Tyra Banks Biography
She was born in Los Angeles, California. She has brown hair, brown eyes, and is African-American. In 1991, Tyra was just weeks away from starting her freshman year at college when Elite, a fashion
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magazine, gave the 17-year-old her first modelling job. Instead of heading to school, she headed to Paris for fashion shows. Tyra became internationally known. She is now featured in a wide array of magazines, commercials, and billboards. Her credits include Cover Girl, Swatch, Pepsi, Nike, Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, and Dolce & Gabbana, among many others.
She was the first African-American to feature on the cover of GQ, Sports Illustrated's swimsuit issue and the Victoria's Secret catalog. It was her Victoria's Secret work in particular that made her famous. In 1997, Tyra won the prestigious Michael Award for Supermodel of the Year.
She stars in a television show called America's Next Top Model, where she coaches aspiring models.
Banks was born in Inglewood, California and attended Immaculate Heart High School, an all-girls, independent Catholic private school in Los Angeles. Growing up, Banks was very thin and often teased; she was considered an ugly duckling. In an interview, the model later said that this was a very difficult time for her, as she developed a "very strong self-image problem."
Detail
Tyra Banks during a Victoria's Secret
fashion show.In 1991, Banks was soon to
begin her freshman year at Loyola Marymount
University when Elite modeling agency gave
the 17-year-old her first modelling job.
Prior to this entry into the fashion world,
Banks had been rejected several times for
modelling assignments. In fact, she states
that she did not deem her first job to be
the start of a long career in fashion: "An
agent saw pictures of me and said that I was
the only girl she wanted to take back to
Paris […] I didn't leave thinking I was
going to be some big fashion model. I just
wanted to make money for college."
Consequently, instead of heading to
university, Banks went to Paris for fashion
shows and soon gained international renown
for her work. She has been featured in a
variety of magazines, commercials, and
billboards. Her modeling credits include
CoverGirl, Swatch, Pepsi, Nike, Tommy
Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, and Dolce & Gabbana,
among many others. After several years, it
emerged that Naomi Campbell was not
particularly fond of Banks' increasing
success, with the British supermodel trying
to have Banks excluded from shows for Chanel.
Despite these confrontations, Tyra's career
took off: Banks was the first
African-American to be featured on the
covers of Gentlemen's Quarterly, Sports
Illustrated's swimsuit issue, and the
Victoria's Secret catalog. In particular,
Tyra is famous for her Victoria's Secret
work. In 1997, Tyra won the prestigious
Michael Award for Supermodel of the Year. In
a time in which some fashion models were
described as being too skinny, Banks stood
out with a more-voluptuous physique (she is
5' 10˝" tall and her measurements are
34˝-23˝-35˝). Banks had to work hard to
persuade fashion designers that her physique
was well-suited to the catwalk, and
succeeded. "I was proactive [...] I told my
agency to call Victoria's Secret, and I told
them to call Sports Illustrated [...] I said
my body is changing, and seamstresses are
calling me grosso in Italian, and I know
what the hell that means. And I'm not about
to starve."
Banks addressed her physique in an interview
with The Sun: "I am totally against plastic
surgery. A lot of people think I have breast
implants because I have the biggest boobs in
the business. But I was a 34C when I was 17…
They stay up when I wear a push-up bra. But
if people could see me when I come home and
take off my bra, how could they think these
are fake?" [3] In fact, Tyra has been known
for being proud of her body, as the
following comment about her breasts and her
posterior show: "Some models are quite flat-chested
so they can run around without bouncing. I
can't […] Black women don't have the same
body image problems as white women. They are
proud of their bodies. Black men love big
butts." In fact, Banks has made a point of
shaking with her posterior, while walking
down the runway, particularly during
Victoria's Secret fashion shows. This has
been commented upon by fans of the
supermodel, as well as Banks herself.
Despite her tremendous success as a
supermodel, Banks began venturing from
modelling to becoming a media personality.
She is the host, chief judge, and executive
producer (with Ken Mok) of the UPN
television show America's Next Top Model.
With rising ratings, the show has become
very popular, as viewers cheer for their
favorite model contestant during the weekly
rounds involving "Big Brother"-style
elimination of candidates. Banks has also
been working on a musical career. In season
two of America's Next Top Model the
contestants danced in her first music video.
Since then, she has been in the studio
working with experienced record producers
such as Darkchild; her next single will be
called "Baby". She also acts as the patron
for TZONE, a leadership programme for young
girls that according to the organisation,
"reinforces core values of trust and
support, challenges teen girls to resist
negative social pressures, and enhances
self-empowerment—inspiring girls to become
confident leaders in their communities." She
has also established the Tyra Banks
Scholarship, a fund aimed at providing
African-American girls the opportunity to
attend her alma mater, Immaculate Heart High
School.
Regarding her personal life, not much is
known. Banks has had a number of
high-profile relationships with director
John Singleton and, later on, Seal (who
married Banks' colleague Heidi Klum in
2005). Banks has expressed her preference
for a relationship with a "normal guy" in
order to escape the pressures of being
together with another well-known celebrity
(and the media scrutiny that comes with it).
Her personal wealth is estimated to be at
US$8.8 million, making her one of the five
richest supermodels at this time.
Filmography
Television
Banks has had recurring roles on The
Fresh Prince of Bel Air and Felicity.
Banks is the host, chief judge, and
executive producer (with Ken Mok) of the UPN
television show America's Next Top Model.
With rising ratings since its 2003 premiere,
the show has become a hit.
She has a new daytime talk show that
premiered in fall 2005 called The Tyra Banks
Show. The show features stories about
everyday people mixed in with celebrity
interviews, much like Oprah Winfrey's early
years, to which her show is already being
compared.
Under the slogan "Every woman has a story,"
Banks is currently promoting her show - also
by resorting to emotional flashbacks to her
own childhood and adolescence. The show
premiered on September 12, 2005, in the U.S.
television market. On an episode in the
show's first month, Banks underwent a
sonogram to prove that her breasts are not
fake. [4]
On her talk show in November 2005, Banks
went undercover as a 350-pound woman to show
people the ugly side of weight
discrimination. Banks says that the reaction
she got from people on the street as well as
from three "blind dates" she was set up with
made the experience "one of the most
heartbreaking days of her life".
Music
In music, Banks has appeared in Michael
Jackson's "Black or White" video when Glen
Chin morphs into her, and with fellow
supermodel Linda Evangelista in George
Michael's "Too Funky" video. In 2005, she
also recorded her first single, "Shake Ya
Body," featuring basketball star Kobe
Bryant; however, it has not resonated well
with the buying public so far.
This Tyra Banks Biography Page is Copyright © 2004 - 2006 Chuck Ayoub
