IMAN - How I Was Discovered: Fashion Icon

Models by Look Fashion Icon's series debuts with one of the biggest of all time, Iman, dishes on how she was discovered in her native Somalia and moved to NYC to pursue a modeling career. Known for paving the way for black supermodels in the 1970's, Iman recalls the very first time she was asked for her autograph- here's hoping that lucky young girl held on to it!
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[@anthonywest4173]

IMAN IS STILL A FLAWLESS BEAUTY!

[@motosana1]

With help from plastic surgery yes.

[@thinkbeforeyoutype7106]

@@motosana1 No

[@motosana1]

@@thinkbeforeyoutype7106 You know nothing about her history so think before you type.

[@MissUnderstoodasAlways]

Agreed Anthony

[@maureenmountbattenwindsor8596]

@@motosana1 how dare you even entertain the thought of even trying to insult Ahman

[@afoley2812]

Hollywood should make a film about her life.

[@Gahboot]

How come she looks so beautiful and stunning all the time...?!

[@sarahjalajel5216]

K A B E L T E L E P O N becoz she’s beautiful

[@motosana1]

Surgery helps.

[@sxm76]

@@motosana1 She is beautiful without surgery! You sound jealous

[@Autumn-Mist]

@@sxm76 Oh geez. Initially, I was going 2 say money helps.& I suppose 'IF" that included a few nips & tucks, private trainer, personal dietitian etc, Why not? Yes, she is beautiful, but money helps you maintain that beauty. You must look @ it realistically/. Pull out your photos of when u were in your 20's & do comparisons of every 10 yrs. Now imagine how differently those aging photos would look if you had money 2 really take care of u.

[@sxm76]

@@Autumn-Mist But that goes without being said. Just let the compliment ride. It's a female thing where you undermine the compliment by saying "she's only that beautiful because she had surgery or she has money". Just let the comment ride. She is beautiful. That's something ya'll do and can't resist.

[@josie5592]

I love her authenticity and how grounded she is

[@St.BMcClain]

I never get tired of Iman.

[@amyparra1881]

Iman is THE supermodel of all time. Her grace and beauty inside and out is timeless. Her aesthetic and proper manner are what a woman should aspire to be - within their own limits. ♡ Let all of us women celebrate each other and ourselves!

[@lemonhead162]

This woman is not only smart, but flawless looking!

[@ramatgan1]

Iman is pure class. A Somali Queen.

[@gaysenegalais]

If it is not racist whites making nasty comments, it's other black "Africans" trashing their own.... but bottom line is that she is blessed by God and there is NOTHING you can do about it.

[@melodymiller423]

I just love how humble Iman is🌹

[@chrisez3188]

It’s always a photographer that gets you discovered which is why I’m constantly on the lookout

[@Garbeaux.]

So she literally became famous overnight. These stories are so rare. Look at how everything fell into place.

[@winniew6742]

This girl got brains too... Nairobi University is the top de la crème in Kenya.

[@dellagool4869]

But in 1975 how can the tuition be $8000????? Today the cost close to that sum

[@winniew6742]

@@dellagool4869 probably in Kenya shillings.

[@dellagool4869]

@@winniew6742 she said dollars

[@anacionqtfixo]

"Ia wasn't lost to be discovered" waw such a clever woman.

[@josephrocha142]

Her personality is everything. Shes regal on top of all of that beauty.

[@stopthelies4249]

She makes me cry because she is from my ancestral home land and to hear her talk about it and her point of view I just wish I had a connection with my people and them with me.

[@TheBohemianStyle]

I can’t hear over this music

[@imrantariq1977]

I love her - So humble and real and honest - Hope she stays blessed and happy ♥️♥️♥️

[@christinescopas1441]

Iman is the best she made me laugh when she said she only see one magazine and that was from her brothers reading playboy lol every man reads these magazines

[@antonibalasz1522]

A true African queen👑

[@sarahjalajel5216]

toni bee you are sooo beautiful too dia

[@dtrn254]

I definitely believe Iman on conquering both photography and runway... She did both...first.

[@cocolyndon4604]

Love, Love her!

[@cezartb]

Iman reigns.

[@jeffreyrichardson]

david and iman together forever found now love safe and sound

[@MICH3LL3MLIV3]

She’s a goddess 🌻.

[@simosc2]

I wonder if the large ring on her left hand is the one she had seen in a store in another country and wanted. The one David tracked down and purchased from a private owner to give to his Iman.

[@Sabrinajn]

His Iman, his faith ❤️

[@momsabriadem8868]

Sorry I love her so much I want to meet her one day

[@Edbashir]

Slay queen 👑 ❤️ - a Somali in Malaysia

[@Xammaada]

Iman, a beautiful woman and person. I respect you walaalo.To the comments below, who are you to judge?....Anyway, I WOULD LOVE TO MEET THIS AMAZING WOMAN....mac mac mac aaan ku siiyaay lol

[@TrantisionerMarin]

she ugly as fuck with her fake ass hair. bye...

[@sabrineboukhris4784]

.

[@abdullahfarah3447]

@@TrantisionerMarin you wished you was half as beautiful as she is🤣

[@sciencenerd777]

@@TrantisionerMarin 😂😂🤡

[@munasarrah4116]

@@TrantisionerMarin shut up :)

[@jpallen719]

I love this lady!

[@gelaben26]

Such a strong woman

[@atjones2512]

shes soobeautiful....the best model i liked....also christy turlington...these two were the best.

[@aavalestormiconicperformer]

She is very truthful.

[@-3lory]

lovely she is with great parent's.

[@kllwc7772]

One of THE best models of ALL time 🗣💌💌💌💌💌💌💌💌💌

[@mariamery7025]

Hermosa ❤

[@sarahgawdan2215]

Merci femme Somalie 🇸🇴 ❤

[@mrmiss8062]

Is your life story on film yet? If not, it should be. How amazing would that be?! It'll be the next platform to fame whoever is playing you.

[@fatimamohamedyusufyusuf342]

ASALAMU ALEYKUM IMAN HAPPY EID 24/5/2020 STAY BEAUTIFUL FOR EVER INNSHA'ALLAH

[@TheDetroitblack]

Iman your impeccable Lady♥️💋

[@frantisekjanosik5339]

she's beautiful black person from Somalia that's all..

[@themadtitan9049]

No such thing as black people. We are not pencil colours thank you.

[@themadtitan9049]

@iman Thank you for replying in a kind manner (something that seems to be rare in this day and age on the net when it comes to differences of opinions). My point is that we are the ones who actually create our reality sister. Learn the power of your mind, and bring into reality a world that you want to inhabit. Everything is energy, including your thoughts. Hence what you think actually has a profound impact on your life.

[@sarahgawdan2215]

Moi 🇫🇷♥️🇸🇴

[@kate4kanini]

Now folks know who the 1st black model is .........Iman and Beverly. Naomi came later.

[@ahmedazad1154]

kate kanini iman is Somali stupid.She has identity.

[@somethingcreativ235]

Fun base she’s black....somalis consider themselves black. atleast i do.

[@sebia322]

@@ahmedazad1154 All sub saharan africans have an identity and are black .

[@sarahdaniel9912]

@@ahmedazad1154 black is the race. Somali is the nationality

[@hassanabdikarimmohamed2505]

@@sarahdaniel9912black isn't a race, Somalis carry e1b1b y dna and don't share any genetic relations with congoid africans for over 50,000 years, Somali is an ethnicity, a nationality, language, culture, and our race is Cushite or Hamite, which is a real race based on dna, archeology, linguistics, ancestral origin, anthropology, culture, etc

[@flowergirlpower1991]

Love her

[@allthemoneyintheworl]

If What God has for you, it is for you was a person!!!

[@TheDanceOfTX]

She is so dope

[@romaapatenko6287]

Very elegant ⌚️💎gold👌🏼

[@sarahgawdan2215]

C’est quoi la suite pour la Somalie..,?

[@najmaartan3472]

🇸🇴❤️

[@decencywarrior9598]

How wonderfully provincial Iman was at the time of her discovery , certainly that changed quickly given the parameters of being black , a living in the United States and experiencing life as a female black individual in our less than hospitable dominant white culture at that time . Of course we still have a ways to go , but at least the topics that need to be focused on are staying on the table.

[@augustadams5006]

Ahh Iman is another version of Imani

[@chrysichrysi7889]

Her facial structure still fascinates. I hope nobody takes this the wrong way but to put in very simple almost primitive terms, she looks like a black white woman or darker-skinned mixed race woman. You can tell she's a totally different race of black (all black is awesome, but I'm just stating the obvious). Her melanin works in her favor. She must be extremely disciplined to still look like she does even after all of these years. Respect. Also love how she clarifies "I wasn't lost to be discovered". Totally felt that.👍

[@whitepaper5241]

Most Somalis are part Yemeni. Yemenis are Arabs, and Arabs are Caucasians. She happens to have the best features of both worlds (black and Arabs).

[@yesqueen8635]

@@whitepaper5241 Lol did you say Arabs Caucasians lol.

[@DemoCoverUploader]

@@yesqueen8635 skeletal level yes they are caucasoid. I think youre mistaking their skin color and type. They are the earliest/primitive caucasoid hence theyre abit diff from the europeans which are modern caucasoid. Even some in european country still retains some of yhis primitive caucasian look eg italy greeks etc

[@yesqueen8635]

@@DemoCoverUploader lol if you say so lol😂😂😂

[@ElysianFeilds93]

Your comment seems coded. What does it mean to be a different race of Black. What does it mean to have melanin that, "works in your favor?"

[@Handle0108]

Don’t know why she left, Somalia was safe and great throughout the 70s. It’s only the 80s where things got tense.

[@MM-xm5vx]

Comrade Anatoly Dyatlov her family were one of the people that helped win the independence, so they didn’t feel happy seeing their dream of a free Somalia destroyed.

[@cerebrumexcrement]

she explained. she was a child. her mother was the one who felt moving to kenya was the safest for her family.

[@luulmaogi2293]

Her father was part of the government at the time of the coupe by Siad Barre. They saw the assassination of government officials and thought Iman's father was next, so they fled.

[@Autumn-Mist]

I can not hear the name of the man that discovered her. Can anyone tell me the name?

[@beautifulcrazy]

Wow

[@stopthelies4249]

It’s was GRACE JONES

[@PrettyGoodLookin]

8K to go to Uni in Nairobi in 1975 ???

[@jeffreyrichardson]

Somalia has rust colored cliffs.

[@domenicoabdulmadjid]

I kinda disagreed if the industry called her The Super Model.. For me she is IMAN ABDULMADJID .. Her name represented her whole Lives and Personality.. Remember, David Bowie choose her to be his QUEEN, SHE IS MORE THAN JUST A super model...

[@mirabellestarr7679]

And to think... Tyra Banks brags and credits herself for being a trailblazer for black models. What a conceited woman when Iman and others were doing it decades earlier!

[@realmofthesenses]

Each generation stands on the shoulders of the generation before. Black and colored models in the "WWW (White Western World) "go way back of course, even long before Iman. I think Tyra Banks certainly was among the trailblazers of her generation, just as many other Black models before and after her were trailblazers, like Donyale Luna, Beverly Johnson, Pat Cleveland, Grace Jones, Mounia, Naomi Sims, Naomi Campbell, Waris Dirie, Khadija, Louise Vyent, Alek Wek, just to name a few from different generations. With their different personalities some are more modest than others, e.g. Tyra Banks.

[@canabhassan7286]

Dad kaga soo dhex gal hadii ad rabto in lugu qiimeyo

[@permijitdunkley1697]

........

[@nairobichik]

Beautiful woman but, what was she studying at nairobi university? Who was she studying with? Who were her lecturers? Such a mystery..... 🤣

[@dearmodi1325]

$8000.

[@bnkundwa]

Finally Somalia has a language: Arabic.

[@ikranabdi6736]

@Ayaan Osman 😂😂🙌my sister cool it's okey .....Somali is the national language followed by Arabic so he gauzed right 😍😍

[@missadam9250]

Noo we have our own language Somali and it’s nothing like Arabic. 🙄

[@ikranabdi6736]

@@missadam9250 yes

[@missadam9250]

@@ikranabdi6736 I hate when ppl assume we don’t have our own language. 🙄

[@ikranabdi6736]

@@missadam9250 yes walhy we have our somali

[@bigbulk688]

"Discovered" my foot. The whole story is a load of bullshit. She was born in extreme riches, bought her way into the most prestigious uni in Kenya, and then as is with most rich people, got in the beauty business through family connections at the high places. She started straight from the top, paid to get on the covers of the major magazines which then launched her commercial career.

[@sciencenerd777]

My God. I am really happy you are a *eyewitness* in her growing up and lack of struggles. *RECEIPTS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN* sad troll... You think you know everything about her.

[@tonyawhitehead2209]

Pretty brave of him to have a public name of Iman! Did he really want people to know he's really a MAN or what??🤔🤔

[@lanhod]

what the...??

[@realmofthesenses]

you must be kidding or trolling ...?

[@tonyawhitehead2209]

@@realmofthesenses no, sorry I am not trolling. That comment is from 1 year ago and at the time I was really buying into the whole celebrity transgender conspiracy thing. To be honest however, I am really not sure what to believe anymore. Best wishes to you ❤️🙏

[@sueiranka9336]

Lets first pause at 1:57, i am east african too, there is no way university ever cost 8000 dollars especially in the 80 or 90s, that a big fat lie, its not even that expensive yet!

[@ajamma8139]

Lool she never said it cost 8000 either dummy. She only Said that she was thinking of university payments. Btw she was not discovered in the 80s or 90s but in the Early 70s. You welcome

[@oprah9501]

I asked my mom yeh you can depends on university and what your studying for

[@realmofthesenses]

I guess it's like a situation where someone needs you for a specific job, you don't like to do it, and you just name a ridiculously high price to get rid of it, not expecting them to say yes to it anyway.

[@alikovacs789]

Is iman transgender she has a deep voice

[@ruxanajewoon1120]

No somalian n other African girls have this timbre in their voice

[@angelinaadub2883]

Your beautiful support model I wish I can speak with you I'm interested in modeling

[@fuuuuuuuism]

Iman, you are an inspiration, you're beautiful, smart, and funny.

[@maureenmountbattenwindsor8596]

Iman not only are you an icon in you're own accompishments , you were the light in David Bowie's life .

[@stopthelies4249]

And she has Egyptian pharaoh queen Cleopatra all over her face

[@reniherawati7164]

Iman like vampire stil young forever

[@yetyet7484]

Wow what a journey her life has been