Olivia Anakwe On Balancing School And Modeling, And Not Being Afraid To Speak Up
Olivia Anakwe image by Jacqueline Harriet via Teen Vogue
For Teen Vogue, fashion is all about giving you a behind-the-scenes look at the industry, thinking deeply about why we wear the things we do, and, of course, finding inspirations for our closets. To kick off NYFW, we are doing just that. In this story, we talk to model Olivia Anakwe about balancing and using her voice.
It has been said that millennials and Gen Z are the multitasking generations, describing themselves as not “either/or” but “and.” Model (and college student and philanthropist and monthly dinner party host) Olivia Anakwe is the perfect example. The 22-year-old is currently finishing up her senior year at Pace University, where she is studying psychology with the goal of becoming a dermatologist; she’s signed to Elite Models and walked 40 shows her first season, including for Miu Miu, Thom Browne, Jacquemus, Marc Jacobs, and Kate Spade; and she’s a part of Edible Schoolyard, a New York City nonprofit that focuses on food literacy. So yes, one could say Olivia is quite the multitasker.
“I found this book when I was home for winter break where I wrote stuff every single year, and one of the questions asked was ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ And I said, ‘A doctor and a model,’” the Nigerian-American model tells Teen Vogue. “It's funny seeing my six-year-old self say that and then how it's come to fruition.”
Growing up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Olivia gained an interest in skin through her mother, who she says was always on top of her routine and would take Olivia and her sister to get facials when she was in high school. Her siblings and friends who suffered from acne got Olivia thinking about the impact the skin condition could have on mental health.
“I would love for people to just love their skin and [have it] not then affect them or the way that they're interacting with other people,” says Olivia. “It really affects your confidence when your skin isn’t on point, and that messes with your mental health if you don't feel confident about how you look internally.”
While skincare was a big deal in her family, Olivia wasn’t a huge fan of fashion, though she did look up to Naomi Campbell. Instead, her mom put her in musical theater and dance, which could explain her love (and ultimate future) of being in front of the camera.
It was three years ago, when Olivia was visiting New York City for her older sister’s graduation, and while eating at Westville with her family, that she was asked by her soon-to-be-agent, Marina Fairfax, if she’d ever thought about modeling. It turned out she had, but she didn’t think she could do it while being in school. “It just happened to be perfect timing because I was already attending a summer camp at Columbia [University], so I was going to be in the city anyway. And then I was able to go into the agency for a couple of meetings and then sign with them,” says Olivia. Eventually, she transferred from the University of Pittsburgh, where she was studying, to Pace so that she could juggle both her new modeling career and her studies.
And for Olivia that meant walking during Paris and New York Fashion Week, shooting for Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, and Allure, and starring in a Miu Miu campaign while also taking early-morning, late-night, or online classes and sometimes writing essays on the subway with the aim of reaching her dream of becoming a dermatologist. “My biggest motivator is just knowing that I could do it — something I've always wanted to do,” she says.
Another characteristic of Olivia’s generation: speaking up. Last year in February, one of Olivia’s Instagram posts went viral. In the post, she called out hairstylists who couldn’t do black or textured hair, detailing her experience during Paris Fashion Week, which was that the only person backstage at a fashion show able to braid her hair was the nail artist. “"No matter how small your team is, make sure you have one person that is competent at doing afro texture hair care OR just hire a black hairstylist," Olivia wrote.
It was a real eye-opener as currently the fashion industry lauds itself for becoming more visibly diverse (on the runways, in editorials, and sometimes even on the mastheads), yet what’s going on behind the scenes tells a different story.
However, it’s not a new story and has been a problem in the fashion industry for years. In 2016, model Naomi Campbell told Teen Vogue that she’s encountered the issue since she first started modeling: “I would be backstage at shows and there would be stylists who didn’t have any experience working with black models. It’s disappointing to hear that models of color are still encountering these same issues all these years later.” Other models have called out the fashion industry’s black-hair problem too, sharing stories of having to bring their own products, find another model to properly do their hair, or make do with having their hair completely untouched.
Olivia says the absolute turning point for her was when a German model backstage with her expressed disbelief that a hairstylist refused to do her hair. Olivia wanted to make sure everyone was aware of this happening, and that it continues to happen to black models, so she went to Instagram to detail her experience. “It was very important for me to not just come at it from a really angry and hurt standpoint, but like what we do to move through this?” she says, admitting she went to her older sister for editing (“She's my fairy godmother. I wouldn't survive Fashion Week without her”).
There wasn’t a moment where Olivia was worried about backlash for speaking up and using her voice. “It's always important to voice your opinion if you're in an uncomfortable situation — speak up,” the model says. “I think getting into modeling when I was older, at 18, allowed me to have that voice and backbone for me to speak up if I were to land in any situation that made me feel uncomfortable.”
She also credits her Nigerian upbringing for her strong backbone. Her parents, Olivia says, taught her to “stand her ground no matter what.” “It wasn't as though you needed to talk out of place, or all the time about things, but if somebody is coming at you, you need to be able to defend yourself,” she says. She recalls the Igbo philosophy of igwe bu ike, which means there’s strength in numbers and in community. “So it's like if you voiced yourself and you have a community, and then everybody voices themselves, then you can really change.”
Olivia didn’t know what kind of response she would get from the post, but she did want to start a conversation. Multiple news outlets, including Teen Vogue, wrote about the post. Black actors began sharing their experiences. But the most surprising response? “A hairstylist contacted me saying that they were going to start offering classes for people to learn more about black hair products,” says Olivia. “Also, another model reached out to me about getting a list down of black hair products that they should have backstage.” And since then, she says, she’s been lucky to work with hairstylists that are knowledgeable about black hair.
Olivia says her own relationship with her hair has been hot and cold, mostly because she didn’t always know what to do. She’d try relaxers, then cut all of her hair off, then try to wear an Afro. It was working as a model that taught her how to work with her hair. “Once I started to embrace my natural hair, which didn't come until quite recently, I started to embrace it. Then I could actually take care of it more. But before, I always wanted to leave somebody else to take care of it,” she says. “It's definitely been a learning process, and modeling has completed that. I'm more attentive to my hair, and I'm taking care of myself.”
It’s been almost a year since the viral post, and the 22-year-old is getting ready for what’s next. In May, she’ll graduate from Pace University. She just restarted her secret dinner series, in which she partners with a friend for pop-up dinners with different chefs and conversation. She’s been an advocate and volunteer for Edible Schoolyard and helped the nonprofit organization raise over $20,000. Last December, she traveled to Lago, Nigeria, to help establish a similar food literacy program there; she has plans to go back this year.
Olivia knows that her juggling lifestyle of being a student and a model, as well as seeing a black girl in the fashion industry walking in big designer shows and not afraid to speak her mind, is something more people need to see. “I want to be a part of continuing to represent for everyone. Whether it’s people trying to balance work with life and school or something else, I think it’s important to have examples of those out there who are doing it,” she says.
For Teen Vogue, fashion is all about giving you a behind-the-scenes look at the industry, thinking deeply about why we wear the things we do, and, of course, finding inspirations for our closets. To kick off NYFW, we are doing just that. In this story, we talk to model Olivia Anakwe about balancing and using her voice.
It has been said that millennials and Gen Z are the multitasking generations, describing themselves as not “either/or” but “and.” Model (and college student and philanthropist and monthly dinner party host) Olivia Anakwe is the perfect example. The 22-year-old is currently finishing up her senior year at Pace University, where she is studying psychology with the goal of becoming a dermatologist; she’s signed to Elite Models and walked 40 shows her first season, including for Miu Miu, Thom Browne, Jacquemus, Marc Jacobs, and Kate Spade; and she’s a part of Edible Schoolyard, a New York City nonprofit that focuses on food literacy. So yes, one could say Olivia is quite the multitasker.
“I found this book when I was home for winter break where I wrote stuff every single year, and one of the questions asked was ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ And I said, ‘A doctor and a model,’” the Nigerian-American model tells Teen Vogue. “It's funny seeing my six-year-old self say that and then how it's come to fruition.”
Growing up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Olivia gained an interest in skin through her mother, who she says was always on top of her routine and would take Olivia and her sister to get facials when she was in high school. Her siblings and friends who suffered from acne got Olivia thinking about the impact the skin condition could have on mental health.
“I would love for people to just love their skin and [have it] not then affect them or the way that they're interacting with other people,” says Olivia. “It really affects your confidence when your skin isn’t on point, and that messes with your mental health if you don't feel confident about how you look internally.”
While skincare was a big deal in her family, Olivia wasn’t a huge fan of fashion, though she did look up to Naomi Campbell. Instead, her mom put her in musical theater and dance, which could explain her love (and ultimate future) of being in front of the camera.
It was three years ago, when Olivia was visiting New York City for her older sister’s graduation, and while eating at Westville with her family, that she was asked by her soon-to-be-agent, Marina Fairfax, if she’d ever thought about modeling. It turned out she had, but she didn’t think she could do it while being in school. “It just happened to be perfect timing because I was already attending a summer camp at Columbia [University], so I was going to be in the city anyway. And then I was able to go into the agency for a couple of meetings and then sign with them,” says Olivia. Eventually, she transferred from the University of Pittsburgh, where she was studying, to Pace so that she could juggle both her new modeling career and her studies.
And for Olivia that meant walking during Paris and New York Fashion Week, shooting for Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, and Allure, and starring in a Miu Miu campaign while also taking early-morning, late-night, or online classes and sometimes writing essays on the subway with the aim of reaching her dream of becoming a dermatologist. “My biggest motivator is just knowing that I could do it — something I've always wanted to do,” she says.
Another characteristic of Olivia’s generation: speaking up. Last year in February, one of Olivia’s Instagram posts went viral. In the post, she called out hairstylists who couldn’t do black or textured hair, detailing her experience during Paris Fashion Week, which was that the only person backstage at a fashion show able to braid her hair was the nail artist. “"No matter how small your team is, make sure you have one person that is competent at doing afro texture hair care OR just hire a black hairstylist," Olivia wrote.
It was a real eye-opener as currently the fashion industry lauds itself for becoming more visibly diverse (on the runways, in editorials, and sometimes even on the mastheads), yet what’s going on behind the scenes tells a different story.
However, it’s not a new story and has been a problem in the fashion industry for years. In 2016, model Naomi Campbell told Teen Vogue that she’s encountered the issue since she first started modeling: “I would be backstage at shows and there would be stylists who didn’t have any experience working with black models. It’s disappointing to hear that models of color are still encountering these same issues all these years later.” Other models have called out the fashion industry’s black-hair problem too, sharing stories of having to bring their own products, find another model to properly do their hair, or make do with having their hair completely untouched.
Olivia says the absolute turning point for her was when a German model backstage with her expressed disbelief that a hairstylist refused to do her hair. Olivia wanted to make sure everyone was aware of this happening, and that it continues to happen to black models, so she went to Instagram to detail her experience. “It was very important for me to not just come at it from a really angry and hurt standpoint, but like what we do to move through this?” she says, admitting she went to her older sister for editing (“She's my fairy godmother. I wouldn't survive Fashion Week without her”).
There wasn’t a moment where Olivia was worried about backlash for speaking up and using her voice. “It's always important to voice your opinion if you're in an uncomfortable situation — speak up,” the model says. “I think getting into modeling when I was older, at 18, allowed me to have that voice and backbone for me to speak up if I were to land in any situation that made me feel uncomfortable.”
She also credits her Nigerian upbringing for her strong backbone. Her parents, Olivia says, taught her to “stand her ground no matter what.” “It wasn't as though you needed to talk out of place, or all the time about things, but if somebody is coming at you, you need to be able to defend yourself,” she says. She recalls the Igbo philosophy of igwe bu ike, which means there’s strength in numbers and in community. “So it's like if you voiced yourself and you have a community, and then everybody voices themselves, then you can really change.”
Olivia didn’t know what kind of response she would get from the post, but she did want to start a conversation. Multiple news outlets, including Teen Vogue, wrote about the post. Black actors began sharing their experiences. But the most surprising response? “A hairstylist contacted me saying that they were going to start offering classes for people to learn more about black hair products,” says Olivia. “Also, another model reached out to me about getting a list down of black hair products that they should have backstage.” And since then, she says, she’s been lucky to work with hairstylists that are knowledgeable about black hair.
Olivia says her own relationship with her hair has been hot and cold, mostly because she didn’t always know what to do. She’d try relaxers, then cut all of her hair off, then try to wear an Afro. It was working as a model that taught her how to work with her hair. “Once I started to embrace my natural hair, which didn't come until quite recently, I started to embrace it. Then I could actually take care of it more. But before, I always wanted to leave somebody else to take care of it,” she says. “It's definitely been a learning process, and modeling has completed that. I'm more attentive to my hair, and I'm taking care of myself.”
It’s been almost a year since the viral post, and the 22-year-old is getting ready for what’s next. In May, she’ll graduate from Pace University. She just restarted her secret dinner series, in which she partners with a friend for pop-up dinners with different chefs and conversation. She’s been an advocate and volunteer for Edible Schoolyard and helped the nonprofit organization raise over $20,000. Last December, she traveled to Lago, Nigeria, to help establish a similar food literacy program there; she has plans to go back this year.
Olivia knows that her juggling lifestyle of being a student and a model, as well as seeing a black girl in the fashion industry walking in big designer shows and not afraid to speak her mind, is something more people need to see. “I want to be a part of continuing to represent for everyone. Whether it’s people trying to balance work with life and school or something else, I think it’s important to have examples of those out there who are doing it,” she says.
SOURCE: TEEN VOGUE
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