- 22 hours ago
A Journey of Black Beauty: A conversation with Naomi Campbell and MoAna Luu on Essence Festival Beauty Carnival.
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00:00Welcome to Beauty Carnival, our very first Essence Festival of Culture, the virtual edition.
00:05We are unstoppable and for our first Beauty Carnival virtual, we have a very special guest.
00:10Our guest is actually our cover star, do you know? Yes. She's like the 50th anniversary cover star,
00:17the only one, the icon. I'm just like, every time that I see her number or name on my phone,
00:22I'm just screaming. I'm like, I'm dreaming. This is Naomi Campbell. Please welcome.
00:27So happy to be here and to be part of the Essence Beauty Carnival.
00:33So Naomi, I'm so happy to have you. It's like our cover star, the perfect timing,
00:39you lead by example in special time. You are there again with us and thank you for that.
00:45First hour of you today. Thank you. I'm good, thank you. I'm good. I mean,
00:51I really just try to keep it simple and keep myself occupied and keep my mind
01:03sane, just not too much clutter, just, you know, I think I really believe it's healthy body,
01:11spirit and mind. You've been actually, you've been actually inspiring so many women.
01:18You've been as well doing our cover, uh, this month has been like quite a sensational cover,
01:24but you did your first Essence cover in 1991. Tell us about your experience with makeup as a black
01:32model in the 80s and the 90s. Oh my goodness. So, um, well, in my teens, late teens and 20s, early 20s,
01:46I definitely wore so much makeup, like so much base. I thought I needed the more, the better.
01:53It was like, I thought that's just the way it was meant to be. So I was piling it on. And, um,
02:01you know, now in my fifties, in my late forties, fifties, I, um, I don't like to wear a lot of
02:09foundation at all. So I don't really wear much foundation. I just put like little concealer
02:16structure in and then the rest is, I like the skin to be shiny. So as I got older, I realized this is
02:22best. I mean, I still play around with eye colors and there, but skin, I just want it to be
02:29not too much. No, I don't want to take away someone's personality.
02:37So what's the most important? So I understand that we don't want to have the mask, the skin,
02:41to have a glowing skin.
02:45We want a glowing skin a little bit.
02:47Dewey, shining. Yeah. I like that.
02:51Okay. That's a little trick that I'm going to continue to use.
02:53Absolutely.
02:56And you had a lot of firsts, right? In your career and in the industry,
03:00which are you most proud of?
03:08I'm proud of all. I'm proud of them all. I'm proud of them all that I got to
03:12accomplish them and open the doors for my next, um, fellow models, black models and models of color
03:22and models of diversity that, that were coming through. Um, and, um, so there was not one over
03:30the other, I'm just, um, happy that I had, was able to rise to any challenge and push through and
03:42I want it to be a little easier for the next generations and the generations and the generations
03:51coming through. So they don't have to be so difficult. I mean, that's what we try to do.
03:57We try to help the next one. Do you have a moment in your, first,
04:02do you have a moment in your career that stand out for you? What means a moment that stand out
04:07in your career? You have so many moments, but what will be the special moment for you?
04:14You know, asking me that now is so weird with all that's been happening and going on in the world.
04:20Um, I think every moment that there's been a change where we've got the door open to us a little bit
04:28more. And if I had my part in that, I think those will be the moments that I will cherish.
04:36Yeah. And, um, and in those moments lately, you just as well have a special moment with Pat McGrath.
04:45She has now shown on your collection, you are the face, the global face of Pat McGrath.
04:53And can you talk about the sisterhood that you are because two black icons working together to,
04:58to do this special moment in beauty?
05:02Um, it's been, um, it's been really to work with Pat's very nurturing.
05:08And Pat's like a chosen family member to me. So, I mean, as well as I would have supported Pat's
05:15regardless. Um, I mean, we don't have many black makeup artists in our business
05:21that have given opportunities to get to the top top. So, you know, it's, um,
05:29again, once again, I can count it on my hands, how many I've worked with in my career.
05:33Um, but I, so Pat for me was just, we were instantly attracted to each other. Um, when we first worked
05:43together in the nineties and 94, I believe that was to be, and kept friends ever since. And so proud of
05:51her when she started Pat McGrath's labs and, um, then what an honor it is to be able to be her first
06:01face of Pat McGrath's labs. We are both from South London, both grew up in very similar ways with
06:07Jamaican ancestry. And, um, you know, I'm so proud of Pat. She's, she's a makeup artist, but she's more
06:15than a makeup artist. She's an artist and she encompasses everyone. She embraces every culture,
06:21every LGBTQT, um, everyone. Transgender, Pat embraces everyone. Her following is phenomenal.
06:29And when I sit in the chair to get my makeup done with Pat, I know that I'm safe, that I can trust,
06:37but I don't have to look in the mirror, that I don't have to check like I used to many, many years
06:41before. And that, that's, that was a hard place to get to, to, you know, finally to get there was so
06:49liberating.
06:52And the visual are just amazing. And to see this sisterhood coming to life is actually quite
06:57impressive. And as well, we did have a special moment. Um, and the people don't know so much
07:02a story about being the cover when the day we met, we met and we decided to do something special for
07:09the 50th anniversary. As we, everybody knows the world, no, it's our biggest cover ever, right?
07:165 billion media impression. And we, when we met and talk about your celebrating your birthday and
07:22the essence birthday together, we do never imagined that we'd be in the middle of a pandemic. We were
07:29imagining amazing photo shoots. I remember exchanging like, I have this amazing idea. I was like, yes.
07:34And then the shoot day, we are in the middle of a pandemic. So how was this experience for you?
07:43I actually have never done that before in my life. And I was terrified. Um, and I was doing the show,
07:51no filter with Naomi at the same time. So I was just running around my apartment with my head, like
07:56chicken with a head cut off. And, um, then it was like, what do I wear? And so then I thought, okay,
08:04I'm going to go with something vintage, something new from this young designer that I met in Ghana,
08:09from Stevie, who I got through to the Gucci, uh, change makers program. And then I just thought,
08:17I'll put a scarf. And then of course my Papa Elias. So that was it. And I was nervous because I kept
08:26thinking, I need to talk to my wedding. Maybe my wedding needs to be on FaceTime with me.
08:30And I was just left on my own. I was on my own just doing this and Bluetooth and,
08:35you know, um, you and Apple provide all the things I needed to make it work. And, um,
08:42but it felt liberating. Then comes the part, once you've taken the pictures, the editing part,
08:48gosh, the editing's rough. That's the hard part. I prefer taking the pictures, the editing,
08:54um, and then getting them to you. And of course I was right on the deadline. So I was, there was a
09:02bit of panic, there was a bit of panic, but what I must say that I, and thank you for giving me the
09:08opportunity because you are a woman of your word. I met you for the first time in October and you didn't
09:15know me and you kept your word. And that for me, so means so much because I've met so many people
09:21over this 34 years who never did. And you kept your word Moana. And I have so much respect for you
09:27as a woman, first and foremost, but for someone I now consider a friend that I respect that, you know,
09:35kept your word. It's a big, big deal.
09:38You are an inspiration and you know, it's, it's just for us. It's just an honor to actually have you
09:44for this 50 years cover. You had many essence cover. I have to say, you have many essence cover already
09:50and many other cover too, but this one was very special. It was very special. And as well, that was,
09:58and that was, that was the opportunity. We have some picture with your mom. We have some picture of
10:02you as well in Africa. I want as well, if you have few times with us to, to share as well as the love
10:09that you have for the continent and the work that you're doing for our black women there.
10:15I just want to say to you, what was also special about this cover for me
10:20is seeing what's come out of it. The essence challenge for me that I've seen, I have to put it
10:25up on my Instagram. It's so amazing to see what the kids are doing out there in creating
10:32their own covers. It's just absolutely wonderful, inspiring. And I'm so proud. I'm just like, wow,
10:42really well. So this is the biggest gift for our 50th.
10:51That's the biggest gift. And that's the biggest gift to have our people to support us and to remember
10:56that we are there to support them. This is very good. That's very good. And everything is about
11:02yeah. This is about our community, our sisterhood and talking about community and sisterhood,
11:10you are actually doing amazing work as well for black young girls. And I would love for you to share
11:15a little bit about your work there. In Africa, I mean, I love the continent and I started going there in
11:2690, no, 92. Yes. But first I went to South, then to East, then to North and then to West. And, um,
11:38I love the continent very much. And of course, having the wonderful Medivor President Nelson Mandela
11:46guide me in my early twenties. So I didn't know what I was doing. I just love the feeling of being with the
11:53kids. I thought, well, I thought I was a kid myself probably, but it just, the word philanthropy
12:00never existed. It's just, you do it because you feel like you want to do it. No one's pushing you.
12:05No one's begging you. It's your decision. You decide if you want to do that. And that's what I decided I
12:11wanted to do. And I've enjoyed it. And I still enjoy it. And I just get to see such beautiful people on
12:18the continent, talented, intelligent, smart, educated. And I want to encourage my brothers
12:27and sisters. And I want them to get the opportunities and the skills that they deserve that they're not
12:34getting because our world forgets about the African continent when they call it the so-called global.
12:41So I want to remind people to keep their awareness that they're not global if you miss out the great
12:48continent of Africa. You've got now everyone running to Africa, Facebook, Apple. So what does that tell
12:55you? I, you know, I work with African designers. I work with Inducon Arise in a partnership with him
13:05every year. And it's just, I want to be able to help my brothers and sisters share my platform
13:12with them so that they can get to where they need to get to. If also bringing in other brands like
13:17Gucci and saying, look, why don't you open a change by change makers program, giving young designers
13:23from Africa and all over the continent, uh, opportunity to come along with your machinery and your brand
13:29under your roof. Why not? Why does it change? This is, this is a great message about ownership.
13:38This is like a great message about ownership. And this is always now creativity. People realize
13:44the value of our creativity and people we should actually own our as well. What we create. So this is
13:51great for that. And, uh, and I think like a lot of young women that I'm watching us today, they have at
13:58least as well a question about what do you think that they should do now today? If they want to do
14:04this career, you have such a beautiful career, right? What is, what are your recommendations for them?
14:11I really feel now, I mean,
14:16I watch over and mentor anyone that I, that wants to get into this business and I help them to get into
14:22the business. I do watch over them. I want them to make sure they're doing, you know, with their agents,
14:27that they're not getting taken advantage of or, you know, just to help share my, I was just sitting
14:33there talking with them, telling them, well, this is how it was. Now you do. I'm very happy to do that.
14:38Um, basically never give up on your dreams. When I was told no so many times in my career,
14:44God, if you only knew how many times and I wouldn't accept it. I just wouldn't, I said, I'll find another
14:50way. There's a system as a challenge, but we'll get around this challenge or we'll get over this
14:55challenge or we'll get through this challenge, but we were going to get past this challenge. That's
15:00what I knew. And whether it be modeling or whatever I chose to do, that's my, that's the way I am.
15:07Um, I never used racism as an excuse. Um, I would never say the word for many, many years.
15:16I would rather say the word territorialism, but I was never going to let it deter me from getting
15:22what I wanted to get or what I thought I deserved, what I thought to see my white counterparts get.
15:28And I couldn't, I was never going to let that happen. No. And I'm very fortunate that my white
15:34counterparts are like my family and they stopped by me. They even put themselves on the line to other
15:41designers to say, if you don't take me, if you don't take Naomi, you're not getting us. That's
15:46very rare. So I'm very blessed to have these wonderful women, Linda Christie in my life.
15:54Oh my God. You're talking about like a very, like a very special woman. We all remember you are like
16:00the first regeneration of supermodel. I remember those years that are like, oh my God, this is just
16:06so inspiring. You know, Naomi, thank you so much for the energy, the passion that you bring to,
16:14to our people. So really the resilience that you've, we've seen from you, you know, this is a special
16:19moment for essence. This is a special moment for black people. This is a special moment for black
16:25women and to have you inspiring you every day. It's really something magical. And I hope that you're
16:32going to continue for the next 50, like next 50, right? Thank you so much, Marwena. Thank you so much,
16:38Marwena. Thank you all the team at Essence. Let me be part of your Essence family. I'm just so
16:46very much looking forward to the times ahead. This is going to be really wonderful and positive and
16:52change-making time. Thank you, Namuri. Love you. Thank you. I love you too. Have a blessed night. Bye-bye, love.
17:02Bye-bye, love.
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