Tyra Banks

Who is Tyra Banks?

Tyra Banks is an American actor, author, producer, entrepreneur, television personality, and former supermodel. She is best known for creating, producing, and presenting the long-running reality television series 'America's Next Top Model.' She also created and hosted the two-time ‘Emmy’ award-winning daytime talk show 'The Tyra Banks Show' for five years. Banks, who gained recognition as a supermodel, originally wanted to be a writer or producer in the film industry. Often body shamed by her older brother as well as her peers, Banks did not think of modeling as a career option until she was encouraged by a classmate who made her realize her true potential. Despite initial discouragement from professionals, she eventually landed a high profile modeling assignment after being spotted by a French scout. She went on to model for several leading clothing line and became the first black woman to be featured on the covers of prestigious magazines like 'GQ' and 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.' She then went on to try her hand at writing, singing, acting, and teaching. She is one of the few women to have been repeatedly featured in 'Time' magazine's ‘world’s most influential people’ list. She is also one of the few models to be named a ‘Legendary Supermodel’ by ‘MODELS.com.’

Modeling Career

Tyra Banks started her modeling career at the age of 15, while she was still in school. After being rejected by four modeling agencies, she was signed to ‘L.A. Models.’

In 1990, she signed a contract with ‘Elite Model Management,’ following which she was offered an opportunity to model in Europe. Subsequently, she moved to Milan. The next year, she achieved a remarkable feat of booking 25 runway shows as a newcomer in the 1991 ‘Paris Fashion Week.’

Reluctant to follow a strict diet to stay skinny, as required by the industry, she decided to return to the USA in the mid-1990s to pursue a career in swimwear and lingerie modeling. In 1993, she became the first African-American model to sign a contract with ‘CoverGirl’ cosmetics.

'People' magazine named her one of the '50 Most Beautiful People in the World' in 1994. She became the first African-American model to be featured on the covers of 'GQ' magazine and 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue' in 1996 and 1997 respectively.

In 1997, she became a ‘Victoria's Secret Angel’ and was featured in ‘Victoria's Secret’ lingerie catalogue as the first black woman. The same year, she was named 'Supermodel of the Year' by VH1. She subsequently left modeling to focus on other career choices, but re-signed with her former modeling agency ‘IMG Models’ in 2010.