Tyra Banks says model Naomi Sims is a "true inspiration".
Tyra Banks
The 47-year-old model paid homage to the late supermodel, who paved the way for Tyra as one of the first black models.
Sharing a snap of Sims’ October 1969 cover of LIFE magazine cover on Instagram, she wrote: "It is one of my all time faves. It hangs in my home. For those of you that don't know, this beauty was a model, businesswoman, and author — a triple threat. She was the first Black model to appear on the cover of Ladies' Home Journal in November 1968.
"She was one of the world's first Black supermodels, setting the groundwork (and werk!) for so many of us, a true inspiration. My hero (sic)”
Sims - who sadly passed away in 2009 from breast cancer - was best known for being a role model and pioneer for black women.
After she noticed make-up artists and hairstylists didn’t know how to style her dark complexion, the model began styling her own wigs for photoshoots.
Tyra later followed in Sims’ footsteps by becoming the first Black model to cover GQ, the first Black model to cover Sports Illustrated Swimsuit and the first Black model to appear in the Victoria's Secret catalogue.
Meanwhile, the ‘America’s Next Top Model’ star - who appeared on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 1996, 1997 and 2019 - admitted she felt "proud" that her 2019 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue shoot managed to crash the magazine's website.
She said in 2020: "I was on it, again, last year. And for the first time in the history of the Sports Illustrated having a website - not Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition website, the Sports Illustrated website - it crashed. I’m proud of that."
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