Informative

The Essence of Naomi Campbell

The famous British supermodel and icon

Zoey Jones, Staff Reporter • November 18, 2024

Naomi on the cover of Time Magazine presented in Sept 1991. This was her first debut on the cover and was the first black woman to be featured in the magazine.

BIOGRAPHY

Naomi Campbell in Versace, 1990. She was in her peak era of modeling at 19 years old and posed for a photo for paparazzi taken by Getty Images.

Naomi Campbell is a world-renowned model, actress, businesswoman, and mother. Campbell’s full name is Naomi Elaine Campbell, and she was born in Lambeth South London England. Her mother, Valerie Morris, was a Jamaican dancer and her father remains unknown, unmarked on Campbell’s birth certificate. Campbell is Jamaican with Chinese descent and was born on May 22, 1970. Campbell is 54 years old, standing at a height of 5 ’10 (1.78 cm) with a net worth of 90 million dollars. Naomi recently had two children by surrogate. The first being a girl born in May of 2021 and the second being a boy born in June 2023. As a single parent, Naomi didn’t birth her children biologically, but they are the highlight of her life and her world. Naomi has yet to reveal the facial photos of her children to the public and likely won’t anytime soon, but she does talk about them frequently to the media.

Naomi holding her two children on a post captioned “Blessed”. Her daughter on the right is 3 years old, and her son on the left is 1 years old. (Todd O. )

MODELING & CAREER

Naomi is the first black woman to be on the cover of French Vogue and the first black model on the Time Magazine cover. In her early years, Naomi attended Dunraven and London Academy for Performing Arts and studied at the Italia Conti Academia Stage School & The Barbara Speake Stage School. Over the years, Naomi’s career has expanded with her. Campbell has been featured in many shows, music videos, and movies, including Bob Marley’s 3rd biggest hit music video “Is this Love?” at the age of 7. Soon after, her career skyrocketed, and she was famous by the time she was just 8 years old.

Naomi’s most known features are in “The Cosby Show” (1988), “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” (1990), and Fabulous (1995). Campbell was also featured in modeling reality television series, including “The Face Australia” (2014) and “The Face UK” (2013) as an Executive Producer, Coach, and Creator.

“The Face Australia”, thumbnail for Fox News. The thumbnail features Naomi Campbell, Cheyenne Tozzi, and Nicole Trunfio. (unknown)

At 15, Naomi went on to sign a contract deal with Synchro Modeling Agency. Beth Boldt, the head of the agency, had discovered Naomi when she was window shopping in Covent Garden in the year 1986. By the year 1987, at age 16, Naomi was already on the cover of Elle and quickly became a frequent face on many high-end magazine covers in addition to the catwalk. Overall, she has appeared on more than 500 magazine covers and has been shot by some of the most respected photographers in the industry, like Steven Meisel, Herb Ritts, and Bruce Webber.

Naomi is one of the most well-known black models of all time. Her career has shaped the modeling industry for other black women and also men as she defeated the face of prejudice in the industry. Despite Naomi’s frequent discrimination, her work was supported by many, especially Yves Saint Laurent and Azzedine Alaïa.

In all, Naomi Campbell will continue to be a successful, well-known name within the industry.

Works Cited

Bonner, M. (2023, October 2). What Is Naomi Campbell’s Net Worth? 2024. Cosmopolitan. Retrieved October 29, 2024, from https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a45409880/naomi-campbell-net-worth/

LaCroix, E. (2024, May 10). Naomi Campbell’s 2 Kids: All About Her Daughter and Son. People.com. Retrieved October 29, 2024, from https://people.com/all-about-naomi-campbell-kids-7643270

Naomi Campbell. (n.d.). IMDb. Retrieved October 29, 2024, from https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001984/

Naomi Campbell. (n.d.). NNDB. Retrieved October 29, 2024, from https://www.nndb.com/people/760/000025685/

Price, R. (n.d.). Naomi Campbell Biography. Catwalk Yourself. Retrieved October 29, 2024, from https://www.catwalkyourself.com/fashion-biographies/naomi-campbell-biography/

Sanchez, R. (2024, August 14). Naomi Campbell Says Raising Her Two Kids Is “the Biggest Joy”. Harper’s BAZAAR. Retrieved October 29, 2024, from https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a61867868/naomi-campbell-comments-two-kids-interview/

Donate to The Tiger

Your donation will support the student journalists of Elmwood Park High School. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs.

About the Contributor

Zoey Jones, Staff Reporter

Hi, I'm Zoey Jones and I'm a freshman at EPHS. I'm interested in true crime, horror, and mystery. I plan on participating in track and dance this year. I don’t currently have any colleges in mind, but in the future I would like to be a journalist or an attorney. My goals are to graduate with a 3.0-4.0 GPA, get a good scholarship, and have a good career.