Most viewers hope their favorite TV show will stay on the air because they just like watching it. But when sophomore Simone Lewis followed America’s Next Top Model, she was invested in its success for another reason—one day, she wanted to be a part. Good thing it lasted.
Lewis is one of 13 finalists on the 14th iteration of The CW’s America’s Next Top Model, the reality show hosted by Tyra Banks that regularly crowns a fresh face for the modeling industry. Filmed last semester, the season will unfold over the course of the spring.
For Lewis, participating in the show is the product of both prior experience in modeling and long-standing ambition.
“I’ve been dabbling in modeling since sixth grade, but I didn’t do anything serious as far as industry representation until this past summer,” Lewis said. “I’ve always wanted to do it... but it wasn’t ever my main priority until last summer.”
Hailing from Lenexa, Kan., it took Lewis some time to find a foothold in the world of fashion—after all, where she grew up wasn’t exactly a hotbed of haute couture. In hindsight, however, she said this might have actually been a positive.
“In a way, I think that [being from Kansas] is a good thing, because it gave me the opportunity to focus on some of my other strengths,” she said. “But now that I know more what they are, I know more of where I want to be and why the fashion industry is for me and that I’m a big city girl at heart, even though I’m from the suburbs of Kansas City.”
As for being a Duke student and the preconceptions that come with it, Lewis said she’s far from the stereotypical private college undergrad or sorority girl (she’s a member of Delta Gamma), so this was not an issue. And it turned out that being among the other contestants wasn’t that far from being at school.
“The group of girls this cycle was so diverse, and I could definitely tell that each of them had something very different about them,” Lewis said. “So in a way, it kind of reminded me of being at Duke, as far as having this mish-mosh of people with different experiences and different backgrounds.
Lewis added that although heads clashed, she had a great time getting to know all of the girls and ended up connecting on a particular level with Brenda Arens. She managed to distance herself from most of the drama that often consumed the other girls and sucked up camera time. This didn’t surprise those who know her well.
“From what everyone’s been telling me, she hasn’t been given that much screen time [in the first few episodes] because she’s not dramatic, she doesn’t throw any hissy fits,” Lewis’ friend Lizz Yeh, a sophomore, said. “She’s naturally a very calm, not dramatic person.”
This levity is even more of a surprise after considering what the show requires from its contestants. To begin with, Lewis underwent an “edgy” makeover that saw her head partially shaved and a change in her entire style.
“It’s definitely really difficult, having a certain persona forced on you that doesn’t come naturally,” Lewis said. “But thankfully, I only have to live that super-edgy style when I’m in front of a camera.” Part-time or not, the change took some getting used to.
“It was definitely jarring at first when they shaved my head because I’m so girly, but I think I’ve just joined the two as far as, like, embracing the more edgy model while still being my feminine, girly self,” she said.
Adjusting to such a drastic change in her appearance might have even been a chance to grow for Lewis, if the comments of her friend Leigh Libling, a sophomore, are any indication.
“After coming back from this experience I definitely saw a change in Simone,” Libling wrote in an e-mail. “I feel like this definitely put things in perspective for her and made her an even more driven, intelligent and strong woman.”
On another level, one of the most significant perks from participating in America’s Next Top Model is the chance to interact with its host, legendary model and television personality Tyra Banks. And Lewis was not disappointed.
“I’ve been admiring Tyra since I was so young, and to finally see her in person was amazing,” Lewis said. “She’s even more gorgeous in person... and she just really seemed to care. Even though she kind of mocked the way I talked and stuff, I knew it was just for fun, and I knew that in the end she really does want to see us succeed.”
Banks’ input meant so much that Lewis would write down the host’s feedback, allowing her to go back to the advice any time she wanted.
“Rereading over them, I feel like she does enough boosting your confidence while also telling you where you need to improve, and that’s the part I need to hear the most,” Lewis said.
Although the first figure that viewers associate with the show is Banks, Lewis also had something in common with another fashion luminary who helped judge this cycle: Andre Leon Talley, the editor-at-large of Vogue and a Durham native. Seeing that such an influential voice in the industry, who Lewis described as “like the number one fashion opinion in the world,” grew up in a lesser-known town like Durham made her feel more confident about her humble Midwestern home in the suburbs of Kansas City.
After having such a brilliant experience, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see someone take on airs or have an inflated ego. In fact, it might even be expected—and not unjustified. But it appears that Lewis has had an opposite reaction, one that will likely serve her well as she goes on to finish Duke and pursue a career in modeling.
“I think I take myself less seriously. Before ANTM, I was very very type A,” she said. “[Now] I’m better able to kind of take a chill pill and really prioritize the way I spend my time and the parts of my life where I place the most importance.”
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