Image: INF

I must say, I love Tyra’s new hair color. It’s one of the best looks she’s had in a long time. And Teyona looks really cute.

Are you going to tune in for Cycle 13 of America’s Next Top Model? And are you excited to see A Beautiful Life?

Post from: Top Model Gossip

Full Q&A below the jump!

Tell me about how you got involved in Top Model.

I auditioned at Clementon Park, it was a open casting call. The audition was totally spur of the moment. I wasn’t nervous or all that excited about it because it wasn’t something I was taking seriously. I was trying for a year then I stopped. I was going to start college and put modeling on backburner. I was getting ready to go to school. I tried out oh a whim. But then, I got a callback to go to New York, then made it to the semifinals in Vegas then went from 34 to 21 to 13 and got into the house.

Where are you from and what do you mean by the country?

I live in Elkton, Maryland, but I was born in Woodstown, New Jersey. My roots are in New Jersey. Woodstown is very country. It’s cornfields, chickens, ducks, and all that crazy stuff. Growing up it was real quiet, you knew everyone. There are deep roots there.

What photo shoot was your favorite?

The one on the beach in Brazil. Words really can’t explain how nice Brazil was. I so want to go back.

How did you feel about your makeover?

My makeover, it was disgusting and I hated it. But it was what they have me so I kept my mouth closed and left it at that. Those curls made me look like my pet dog. When they unveiled it, I was like “oh my god.” It looked like Fifi sitting on my head. I did not like it. So I named it Fifi. After they fixed it, it looked better and more natural. When we went to panel and Tyra said I hair to get a new one I was excited. My second weave was more exotic! But the first one was horrible.

Do you feel they portrayed you accurately?

I do. Everything that happened are things that I did and said. They did show me quieter than I am, and I was in the background a lot. I’m not quiet, but I was cool with it. They weren’t portraying me as evil or anything I’m not. I just was in the background when drama was happening. With thirteen girls in the house, not everyone can get the same screen time.

How would you describe your personal style?

All I packed was jeans and t-shirts! It’s not me at all! Looking back it was a dumb move, but oh well it’s done. I’m glad the judges called me on it, because I was like “Oh man, they’re so right.” But aren’t models supposed to be palettes? Jeans and t-shirts. I guess I didn’t bring the right kind of t-shirts! I have great personal style and which I could have shown that. But the judges are crazy. They said stuff about Allison’s wardrobe and she showed her personal style. But then they said positive stuff about Celia’s wardrobe. You just never know.

Which photo shoot was your least favorite?

The second photo shoot, the one with Nigel, was freezing cold, which was unfun. It wasn’t the worst experience ever, but it was uncomfortable. But the least favorite part of the show was the final CoverGirl commercial.

Tell me about your upbringing. Were you a tomboy?

I was a tomboy to the fullest! No skirts. Ever. Mom made me wear ridiculous dresses and it made me so mad. I was playing kickball, climbing trees, I did anything I could to not be girly. I’m close to my brother and my boy cousins. When I got older, I started hanging out with girls, but they were like me – tomboys who played sports. When I was 17 or 18, in my senior year of high school, I started thinking about fashion and modeling. I wanted to try something different. Mom was all “try to wear heels and stuff like that.” But you don’t have to be girly to be a model.

Tell me about the final runway show and the oil slick.

I felt the weave slipping and was like “oh my goodness”. Then it fell and I was like oh well, I gotta make it work. It was either going to rock it or it was going to be my downfall. It was so embarrassing, but it all worked out.

What about when Miss J tried to samba with you?

I was like “Oh my God, do I stop and play with J?” If I stopped, I felt panel would jump on that and be like “oh my God, never stop! Why did you stop? Don’t stop!” so I felt the best thing to do would be do ignore him and do my thing.

What happened during the CoverGirl Shoot?

All the pressure finally got to me. There was pressure before, but it wasn’t that much. There were enough girls and my performance was pretty solid up until that point. But once you’re in the final three it’s live or die. Finally it was “oh my God, Teyona, if you cant get it out you’re going home.” That hit me hard. It probably helped me that I broke down in the end. I finally let the pressure get to me and let it in. That’s all I can say about it. My nerves just got the best of me.

What did you think about the Tahlia/Celia incident?

Tahlia expressed her wishes to go home to everyone. If you want to go home, cool, go home. It has nothing to do with me. But sometimes people need places to vent. I know I got involved, but I wasn’t yelling at Celia for what she did, so much as I was standing up for myself. I felt if it wasn’t Celia’s friend in the bottom two, if it was me or Tahlia, Celia would not have said anything. That’s what I was mad about. She wasn’t going to stand her ground and make a statement regardless of who it was. It was her friend and she tried to save her.

What do you think about Fo being upset for not being selected to share the challenge win with you?

I don’t know where Fo got that from. Me and Celia weren’t the best of friends, but this was essentially a team challenge. We had to put our differences aside to rock the challenge. And we did. Its not like I didn’t want to work with Celia. She wasn’t my first choice, but she’s a great model and she brought it for me. She helped me win. I picked Celia because she was my model. If you can’t deal with that, then that’s not my problem. Fo is just being immature. Celia helped me win the challenge. Working with her was great and it was the least I could do.

What was it like being in the bottom two?

I knew whoever was in the bottom two with me was going home. I had been strong throughout the competition, it was the first time I was in the bottom two. The competition was mine to lose. I totally thought it was going to be between me and Allison. But then, Aminat hadn’t been as strong as me and Allison throughout the competition. And in the final commercial, Aminat was not as strong. It was so close and we had no idea what was going to happen. I don’t know what they based it on, you can never tell with the judges. So, yeah, I knew I wasn’t going home, but you can never tell with these things.

Were you surprised you won?

It was so neck and neck during deliberations. The judges loved Allison and her commercial was better than mine. I honestly thought they’d pick her over me for that reason. I did not believe it when they called my name.

What are you most looking forward to in your career?

Want to some runway but want to do editorial stuff and campaign work. I don’t know what I want to do the most. I love everything about modeling, I’ll do anything you give me. It’s all fun and it all gives you exposure! I would love to do shows for Dolce & Gabbana, Michael Kors, Karl Lagerfield, and DSquared. My dream job would be to book any campaign. Since the show, I’ve lost three inches in my hips. I need to be smaller for the New York market. My hair is now straight too. I want to move to New York by December, meet with the agency and see how it goes. I meet with Elite in the next few days and then I’ll find out what’s going to happen.

Congratulations on winning and good luck in the future!

Thank you!

Image: Pottle Productions Inc/The CW

Post from: Top Model Gossip

Images: Pottle Productions Inc/The CW

Post from: Top Model Gossip