Tyra's Loss, Is Our Gain
For Norfolk, Virginia native Nataya Smalls, the real competition has just begun.
"Not as many places hire African-American models, so I know it's going to be hard," she said. "I'm going to have to work 10 times harder than other girls."
Smalls, 20, was declared the winner of the "Essence It Girl" Model Search Contest after a grueling competition process that began in February.
Smalls auditioned for Essence after her original plans fell through.
"I was actually supposed to try out for 'America's Next Top Model' the same day," she said. "Then my friend, who was supposed to drive me, couldn't go."
Instead, Smalls went to New York City for the Essence audition after hearing about it on former supermodel and 'America's Next Top Model' host Tyra Banks,' website. Smalls, who had previously tried out for "America's Next Top Model," said the Essence audition process was much different.
"For 'America's Next Top Model,' they just lined us up in a big group," she said. "Essence was different. It was a lot more intimate. It was more about you. They took us in one at a time and actually looked at each girl."
Five finalists, including Smalls, were then selected to participate in a "modeling boot camp" that aired on Essence's website in a documentary series called "Making of an It Girl."
Essence named Smalls as the contest winner on June 14. She has since received a one-year contract with Elite Model Management and will appear in Essence Magazine's Fall Fashion issue this September.
Essence Communications Inc. was founded in 1968 as a media company dedicated to African-American women. Based in New York City, the company promotes a brand "Where Black Women Come First." Essence Magazine, first published in 1970, features lifestyle and fashion information intended especially for African-American women.
The "Essence It Girl" Model Search Contest intended to address a lack of diversity on runways throughout the modeling world. Collaborating with Elite Model Management, Essence launched the search for an African-American "It Girl" to inject some racial diversity into a fashion industry predominantly comprised of Caucasian models.
"I actually saw this documentary a few days ago about how there is a lack of African-American models," Smalls said. "I think it's great that Essence and Elite are reaching out to African-American girls. I thought, 'Wow, I'm going to be making it more diverse.'"
Smalls always knew she wanted to work in the fashion industry. Growing up with nine siblings, the current Norwalk Community College student learned how to stand out in a crowd from an early age.
"I've always wanted to pursue modeling," she said. "I've done local fashion shows and stuff like that."
Beyond a photoshoot for the September issue of Essence Magazine, Smalls is not sure where her modeling contract will lead. She does know that as the Essence contest winner, she can be an important advocate for increasing diversity in the fashion industry.
"A lot of darker-skinned girls want to be lighter," she said. "I'm darker-skinned, so I hope that makes other girls more confident."
While her dream job would be to model for Victoria's Secret, Smalls has no intentions of leaving her education behind. She plans to maintain her Norwalk roots by earning a business marketing degree from NCC.
"I'm going to be registering for my classes for next semester pretty soon," she said. "I'm definitely going to continue school."
By KATE MARCAL - Hour Staff Writer