Naomi Campbell Valentino

1978–1986: Career beginnings
In 1978 at age 8, Campbell made her first public appearance in the music video for Bob Marley's "Is This Love".[14] She tap-danced in 1983 in the music video for Culture Club's "I'll Tumble 4 Ya" and "Mistake number 3", in 1984.[10] She had studied dance from age 3 to 16, and originally intended to be a dancer.[15] In 1986, while still a student of the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts, Campbell was scouted by Beth Boldt, head of the Synchro Model Agency, while window-shopping in Covent Garden.[16] Her career quickly took off—in April, just before her 16th birthday she appeared on the cover of British Elle.[10]

1987–1997: International success
Over the next few years, Campbell's career progressed steadily: she walked the catwalk for such designers as Gianni Versace, Azzedine Alaïa, and Isaac Mizrahi and posed for such photographers as Peter Lindbergh, Herb Ritts, and Bruce Weber.[10] By the late 1980s, Campbell, with Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista, had formed a trio known as the "Trinity",[10] who became the most recognisable and in-demand models of their generation.[17]

When faced with racial discrimination, Campbell received support from her white friends; she later quoted Turlington and Evangelista as telling Dolce & Gabbana, "If you don't use Naomi, you don't get us."[16] In December 1987, she appeared on the cover of British Vogue, as that publication's first black cover girl since 1966.[18] In August 1988, she became the first black model to appear on the cover of French Vogue,[10] after designer Yves St. Laurent, threatened to withdraw his advertising from the magazine if it didn't place Naomi on its cover.[19] The following year, she appeared on the cover of American Vogue, which marked the first time a black model graced the front of the September magazine, traditionally the year's biggest and most important issue.[10]

In January 1990, Campbell, who was declared "the reigning megamodel of them all" by Interview,[20] appeared with Turlington, Evangelista, Cindy Crawford and Tatjana Patitz on a cover of British Vogue, shot by Peter Lindbergh.[21] The group was subsequently cast to star in the music video for George Michael's "Freedom! '90".[17] By then, Campbell, Turlington, Evangelista, Crawford and Claudia Schiffer formed an elite group of models declared "supermodels" by the fashion industry.[6] With the addition of newcomer Kate Moss, they were collectively known as the "Big Six".[6]

In March 1991, in a defining moment of the so-called supermodel era, Campbell walked the catwalk for Versace with Turlington, Evangelista and Crawford, arm-in-arm and lip-synching the words to "Freedom! '90".[17] Later that year, she starred as Michael Jackson's love interest in the music video for "In the Closet".[14] In April 1992, she posed with several other top models for the hundredth-anniversary cover of American Vogue, shot by Patrick Demarchelier.[22] That same year, she appeared in Madonna's controversial book Sex, in a set of nude photos with Madonna and rapper Big Daddy Kane.[23]

In 1993, Campbell twice appeared on the cover of American Vogue; in April, alongside Christy Turlington, Claudia Schiffer, Stephanie Seymour and Helena Christensen, and again, solo, in June. She also famously fell on the Vivienne Westwood 1993 Fall catwalk in foot-high platform shoes, which were later displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.[16] Despite her success, however, Elite Model Management, which had represented Campbell since 1987, fired her in September, on the grounds that "no amount of money or prestige could further justify the abuse" to staff and clients.[24]


Campbell at Bill Clinton's inauguration party in 1997
In the mid-1990s, Campbell branched out into other areas of the entertainment industry.[24] Her novel Swan, about a supermodel dealing with blackmail, was released in 1994 to poor reviews.[25] It was ghostwritten by Caroline Upcher, with Campbell stating that she "just did not have the time to sit down and write a book."[26] That same year, she released her album Baby Woman, which was named after designer Rifat Ozbek's nickname for Campbell.[10] Produced by Youth and Tim Simenon, the album was only commercially successful in Japan; it failed to reach the top 75 on the UK charts,[26][27] while its only single, "Love and Tears", reached No. 40.[28] Baby Woman was mocked by critics, inspiring the Naomi Awards for terrible pop music.[26][27] During the mid-1990s, Campbell also had small roles in Miami Rhapsody and Spike Lee's Girl 6, as well as a recurring role on the second season of New York Undercover.

In 1995, along with fellow models Schiffer, Turlington and Elle Macpherson, Campbell invested in a chain of restaurants called the Fashion Cafe, whose directors were arrested three years later for fraud, bankruptcy and money laundering.[6]