The return of Top Model - Sessilee Lopez

Very rarely have we witnessed a young black model make such a huge and prominent debut into the fashion industry and then disappear even quicker than did Ms. Sessilee Lopez.

I can still remember almost three and a half years ago when I received a telephone call from Ms. Jay Alexander asking me, “Have you seen this little black girl named Sessilee? Honey, she is fierce - FIIIEEERRRCCCE!” I could vividly picture Jay on the other end of the telephone wagging his index finger, pursed lips and doing the “stink face” as he went on to describe the fierceness of Ms. Sessilee Lopez. Jay had first come to know of Sessilee during a casting he was conducting on behalf of Kimora Lee Simmons for her Baby Phat show, but fortunately I had already been well aware of “La Lopez” from a few seasons before as I witnessed her strut her young stuff at the fashion show of an old friend and fellow designer, Zaldy. Sessilee’s face and performance stood out amongst all the rest for me during her first season at New York Fashion Week as she seemed to bring something new and interesting to the table. She was very different from the typical Russian or Brazilian models tromping their way to a new life here in the United States – Sessilee seemed a bit more regal and self-assured than even some of the other black models that had been introduced this same season. So when I popped in to pick Jay up from one of the legendary late night fittings for Baby Phat, I was pleased to finally meet the lovely Sessilee Lopez in person.

Sessilee sat patiently in a small holding room chomping on pizza and listening to her Ipod as she was being stared down and sized up by some of the biggest names in the modeling game as they all waited to try on their looks for the catwalk. I could feel the tension in the room as this young newcomer sat eating away on a slice during a time when most of the other girls were starving themselves into a state of delirium. And here sat the new, hot and carefree 16 year old paying it all no mind.

When I introduced myself to Sessilee I was completely prepared for the most exotic of voices to appear, but to my shock, surprise and secret joy – out slipped the most amazing All-American accent I had heard from a model of color in quite some time. I wanted to break into one of those patriotic songs that ended with “The Old Red, White and Blue”, but I didn’t want to seem like an unsophisticated xenophobe. Instead, I went into my good old southern boy / ebonicly correct dialect and asked, “Where you from?”

It turns out that Sessilee was born in Philadelphia and raised partly in Port St. Lucie, Florida. By the time I met Sessilee she had already been photographed by Sorrenti, Lagerfeld and Demarchellier as well as signed to the number one modeling agency - IMG. Clearly, I wasn’t about to impart any words of wisdom on this burgeoning supermodel as I was for sure she was well on her way to super stardom… But less I forget – this is the fashion industry.

A few months went by and I noticed that we had started to see less and less of the young Ms. Lopez – no editorials, no catwalks, no NOTHING… It was as if she had dropped off the face of the fashion earth. Then one night, perhaps a year and a half ago, at a random party being held at Trump Tower for Donald Trump’s new vodka named, what else, TRUMP – I caught a glimpse of Ms. Sessilee Lopez. I was in shock – absolute shock. In walks Ms. Lopez known for her chicly cropped a la Grace Jones hair style with a long wavy weave almost to the top of her ass crack. Seriously, I was in shock – shock. I almost ran over and grabbed her by the arm in order to give her a tongue lashing about what this industry does to beautiful young black women that come in to this game self-assured, perfectly packaged and ready to take on the world. Now before all my free-to-weave girls start screaming and sending me nasty emails, let me be the first to say that I have absolutely nothing against weaves. Hell, sometimes I take girls I know to have them sewn in and even volunteer to buy them the hair from Adorable’s Hair Supply. But Sessilee Lopez I think was never a candidate for this particular hair make-over unless for an editorial or campaign (like the Macy’s commercial below). It was in that moment as I watch Sessilee elegantly glide through the Trump party, I knew that the business was trying to find a nice way of telling this beautiful young woman, “Change who you are before we move on to the next black girl and as you know, there can only be one.”

Sessilee with “long hair” in a Macy’s Commercial

Perhaps I should break it down for those of you who are not fully in the know how the modeling industry works when they are “making room for new models”… There are several key signs which are the “kiss of death” for a young model that has not hit “star” or “top” model status and insist on staying in the game. The signs or slight nudges are as follows:

1) Drastic and Continual Hair Makeovers (Exception to the rule – Linda Evangelista – and as we know, La Linda is a once in a lifetime phenomenon.)

2) Unhealthy Weight Loss suggested and demanded by the agency (We are talking beyond the normal – “You should loose a few pounds…”)

3) An extended trip to visit the Asian Market (These models come back with books filled with unusable tear sheets.)

The fourth and final sign translates into the equivalent of Modeling Hara-Kiri

4) The Alcoholic Beverage or Cigarette Campaign (There is no return from this deadly sin – none whatsoever.)

Luckily Sessilee had only been committed one cardinal sin from above and also somehow remained on IMG’s board and website. That is she remained until the end of last year when I noticed Sessilee Lopez was no longer being represented by IMG Model Management.

Sessilee is now represented by Major Models

Then one day a few months ago during a trip to a website that had done a sweet little story on the Mal Sirrah brand, I noticed a small thumbnail of a beautiful black girl wearing an amazing gold dress. And there she was – in all her short cropped hair and golden brown glory – La Lopez. In Sessilee’s newer photos her eyes appear a bit more squinted and suspicious – which adds to her fierceness; her hair is no longer pixy and cute but more shaved and severe; and her energy is no longer childlike or coquettish – she is now serving up major attitude and confidence. Sessilee Lopez is back and ready to win.

So this morning when I opened the New York Times “Fashion and Styles” section and read Sessilee had been chosen to appear on the Italian Vogue fold-out cover, I was warmed by a feeling that all might finally be going right in the universe. I knew that this was not only a story about black models taking their rightful place in the fashion world but this was also a story of a young woman’s perseverance, struggle and self-realization being told within those folds. For Sessilee Lopez this was the story of a queen reclaiming her throne. Welcome back La Lopez – welcome back!

p.s. Sessilee also has a blog ( http://sessileelopez.blogspot.com/ ) check it out - you will also notice that I swiped (I meant borrowed) most of these brilliant photos from her blog...