Chantelle`s Diary

Hi guys today in this blog post I am going to be talking about how Naomi Campbell changed the modeling world in an impactful way. She was definitely a model that we could never forget. She walked in all different types of runways for so many brands. I will definitely explain more about how Naomi was a huge impact for the modeling industry. I hope you all like this post!

Naomi Campbell as we all know is one of the most popular models out here. She was born in London and started being on the screen at such a young age. A really cool fact is that she was in a music video with Bob Marley at a young age she was introduced to fashion and how to walk in runways at the age of 13 from her mom. A woman came up to Naomi and wanted to know if she was interested in modeling but her mom was not on board with her wanting to model at first because she wanted her to finish school. Luckily, at some point her mom did end up jumping on board with her modeling interest. Naomi signed to an agency called Syncho and her first big shot was with British Elle. She was really getting good deals at the age of 16 she even got a call to go to Paris to shoot with French Elle. Naomi did face some challenges in terms of the color of her skin. There was times where it did become hard for her to book some shows but she did get the cover of French Vogue in 1988 which was a huge deal for her. At that time there has never been a black woman on the cover so, she definitely made history being the first. Then, in September of 1989 Naomi was put on the cover of American Vogue and she understood how important it was for a black model to be on the cover.

When it came to Naomi and modeling and how there should be more black representation Naomi never said the word “racism” she would use a different word for it. She did not want to come off like she was throwing that word around she wanted people to talk about their own experiences with that topic. Naomi was definitely someone who stood true to herself and stood up against injustice and inequality. Naomi at a young age was being told how certain things were not good because of her race but at the some point she lifted herself up and did things for her culture and race. There were times when Naomi felt misunderstood by the British media. Naomi was a black model who gained prominence and in that time the British media did not know how to be respectful towards a black model.

Even though the British media was trying to shape Naomi as some type of diva that did not stop people from her someplace of supporting her and loving her. Naomi was definitely someone who paved the way for people of color in the fashion/model industry. When it came to the discrimination Yves Saint Laurent and Azzedine Alaia they were two of her greatest supporters. Naomi was definitely shooting with a lot of brands such as Burberry, Saint Laurent, Valentino, etc; Naomi has been in so many iconic things including walking with Versace on the runway from, singing along with other super models to the song “Freedom”. She even appeared in a music video with Michael Jackson and was honored to shoot with other models for the 100th anniversary of US Vogue.

I do think Naomi was a huge impact for the modeling industry and still is till this day she made a way for people of color to know that if she can do it they can too. Even though we do need more representation for people of color it is good to see how the culture is shifting and we do see more representation for people of color in these industries.