Behind The RS 100 List: Selecting the Agents of Change

Radiohead, Tina Fey, Sacha Baron Cohen, LeBron James, J.J. Abrams, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Banksy and Barack Obama all have something in common: they're forward-thinking individuals on Rolling Stone's RS 100 list of agents of change. Perhaps you've perused the list and wondered how the RS editors selected these folks — if so, don't miss deputy managing editor Nathan Brackett breaking down our methodology in a behind-the-scenes video, above.

Then count down the Top 20 Agents of Change and check out Change on the Cover of Rolling Stone, a look back at members of the RS 100 club's past features in the magazine.

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  MUSIC 100 Greatest Debut Albums
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  MOVIES 'Great Gatsby' Is a Crushing Disappointment
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  TV Why You Should Watch 'Happy Endings'
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  POLITICS No Price Big Banks Can't Fix

Song Stories

“Let My Love Open the Door”

Pete Townshend | 1980

A peppy, hopeful love song, "Let My Love Open the Door" became a U. S. Top Ten hit for Pete Townshend in 1980, anchored by the kind of repeating synthesizer figures that he'd used in some of the Who's recordings in the previous decade. Although Townshend brushed the song off as "just a ditty" in Rolling Stone shortly after its release, in 1996 he revealed it was about love of the holiest sort. "It's supposed to be about the power of God's love," he remarked. "That when you're in difficulty, whether it's major or minor, God's love is always there for you."

More Song Stories entries »

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