Welcome back to another episode of Behind The Looks. This time around we will be interviewing Destiny Brianna. Brianna dives into topics that undoubtedly affect women inside and outside the modeling profession. But before we do that, let me fill you in with the background on Destiny and what I learned about her during our time together. She’s had her up and down’s throughout early life and now is focused more on her milestones.
Destiny is different from most, she has a creative side which easily makes her stand out from a crowd. Not only is she a model under LusttModels agency, but she’s employed at various promotion agencies. Her main focus is to expand past normal bookings for music visuals or small shoots, to published work throughout magazines and hopefully – television. Aside from modeling aspirations, she wants to own her own business flipping houses or maybe her own media/entertainment based company.
Continually working, Destiny is currently keeping a promise she made to herself – finish her undergraduate degree. Don’t get it twisted though, she doesn’t regret taking a break from her education to pursue her passion for modeling. Throughout this tenure, she’s created a major support system from the plethora of connections made while modeling.
“I always try to succeed and set a good example for my four little sisters, they’re still young but they really are the most important thing in my life. Since I have a major age gap with a couple of them, I helped raise them as if they were my own kids.“
While growing her personal support system, she also wants to create that same system for her younger siblings that look up to her as a role model. Destiny is undoubtedly focused on showing them that pursuing your passion can pay off financially. This mindset of unwavering determination is highlighted perfectly in Destiny’s own life. Instead of listening to the typical stereotype that pursuing your passion won’t ever end in financial gains, she pushed forward. As a lot of society follows the monotonous cycle of birth to death, Destiny is focused on making a personal impact.
Aside from knowing Destiny’s passion and focus for her future, I wanted to cover a topic that’s been our series’ main concern – the harassment and problems plaguing women in modeling. For Destiny, the reality of objectification is all to normal. Her experience with catcalling leaves her with some bad anxiety because you truly won’t ever know what the intention the caller might have for you.
“Catcalling honestly gives me really bad anxiety because you can never know what someone’s intentions may be. Yes, they could just be harmful thinking that’s a good way to get a girls attention but they could also be incredibly prideful and become aggressive if they are denied or ignored.“
Toxic masculinity is a real issue spreading within our culture. Many men who get ignored can quickly turn into a physical and aggressive approach to any female ignoring them. This waking nightmare happens every day for women of all kinds – modeling or not. Regardless of one’s physical appearance, the onslaught of verbal harassment happens to women all over the world.
As of 2019, many women don’t even feel comfortable going to the store or walking their dog without fear of verbal objectification. As a nation, we could do better. More importantly, as men we HAVE to do better and make sure to call these individuals out. Objectification, in any manner, shouldn’t be allowed in our society.
Aside from the plethora of toxic behavior, toxic business is prevalent in the modeling profession. Since social media has been thriving, it has opened doors to new challenges with realizing what is real or fake. Many photographers nowadays just buy their followers and post photos of clients that might not even be their own. This nefarious activity allows for unsafe industry practices, and puts these women at risk of exploitation. For Destiny, her experiences have thankfully been positive.
“I’ve been lucky enough to not have any creepy encounters with agents nor anyone during a shoot. My agents have been incredibly respectful such as directors and photographers and I’ve always felt safe.“
Her security within her position helps her speak to those entering the industry, and what to expect in terms of respect and professionalism. First, it’s key to bring a plus one to the show. Aside from that, it’s necessary to complete a simple google search to see if his/her work is credibly. If possible, try contacting the models tagged in his/her photos. The more research you do, the better. There have been several cases opening up about photographers being catfishes and even trying to traffic models. The industry is a thriving one but it has its very real dangers. For Destiny, and Kazi Magazine – we found it imperative to highlight proper industry practices.
That is all for this week’s Behind The Looks series. Stay tuned every week for new interview’s, passion and advice from professional models!
Join me next week for another episode of Behind The Looks.
Stay connected with Destiny Brianna via Instagram!
