OXFORDSHIRE — This year at VOICES 2022, guests took a trip back to 1960s New York, dining and dancing amid kaleidoscopic lights and a venue crudely cocooned in tin foil — evocative of the underground art scene that rocked the city and informed pop culture for decades to come.
The evening marked the close of the 2022 edition of BoF’s annual gathering for big thinkers, where executives, founders, creators, activists and catalysts from around the world descended upon Soho Farmhouse in Oxfordshire for three days of thought-provoking talks and agenda-setting discussions.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this before,” said Korean-American model Irene Kim, “Where people come together for a reason to talk about culture and really uniting people through creativity and just being yourself and individuality.”
On Thursday night, the room was abuzz with conversation as guests mingled over cocktails and champagne, using their final night to connect and reflect on this year’s panels, where discussion topics ranged from sustainability and technology to global culture and the political landscape.
NBC News journalist Ayman Mohyeldin spoke about the epidemic of misinformation and the role media should play in today’s fractured world; while former Blackrock executive Tariq Fancy told the audience why regulation is necessary to stop greenwashing. Jordan Chairman Larry Miller shared a personal story of his journey from incarceration to the boardroom of the biggest sportswear company in the world; and model and activist Dennis Nyero spoke about his story as a refugee.
Malala Yousafzai closed out the talks with her thoughts on continuing the fight for a better tomorrow, in conversation with BoF founder Imran Amed.
“All these things that I’ve heard confirm to me that what is the most important thing in life is intention,” said VOICES speaker Sue Y Nabi, CEO of Coty. “The most important [thing] is not where you start from, it’s where you want to go. And the most important [thing] is not who you are; it’s what you’re willing to do.”
“I came in perhaps with the assumption that this would be very fashion centric, and I think the highlight was that the conversions were so expansive,” said Ziad Ahmed, founder of Gen Z marketing agency JUV Consulting. “So many parts of my mind were engaged through the discourses that were shared here, and the diversity of perspectives from different disciplines being represented here i think was a real treat.”
After drinks, attendees filed into the main party venue, dining by candlelight before partying to beats by Lagoon Femshayma.
This year, VOICES guests hailed from 41 countries, Amed told the crowd during dinner. “To have that kind of representation from all around the world just reminds me why VOICES is so special,” he said.
BoF VOICES 2022 is made possible in part through our partners McKinsey & Company, Shopify, Flannels, Brandlive, Lenzing, ShopRunner, Snap, Canada Goose, Invisible Collection, Soho House, and Getty Images.
