The internet never forgets!
A resurfaced clip from Tyra Banks’ reality TV competition show America’s Next Top Model has the former talk show host and model in hot water with fans. In a 2003 clip from ANTM’s first season, Tyra tells model Danielle Evans that a gap in her teeth is “not marketable” and fans want Tyra and one of the judges from her panel posse, Jay Alexander, to answer for the problematic behavior.
Why was this allowed to air wtf Tyra banks is going to straight hell pic.twitter.com/xtiWl3srKJ
— Aisha Oladapo (@OladapoAisha) May 5, 2020
Some fans went on to highlight unfair treatment towards black models, specifically dark-skinned models.
Whilst there’s been a lot of talk about Tyra’s tyranny on ANTM in recent years, there was absolutely a specific type of regulation, silencing and policing that was directed towards Black women on the show, and dark skinned Black women in particular. https://t.co/oXvM6FYAvW
— jade bentil (@divanificent) May 5, 2020
Sometimes I randomly remember that Tyra Banks publicly berated a poor dark skinned Black woman on her internationally syndicated TV show for not performing disappointment and grief in a way that was palatable to her and labelled this humiliation as an act of “love”
— jade bentil (@divanificent) May 31, 2019
Other fans were not here for Tyra’s hypocrisy when in cycles later, she had a white model widen her gap to make her more marketable.
The irony and hypocrisy of this is a few years later, they had a white model with a gap and Tyra sent to have her gap WIDENED because she considered it “quirky” and “edgy.”
— Black Women Don’t Get Mad-WE VOTE the Diva 🌊🌊🌊 (@AuthorNNBrown) May 5, 2020
A quote from Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty muse and fashion model, Slick Woods, has resurfaced with her views on Tyra Banks. Best known for her trademark gap, Woods doesn’t believe Tyra paved the way for her at all.
& Slick Woods was the ONLY PERSON i could think of when Tyra Banks told that girl she had a gap! Slick made it farrrrrrrr honey w her gap https://t.co/R45OiQfL9n
— 👑 (@Launtra) May 5, 2020
However, some fans came to Tyra’s defense by acknowledging how ANTM was reflective of the fashion industry at the time and didn’t become inclusive until recently.
Do you agree with the backlash Tyra is receiving?
@endphp
