See all the photos from EW's 2021 Pride Issue cover shoots

The 22-year-old rapper is still breaking barriers — one song (and several clapbacks) at a time. 

The rapper's EW cover shoot took place the day he learned his song "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April. "I'm thankful," he said that day. "But it also feels good to prove people wrong. It's one of my driving forces."

"Looking back on history," he says, "the biggest icons, the biggest artists, are the ones who aren't trying to always make everybody happy and who were doing themselves. I hope to do that at all times."

Read Lil Nas X's full cover story here.

The producer and actor — and the new star of Master of None season 3 — wants to create provocative art while elevating voices.

"Art is supposed to be controversial, polarizing," she says. So she'll keep taking the swings that may come, like her Black and queer ancestors before her, with the goal of making the path easier for those who come after.

"You can keep making s--- or you can run away. Like it or not, I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to keep making s---."

Read Waithe's full cover story here.

These two EW cover stars had their photo shoots on the same day, which means they were able to snap a photo together, too. 

The Saturday Night Live breakout is defining funny for a whole new generation — and pushing boundaries in the process.

Yang, the first Chinese American to ever star on SNL (and the first openly gay man to survive beyond one season), has only built on his milestones with subtly groundbreaking work.

In the wake of national outcry over anti-Asian hate, Yang stole "Weekend Update" with a sobering — if still wryly comic — personal reflection on the moment. He and co-writers Celeste Yim and Sudi Green wrestled with how (and whether) to tackle the subject on air. "If it's not going to be us, then who will it be?" he recalls them thinking. "It was a very emotional experience to write. On average, people work on two to three things a week; that was the only thing I worked on that week. I had spent seven hours on that first draft. It was really hard.... I had never been that microscopic with a piece more than I [was] with this."

Read Yang's full cover story here.

With the third and final season of the history-making drama series Pose, Rodriguez has emerged as a fully realized leading lady.

The New Jersey native remembers how she was consistently cast in "guest star or the clubgoer" roles before Pose gave her the opportunity to take the lead. "There was a lot of weight [to it], a weight that I wanted," she says.

"I got to really showcase the work that I've always wanted to showcase as an actress," she adds, "and not just shine light on the industry, but shine light on women who don't get noticed within the industry."

Rodriguez predicts that Pose's final season, now airing on FX, will "hit harder than ever."

"I hope every season that we've done has changed the game, but now we've got to go out with a bang!" she says.

Read Rodriguez's full cover story here.

To read more from EW's 2021 Pride Issue, order the June issue of Entertainment Weekly — with covers featuring Lil Nas X, Mj Rodriguez, Bowen Yang, and Lena Waithe — or find it on newsstands beginning May 14. Don't forget to subscribe for more exclusive interviews and photos, only in EW.

To read more from EW's 2021 Pride Issue, order the June issue of Entertainment Weekly — with covers featuring Lil Nas X, Mj Rodriguez, Bowen Yang, and Lena Waithe — or find it on newsstands beginning May 14. Don't forget to subscribe for more exclusive interviews and photos, only in EW.

To read more from EW's 2021 Pride Issue, order the June issue of Entertainment Weekly — with covers featuring Lil Nas X, Mj Rodriguez, Bowen Yang, and Lena Waithe — or find it on newsstands beginning May 14. Don't forget to subscribe for more exclusive interviews and photos, only in EW.

To read more from EW's 2021 Pride Issue, order the June issue of Entertainment Weekly — with covers featuring Lil Nas X, Mj Rodriguez, Bowen Yang, and Lena Waithe — or find it on newsstands beginning May 14. Don't forget to subscribe for more exclusive interviews and photos, only in EW.