The Spark That Changed Everything
Or How a Book Changed My Life
It’s rare that you can pinpoint the exact second inspiration hits. That lightning bolt of an idea that grabs you so hard, you have no choice but to follow it. For me, that moment came in 2011—and it changed the entire course of my career.
I’ve always been a collector of art and fashion books, the kind you proudly display on your coffee table like a badge of chic honor. So when Robin Derrick and Robin Muir released Vogue Model: The Faces of Fashion in 2010, I couldn’t wait to own it. I finally ordered my copy on Amazon in April 2011—back in those prehistoric days when “Prime” wasn’t a thing and you actually had to wait a week for shipping.
The day it arrived, I tore it open, devoured every single glossy page, and stayed up reading until 2 a.m. But when I closed the book, something gnawed at me. A deep, searing disappointment.
Because in nearly 100 models featured in the book, only two were Black.
I was incensed. And I did what we all did back then—I went straight to Amazon and wrote a review:
**As a fashion lover, former model, and life-long fan of Vogue, I was so excited to purchase Vogue Model. I couldn't wait to tear into the book once I got it. Imagine my shock as a "person of color" to find that the only two Black models included were Iman & Naomi Campbell. Yes, both are true legends, but as you thumb through this collection of models, you see the inclusion of much lesser models like Elise Crombez, Georgina Greenville, and Cecilia Chancellor. Some who are actually more clearly identified with other magazines—Kirsty Hume is much more of a Harper's Bazaar girl.
Where is Veronica Webb, muse to Bruce Weber and Herb Ritts, who is one of the few Black models ever to receive a cosmetics contract? Or Liya Kebede, one of the current faces of Estee Lauder, who had an entire issue of French Vogue to herself? Or Beverly Peele, who appeared in the now legendary spread with Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks? And what of Tyra Banks? The model as mogul! Few models have been more successful than Tyra!
Or LEGENDARY Donyale Luna, the first Black woman to appear on the cover of British Vogue back in 1966? Or Beverly Johnson for goodness sake!
These are shocking omissions! I almost want to send this book back. Or write my own! M***
And that was it. That was the spark. The moment of outrage that transformed into a vision, then into a mission, and finally into a bestselling book—Supreme Models.
Three books and an award-winning documentary later, I still can’t believe I had the audacity—the nerve, the balls—to say, I’ll write my own. But here’s the truth: audacity is everything. Belief in yourself is everything.
Sometimes it only takes one “Are you kidding me?” moment to push you toward your destiny
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