninful/Instagram

My favourite publication in life is The Powerlist. A magazine dedicated to amplifying Black British talent in an annual list, there is nothing else like it that uncovers who are the Black people really making moves and impacting change in this country.

They’re not always the faces you’ll see in mainstream press or even on socials. These are the people behind the scenes being excellent.

I collect the magazine annually and was pleased to see this year’s vibrant yellow cover (the choice of colour is all part of the experience for me, to be honest. Burgundy next year, please!). However, my enthusiasm was short-lived when I found out who had been given the top spot.

As I sat on my bed in Jamaica I was confused. Is Edward Enninful truly the most powerful person in the UK? It was the first time in about a decade I really questioned the top spot. Now I guess the real thing to acknowledge here is what is the true definition of power? Everyone’s will be different. For me The Powerlist represented those who were making impactful decisions in global tech like 2022 recipient Jackie Wright, Chief Digital Officer at Microsoft or Sir Lewis Hamilton in 2021 who took his racing career and moved into philanthropic work though his organisation Mission 44 which supports young people from underrepresented and undersupported communities. Basically people who are shifting the needle even if you don’t know their names or faces.

But I couldn’t help but wonder if Enniful topping the list was as a result of the end of his tenure at Vogue rather than anything else? For clarity I have no malice or prejudice against either party. I went to see Enninful at Southbank when his book, A Visible Man was released and purchased a copy. However, I do remember thinking how couched his answers were to fellow Ghanaian and host at the event Michaela Coel when it came to the challenges within the industry.

Michaela herself had been praised highly for refusing to enter into an unfavourable deal with Nextflix, walking away from the streaming giant and landing a deal with the BBC and HBO and going on to receive multiple accolades for the series and retaining her creative licence. All as a Black woman in a tumultuous industry. She – to me – demonstrated true power whilst Edward still had to be very aware that his white boss was in the audience and said as much. Is power really power if you’re not able to express your true feelings?

I think I was more disappointed with the choice as bar lavish dinners and undoubtedly groundbreaking covers during his tenure at Vogue – and I have many an edition except that elusive first (i *think*) Rhianna cover – I’m not sure what Enniful has actually done outside of fashion?

During the Southbank interview he talks about the various community work he does but makes no specific reference to anything. It could be for privacy or could it be there aren’t any? Even his write up in the list focuses on the achievements he made inside of Vogue.

To be fair, I would hope that his position would have undoubtedly opened doors for more writers of colour, more visibility of our issues in an unequivocally mainstream publication and other more subtle changes that could have only come from having a Black, gay man at the helm of an iconic taste making publication like Vogue. I’m sure he could flick through his phone, and within minutes, doors are opened. That is definitely not every day power. Maybe those in industry have felt his affect, and that shouldn’t be devalued.

Though he wouldn’t have been my choice, The Powerlist continues to be an awesome celebration of the unsung and the talented. 

You can view the 2024 edition of The Powerlist online