It was one week ago exactly that America’s Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman had her “a star is born” moment. We haven’t seen one of those in years, where someone who is not in the public consciousness whatsoever comes out and delivers something – a performance, a book, a poem, a moment – in front of the world and everyone is like “WOW, who is that?!?” Amanda is only 22 years old and her poem “The Hill We Climb” stole the show at Joe Biden’s inauguration. The poem itself is beautiful and hopeful and I’m still crying whenever I think about the message, delivered two weeks after armed goons tried to overthrow democracy. She wore a pretty yellow Prada coat and jewelry gifted to her by Oprah Winfrey. And now Amanda might be looking to supplement her poetry and public speaking income with some modeling:
Amanda Gorman’s climb continues as the inaugural poet has signed with IMG Models. The 22-year-old Los Angeles native, who recited her original work “The Hill We Climb” on Jan. 20 and instantly became the breakout star of the inauguration ceremony as the world looked on, now has a team of reps that includes Writers House, WME and the law firm Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown and Passman. As Gorman’s partner in the fashion and beauty industries, IMG Models will focus on building her profile through brand endorsements and editorial opportunities.
About that profile: Following her turn at the podium, Gorman mingled and took photos with former first couples Barack and Michelle Obama and Bill and Hillary Clinton. She received well wishes online from Oprah Winfrey and Lin-Manuel Miranda and made appearances on Good Morning America and on CNN with Anderson Cooper. Her upcoming books — The Hill We Climb and Other Poems and the children’s book Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem — shot to the top of Amazon’s best-seller charts ahead of September debuts.
It’s safe to say that all eyes are on Gorman to see what she does next. Meanwhile, she’s already got millions following those moves. Following Inauguration Day, her social media footprint skyrocketed and she went from 7,000 Twitter followers to 1.4 million. On Instagram, she racked up north of 3.1 million followers and counting. The fashion industry also took notice thanks to a look by Prada and accessories including a caged bird ring and earrings gifted to her by Winfrey. WWD dubbed Gorman “a new kind of style icon,” while Vogue reported that the red headband she wore is already sold out.
To be clear, I doubt Amanda will, like, walk the runways in Paris. But she’ll definitely be offered some sponsorships and brands will try to get her endorsement, especially on social media. I could definitely see her doing print ads for a jewelry line, something like that. This really will be about building her brand all around – designers will want to dress her for her book tour and media appearances, and she should absolutely find ways to commodify her newfound stardom. Most poets are not making a lot of money, you know? I’m all for the fashion, beauty and jewelry industry helping to supplement her income.
Oh, and this came out earlier today: Amanda will perform a new poem AT THE SUPER BOWL. For real!!!
Photos courtesy of Getty, Avalon Red, Backgrid.
GF has to put food on the table so good for her.
That aside, how much experience do agencies like IMG have with talents like Amanda ? I wonder if she wouldn’t be better served by say a creative agency who manage performance artists ? Especially as she had previously done some performance art ?
Considering all her accomplishments, I just want to add a shallow note here and say that she’s quite beautiful and photogenic.
Same. I was so moved by her reading. She’s got it all- brains, talent, bravery and beauty.
She’s worked incredibly hard, she deserves to be recognized and rewarded for it.
I wouldn’t hate it at all if Miuccia and Raf hired her as the official face of Prada.
Poets gotta eat too. I’m happy for her and I hope they pair her with an agent that’s good with speaking engagements and printed work not just straight modeling.
Now, that she’s signed with IMG, look for the white people who were lifting her up last week to start tearing her down for getting endorsements. Sorry to say this but this is just the reality.
I WILL BUY ANYTHING SHE SELLS!!
Good for her.
This is the role model we need: someone who can actually do something worthwhile and live from talent, not just looks.
She is beautiful, inside and out. I think she will make some fascinating deals and I can’t wait to see what she does through IMG.
I love her story about Michelle fussing at her husband to stop hugging everyone at the inauguration and then almost pushing him aside to reach out and give Amanda a huge hug. Michelle is such a loving person, and how could you not hug Amanda after that poem!
I LOVE this. I love that a Harvard-educated, brilliant, beautiful, inspiring, young black woman will make bank. Give her all the endorsements. Give her a Prada spread. I’m tired of seeing vapid spray-tanned airheads taking up oxygen. I need more Amanda’s in my daily life. Yesssss!
Can we praise some women without putting other women down? Vapid spray-tanned airheads taking up oxygen?! Wow, just wow.
I like the idea of some of these other characteristics being financially rewarded as well. I have no objection per se to the vapid spray tanned set continuing to make money. That aesthetic clearly has an appeal that attracts an audience, and good for them for cashing in. Although I see your point, I’m not going to sit here and pretend that a spade is not a spade. Thx
Amen, I’m tired of the modeling world right now, with all the Hadid’s and other cookie cutter models taking up all the space. Let’s bring on some models of substance, I’m here for it!
She’s stunningly beautiful and intelligent so why not do some modeling. Maybe she can make that horrible vacant dead-eyed look that models are forced to sport die and bring vivaciousness back.
It makes sense. Her performance was just STUNNING. Not only is she a brilliant writer, but the way she delivered the words made it impossible to not listen. She has the “star power” to captivate an audience, so to speak.
I wish her all the success in the world
This young woman will photograph beautifully. I am so happy for her!!
May she make a fortune. My daughter knows her and says she is very nice. Hope she takes it to the bank.
I was like ugh to all of this until the moment at the super bowl. If this is what it takes to raise national awareness of socially relevant arts, I’m all for it. Mixed feelings about brand endorsements. Of course she should make money. And why shouldn’t a poet with real talent be a celebrity? But still, the endorsements are about her youth and beauty, not her talent. So would a chubby middle aged poet who took years to achieve recognition for her work also get that response? No. Which is why we need mechanisms for important artists to thrive on their talent not stardom.
I agree with you Bettyrose but I have to admit from the moment I laid eyes on this young woman, I thought she has the “it” quality in looks, too, and could sell so much fashion.
She has the capability to help elevate the profile of black women and black beauty at a pivotal moment. Precisely because so many other incredible black women are simultaneously excelling. From Olympics stars to political activists to poet laureates and Marvel heroines, black women are making their mark on America in a big way, building on the foundation set by generations of barrier- breaking black women before them.
This momentum to increase the visibility of black women in our society and to celebrate their beauty must not stop.
Think of the awful comments lobbed against beautiful Michelle Obama during her time as First Lady. Physical beauty may seem like a shallow thing to celebrate, but when you have a portion of the population who don’t even speak of black people as fellow humans, then damn straight, black people need to stand proud and show off how beautiful they are. Get those modeling endorsements! Show how bankable black beauty is! We’ve elevated one standard for beauty above others for far too long.
I said it before and I’ll repeat that as I watched that inauguration I got the sense that the right people were in their right places at the right time.
Thank you, guestwithcat. These are really good points and I fully agree with the importance of representation. Obviously Michelle Obama and MVP Harris are massively successful, intelligent, middle aged (hate that term. Let’s retire it.) women who are also stunningly beautiful, so it’s not just about youth. That said, I hope any beauty campaigns Gorman signs onto are focused on looking good while conquering the world. No passive object of beauty crap.
Good for her, she’s trying to make herself financially stable so she can do the work she loves ( and doesn’t pay much)without starving or ending up homeless.
This is awesome news, her performance was incredible and she is absolutely stunning. Representation is so important in the fashion and beauty worlds, I think she can make a real impact with her art while also earning well-deserved income.
Wow! First Biden and Harris won and then this amazingly talented young women is getting attention and making bank!! Good days 😊 I’m happy she’s getting brand endorsements and serving as a better inspiring role model than the usual nepotism/insta celebrities. It’s really great that an educated poet can have this kind of reach. And yes, of course in part is because she’s young and beautiful, but it’s also because she amazed everyone with her work and poise. Refreshing!!