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Brains and beauty couldn’t keep Whitney out of the bottom two for the third consecutive week, so it was three strikes, and you’re out for the 21-year-old college student, who became the seventh contestant eliminated on America's Next Top Model. As the second and last plus-size contestant on Cycle 8, find out how making a statement in the fashion world where “thin is in” was what mattered the most to her.
Hi, Whitney! Thank you for speaking with me today.
Hi! No problem!
You were a college student at an Ivy League school. What made you interested in applying for America’s Next Top Model, as that seems such a drastic change from the life of academia.
Yeah, totally a drastic change. You know, I always want to go against the grain and do things differently, and I had just quit the basketball team at Dartmouth, so I was just kind looking for my next move. I tried out for Cycle 7, and, unfortunately, I didn’t make the cut in Cycle 7. I started modeling on my own and building my portfolio and testing with different photographers in the West Palm Beach/Miami area. Then, I got called back for Cycle 8, and they asked me if I would be interested in auditioning again, and I went for it. I just think that I am always trying to do something different and try to push the envelope. So, trying out for Top Model is definitely pushing the envelope, especially since kids at my school don’t do stuff like that. [laughs]
No, not normally at an Ivy League school.
Yeah! [laughs]
Will you be returning to finish school, and what was your major?
Yeah! I’m in school right now. I’m a senior, and my major is sociology.
Will you actually graduate on time?
Well, what happens is we’re on a quarter system at Dartmouth, so I just took a term off from school when I did Top Model, so that leaves me behind two credits. I’m going to walk in June, and then I’m moving to New York in order to pursue modeling and acting, and I’m going to take classes at NYU at the same time so that I can get my Dartmouth degree at the end of the summer.
Excellent!
I have to ask you . . . do you still owe your dad $9,000?
Yeah, I do, and I’m really torn, and I don’t want to give the bracelet to anybody or sell it to anybody. [both laugh] I was like, “Daddy, when I went into this whole thing I told you that it was going to be an investment, so just wait. I’ll have $9,000, hopefully—keep our fingers crossed and God willing eventually. But, for now just let me keep my diamonds!” [laughs]
Since you’re used to the dorm life, anyway, how was it living in the house with all the girls? That’s a different style of girls altogether.
Right! Like I said, I’m a sociology major, so I think getting to know people and being around people is something that I really enjoy. I really enjoy exploring different people’s walks of life, and I got that out of Top Model, and I got that out of living in that house. I think being in college and used to dorm life and being thrown into situations with roommates that you haven’t known before is very reminiscent of what I went through on Top Model. So, I don’t really think I had a problem with the whole experience. Plus, I just went into knowing that if I’m leaving college in my senior year to be on a reality televisions show, I better make the damnedest of it, and I’d better go out there and have a great time.
Did you have a great time?
Oh, yeah! That’s the experience that I had while I was in that house. I was having a good time.
Who was your roommate?
I lived in a room with Diana sleeping right next to me, and, then, Jael. And, then, Renee did sleep next to me, and she got mad at Jael and moved out. [laughs]
There was some drama going on in there.
Yeah. [laughs]
You seemed to be close to Diana. Was there anyone else with whom you were close?
Yeah, definitely! I was close to every single girl in that house. I think everybody . . . I had a one-on-one type session with everybody, and I think a relationship grew out of every other girl in that house. If I had to name names, I would probably say Jael, Felicia, Dionne, even Jaslene. I think the relationships were probably the strongest there.
Who was the most difficult one to get along with in the house?
You know, I’m honestly the type of person who says don’t sweat the small stuff, and I just think life is too short to be bitter, and life is too short being mad and having hang-ups on other people, and that’s just how I live my daily life. So, I really don’t let anybody affect me. I don’t think that I had any problems living with any of the girls. I don’t think that Renee was a problem. I don’t think that Brittany was a problem. There were some things they did that I didn’t understand, and I let them know that I didn’t understand the things that they were doing. But, nobody got to me just ‘cause I’m not that kind of person.
Since you mentioned Brittany, I think sometimes you were portrayed as being kind of unsympathetic toward her—especially with her crying jags and hair weave problems. Is that not how it was? You just said you didn’t have a problem with her.
No, I honestly . . . you guys didn’t see a lot of the stuff that went on behind the scenes, and Brittany will cry because she had to go to the bathroom, and when we told her to “pop a squat,” she was too scared to pop a squat. So, she started crying then, too. And, there was a lot of crying going on that was off camera, and not on television, and stuff like that, so my statement to Brittany was basically to quit crying because you’re sweating the small stuff, and my life motto is: Don’t sweat the small stuff. I just think life is too short to get worked up over stupid things. [laughs]
Our readers always like hear another contestant’s opinion of the other girls in the house. In a one or two word description, please tell me the first thing that comes to mind when you hear these names:
Brittany: The crier.
Cassandra: The spiritual, wonderful woman.
Diana: Miss Awesomeness. My girl until the day that I die.
Dionne: The bloomer. I’d definitely have to call her the bloomer.
Felicia: My little sister.
Jael: My partner in crime.
Jaslene: Cha-cha diva.
Kathleen: [major laughter] Miss I rep Brooklyn until the day I die.
Natasha: Really sweet girl. She’s smart, too, and you wouldn’t think it just because of that language barrier, but she is real smart.
Renee: Misunderstood and inherently a good person.
Samantha: The supermodel.
Sarah: Quirky
Yourself—Whitney: A goddess who is going to totally take the world by storm. [laughs]
For your random question, how tall are you?
5’10”. For all your readers out there, I’m not short. [laughs]
You know all about that, don’t you.
Oh, yeah.
Do you read FoRT?
Yes, I actually had to stop reading your website because some of the things were extremely hurtful, so I just decided to give it a rest. [laughs]
Can you tell me what really transpired with Renee during the discussion of a plus-size model being on the cover of Vogue?
Yes. Totally. I think that Renee was probably reenacting some thing that other people said. I honestly, and I know that Renee doesn’t believe that a plus-size model will never be on the cover of Vogue. Of course, Jennifer Hudson was just on the cover of Vogue, so, yes, a plus-size model can do it.
Did she know that at the time—during airing—had that happened?
Oh, no, no, no. She had no idea. I don’t believe that Renee honestly believes that. I just think . . . we were sitting around, and we were bored, and she just wanted to say something that was going to incite something. [laughs]
Did you feel any added pressure as a plus-size model being on the show?
I actually felt added support. I think going into the whole competition with the Jennifer Hudson wave, and the Tyra Banks fuller figure, and even the characters of Grey’s Anatomy, a really, really popular show, being more fuller-figured women, I felt more support going into the competition. I think having Diana there with me helped me out even more. I really felt as though I was making a statement more than anything in the world. Even if I felt pressure, it was positive pressure that was the fuel that I needed to start my fire.
To me, you appeared to have lost some weight while you were on the show. Did you feel any pressure to lose any weight, and did you lose any weight?
I gained! I gained 10 pounds while I was on the show, but I’ve lost 15 pounds since the show. [laughs] I definitely did gain weight while I was on the show, and it was interesting because Tyra actually told me that I looked as if I had lost weight, but I hadn’t. It was between 7 and 10 pounds, but I’ve lost it all, plus some more. My weight fluctuates all the time.
You came into the competition wanting to win and to revamp the thinking that plus-size models do have a place in the fashion industry, and you made it to over halfway through the competition. You pretty much already told me this, but do you feel you made a statement there?
Oh, I undoubtedly made the statement. I think that my reassurance of that is when little girls run up to me in the mall and tell me how much of an inspiration I am, when grown women come up to me and ask me to take pictures with them because they tell me I’ve been such an inspiration, and that is what really matters to me. That’s the statement that I wanted to make when I went into this competition, so, yes, undoubtedly.
Did you have any body image issues during the nude shoots? It was kind of ironic last night with the “Memorable Moment” having to do with refusing to pose nude.
You know what? I have a funny story to tell about that. I was just joking by saying that all the super-skinny models look like pre-pubescent boys running around when we were doing our nude shoot, and, then Diana and I had all these goodies to look at, so everybody was looking extra-hard at all the stuff we had going on. [laughs] But, no, I didn’t have any body-image issues, and I don’t think I’ve ever had any body-image issues because I’m an athlete, and I’m always physically fit, and I run a lot, I play basketball a lot, and I lift weights a lot. So, I don’t think that I’ve ever had body-image issues. I think, personally, when I look at myself in the mirror or when I go to the beach, I look awesome in a bikini.
Great! You’re toned.
I don’t have any body issues, whatsoever. One thing that I honestly want to address and tell your readers is that when a woman is plus-size, that doesn’t mean that she’s fat. A plus-size model means that she’s full-figured and that she’s proportioned, and when people come up to me and say, “Wow, you’re plus-size; you don’t look fat at all,” that really hurts me because I’m not fat just because I’m a plus-size model, and I just think the record needs to be cleared on that because I read a lot of stuff talking about how Diana and I are fat and this and that and the other. If you see Diana and I in person, you will be reassured of the fact that we’re not fat.
Thank you. I’m glad you addressed that.
Since that shoot last night was a “Memorable Moment, what do you think will be remembered as your “Memorable Moment” on America’s Next Top Model?
Definitely my $40,000 bracelet and being Cover Girl of the week at the same time. That was undoubtedly my best moment on America’s Next Top Model.
That is pretty awesome. How exciting was it to work with Pedro?
Oh, my God! He’s awesome!
I can’t call him anything other than Pedro.
I know! I know! I don’t know if you realized that I was the first one to scream out, “It’s Pedro!” I was totally excited because I am a Napoleon Dynamite fan, and I sit around and watch Napoleon Dynamite all the time, so, yes, I was very excited to work with him.
You already told me that you are going to pursue acting, but you had to have been disappointed not to have won that challenge since that was your forte.
Oh, totally. I think the reason they only showed a short clip of myself was because I was probably a really close second to Renee. So, yes, it was disappointing that I didn’t win the challenge, but I’m so happy that Renee got to win that challenge so that she could see her husband and baby, because she had just gotten married and had that baby. I’m really glad for her that she did win that challenge. It was awesome.
You won a “posing” challenge, for which you won that diamond bracelet; yet, during your photo-shoots, panel didn’t feel your personality and beauty were coming through. How hard is it to bring that “look” to your photo shoots?
One thing that I wanted to say was the fact that I think people forget we are in Cycle 8 of America’s Next Top Model and that it is a reality TV show before it is anything else. I think that I found a really hard time finding a balance between the extremity of the photo-shoot and modeling at the same time. If you look at my pre-ANTM portfolio, you can see there is a huge difference between my photos then and my photos on ANTM. I feel as though, normally, when I would walk onto a set, I would come on professionally, I would do the job that needed to be done, and then I would walk off. On ANTM, I had to act like a goon while at the same time exuding total beauty, confidence, and taking a great picture so that it can translate on film in front of Tyra and the judges.
Did you say goon?
Yes! [major laughter]
Last night, I saw more expressive pictures than the one they showed in panel. Were you happy with that picture?
Yeah, I thought it was a really cute picture; I really did. I didn’t expect to go home in last night’s elimination. They didn’t show this on camera, but Mr. J said that I had finally learned what it was to model in that photo-shoot, and that was my best one to date. So, I was really, really excited about going to panel. I’m really excited about seeing my picture and really disappointed when I was in the bottom two, and even more disappointed when I went home. I thought that it was a cute picture, and I thought I probably shouldn’t have gone home, but, like I said, it’s a reality television show, and if I was meant to go home then, it’s just a kick in the pants for me to do other, greater things from this point forward.
There was that other challenge, the Sears challenge, you would have won, but you weren’t in the right place. Were you ever able to live that down with your teammates?
Oh, my gosh! Yeah, you know, I think people, and especially on their websites, people totally blew things out of proportion, and the thing about it is that it was totally all in fun, and I apologized numerous times to my teammates! I was like, “You guys, I am so sorry.” The truth of the matter is, although my team might have won the challenge as team, I personally would have won the challenge for myself if I had been on the platform. I mean, the team didn’t get anything as a prize; I would have gotten the prize. So, truthfully, I let myself done, not Natasha and Jael. And, I totally apologized to Natasha. I saw that she told me to get on the platform on television, but I didn’t hear her when I was sitting there. So, that’s one thing I wanted to make sure I that I emphasized. I didn’t hear Natasha say, “Whitney, get on the platform.”
Congratulations on making it as far as you did, Whitney! You're a positive role model, and best of luck for whatever you may do in the future.
Addendum: Whitney and I were cut off yesterday, as she had another commitment, but she graciously answered some more questions via E-Mail.
The week you and Diana were in the bottom two, do you think it was because you both had the worst pictures, or was your being in the bottom two for dramatic effect?
Definitely dramatic effect. I knew from the get go, when we first moved into the house that at some point Diana and I would be in the bottom two.
Do you foresee there ever being a plus-size winner on America's Next Top Model?
There’s always a possibility, but some things on the show would have to change.
What was your favorite photo-shoot?
Definitely the Crime Scene photo shoot – the makeup was fierce.
What was your least favorite photo-shoot?
The first photo shoot where I posed as a lesbian with Samantha. The clothes that I had to wear made me look fat.
Do you think there will come a time when a plus-size model is accepted as being a model without the stigma of being "plus-size?"
Without a doubt.
Many thanks to CW and Whitney (again) for this interview opportunity!
Originally Posted by ShrinkingViolet;2328240; 
