From child star to supermodel of the world
Naomi Campbell made her rise to fame as a supermodel and is still one of the easiest recognizable members of the fashion industry. Campbell might have started working in the 70s but we celebrate this fashion legend through the years.
Campbell entered the fashion industry in the 1970s at the age of 7 and even appeared in one of Bob Marley’s iconic “Is This Love?” music video. Campbell says that she was told she was going to be featured in the Bob Marley video but didn’t realize that she would work side-by-side with the Jamaican artist.
(Photo: YouTube)
By the early 1980s, Campbell was discovered at the age of 15 by Beth Boldt who was the head of the major modeling agency Syncro and told her that she could be a model. Eventually, Eileen Ford of the Ford Modeling Agency signed Campbell to model in campaigns and magazines.
In 1987, Campbell got her big break walking the runway for her first New York Fashion Week. Campbell quickly became the talk of the town, even modeling down the Marc Jacobs runway in just a towel.
Later that year, Campbell walked her couture catwalk for Yves Saint Laurent and was made famous for her confident walk. By the 1990s Campbell was the runway “it girl,” eventually walking the runway for Fendi, Versace, Chanel, and more.
Campbell says that she had to face discrimination for her skin color at the time, being unable to book certain runway shows. Campbell says that this discrimination didn’t rattle her as she started performing and attending auditions at a young age.
(Photo: Foc Kan/Wireimage)
Campbell also made influential friends in the fashion industry including Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington that was a group of models known as “The Trinity.” Linda and Christy helped Campbell face discrimination in the fashion industry, insisting Campbell get booked alongside them for campaigns and runway shows.
The Trinity even starred in a music video together for George Michael’s “Freedom” and this music video translated in theme for the Versace Fall/Winter later that year. The 90s was an amazing time for Campbell and she would carry this over into the new millennia in the 2000s.
In the early 2000s, Campbell was regularly working with big fashion brands for campaigns and runway shows but her problems started to catch up with her. Campbell’s private issues started to become public including her problem with substance abuse and was known for having a sharp temper that was a frequent problem.
After getting into some legal problems, Campbell realized she needed to seek out help to combat these issues. Now Campbell continues to model and is an activist against discrimination through her involvement with the Diversity Coalition which is a group that supports models of color.
Campbell has also worked more on-screen as an actor with roles in “American Horror Story” and “Empire,” also judging competition fashion shows including “Making The Cut.” Though her future is bright it seems there is no end in sight for Campbell anytime soon.
