Forbes releases a diverse list of the 100 most powerful women

A number of politicians and CEOs were on the list, but there were a few surprises this year with newcomers Stacey Abrams and Australian Shemara Wikramanayake also making the list.

Oprah Winfrey and Stacey Abrams Source: Getty Images

While the Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel took out the top spot in Forbes 100 most powerful women list, with fellow politicians Kamala Harris and Nancy Pelosi also in the top 10, it was some of the other entrants on the list that had social media talking.

Among the new entrants was Stacey Abrams, whose advocacy enabled more than 800,000 people to register to vote in the US state of Georgia.

Ms Abrams was previously helped by Oprah Winfrey (number 20 on the list) in her run for Governor of Georgia in 2018.

Someone else who is making the list for the first time is Australian businesswoman Shemara Wikramanayake who came in at no.29 as the CEO & Managing Director of Macquarie Group. She is the only female CEO among Australia's 20 biggest companies.

Another popular entry was pop star Rihanna, who was the highest rated female musician on the list for the second year in a row.

Rihanna, along with Taylor Swift and Beyoncé were the only musicians to make the list.

For many it was the number of inspiring Black women who made the list that really stood out.