Iman says she turned down jobs where white models were paid more
Model Iman said she turned down jobs early in her career because she wasn't paid the same as her white counterparts.
Speaking to US news site The Wrap, she revealed that when she started modeling in the 1970s, it was expected that she agrees to earn less than a white model and turns down jobs as a result.
She recalls a conversation with her agent: "I told him says, 'I want to be paid for services rendered, which simply means, I want to be paid' for the same work that she does.'"
She has added that she realized early on that as a model she had to push back to be successful and that self-esteem was key. "I understood right away - I was barely 19 - that image is my motto in this industry," she said in an interview to promote the new Supreme Models YouTube series about black models. in fashion.
Speaking on CBS This Morning, Iman detailed her experience with makeup artists on set, often as the only black model. She remembers that during her first shoot in New York, for American Vogue, the makeup artist asked her if she had brought her own foundation "because it had nothing for me". The model then launched her own makeup line in 1994, partly in response to these experiences. In 2010, it was a $25 million a year business and arguably inspired Rihanna's successful cosmetics brand, Fenty.
Iman was born in Somalia, daughter of a diplomat. She first studied political science before moving to New York in 1975 for a modeling career. This came after a chance encounter with photographer Peter Beard in Nairobi. She has since recalled how that, too, was informed through a racist lens.
In 2012, she told CBS that Beard made up a story about her past. "Beard told the press that I didn't speak a word of English, let alone any other languages, that I was herding goats," she said. "I am the daughter of an ambassador." She accepted the story initially, however, wearing a traditional Somali dress and pretending she had just learned English.
While black models are now more common in fashion, problems remain. Black British model Jourdan Dunn, who has appeared on several Vogue covers, opened up about the disparities as recently as last year, with an example eerily similar to Iman's. Speaking to the TTYA Talks podcast, she said: "I remember the girls I found, like my best friends in the industry, Cara [Delevigne] and Karlie [Kloss], I know their rate was different of mine, even though we were doing the same jobs. When I think about it, it's so fucked up, like what's the difference? But clearly the difference is skin tone. But now I know my worth and I'm going ask for it."
Model Iman said she turned down jobs early in her career because she wasn't paid the same as her white counterparts.
Speaking to US news site The Wrap, she revealed that when she started modeling in the 1970s, it was expected that she agrees to earn less than a white model and turns down jobs as a result.
She recalls a conversation with her agent: "I told him says, 'I want to be paid for services rendered, which simply means, I want to be paid' for the same work that she does.'"
She has added that she realized early on that as a model she had to push back to be successful and that self-esteem was key. "I understood right away - I was barely 19 - that image is my motto in this industry," she said in an interview to promote the new Supreme Models YouTube series about black models. in fashion.
Speaking on CBS This Morning, Iman detailed her experience with makeup artists on set, often as the only black model. She remembers that during her first shoot in New York, for American Vogue, the makeup artist asked her if she had brought her own foundation "because it had nothing for me". The model then launched her own makeup line in 1994, partly in response to these experiences. In 2010, it was a $25 million a year business and arguably inspired Rihanna's successful cosmetics brand, Fenty.
Iman was born in Somalia, daughter of a diplomat. She first studied political science before moving to New York in 1975 for a modeling career. This came after a chance encounter with photographer Peter Beard in Nairobi. She has since recalled how that, too, was informed through a racist lens.
In 2012, she told CBS that Beard made up a story about her past. "Beard told the press that I didn't speak a word of English, let alone any other languages, that I was herding goats," she said. "I am the daughter of an ambassador." She accepted the story initially, however, wearing a traditional Somali dress and pretending she had just learned English.
While black models are now more common in fashion, problems remain. Black British model Jourdan Dunn, who has appeared on several Vogue covers, opened up about the disparities as recently as last year, with an example eerily similar to Iman's. Speaking to the TTYA Talks podcast, she said: "I remember the girls I found, like my best friends in the industry, Cara [Delevigne] and Karlie [Kloss], I know their rate was different of mine, even though we were doing the same jobs. When I think about it, it's so fucked up, like what's the difference? But clearly the difference is skin tone. But now I know my worth and I'm going ask for it."
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