As the dust settles on a particularly turbulent decade, we’ve been in a reflective mood.

The last 10 years were defined by fluidity. A fluidity that has spread across all areas of culture and society, from information and identity to tech and politics. Looking back now, the Very Online 2010s did away with some monolithic, long-held truths and asked us all to adapt to a world of ever-shifting boundaries. Disorientating and strange, the decade was also alive with new possibilities.

Maybe that’s why the 2010s gave rise to a new generation of daring artists who took delight in collapsing boundaries, resisting genres and subverting systems. Some are no longer at the mercy of traditional record labels, choosing instead to release music directly to their fans. Some did away with the album altogether. Some raged against oppression, and others just raged. Many built communities of fans, a few walked a path of one.

Now, as we strap ourselves in for whatever comes next, we can’t help but ask: what just happened?