Chanel Iman Robinson (formerly Shepard) (born December 1, 1990) is an American model
best known for her work as a
Victoria's Secret Angel. ''
Vogue Paris
The French edition of ''Vogue'' magazine, formerly called ''Vogue Paris'', is a fashion magazine that has been published since 1920.
History 1920–54
The French edition of ''Vogue'' was first issued on 15 June 1920, the first editor-in-chief b ...
'' declared her as one of the top 30 models of the 2000s.
Early life
Iman was born in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
in 1990. She grew up in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. Her mother is of mixed heritage being half
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
and half
Korean
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
. Her father is African American.
Career
Modeling
Iman started modeling with
Ford Models
Ford Models, originally the Ford Modeling Agency, is an American international modeling agency based in New York City. It was established in 1946 by Eileen Ford and her husband Gerard W. Ford.
Company
Ford Models was started in 1946 by Eileen ...
at the age of 12 as a child model in Los Angeles, California. She flew to New York in 2006 and won third place in Ford's
Supermodel of the World contest.
Shortly after, she signed on with the agency. She has appeared in editions for ''
Allure'', Dubai, American, and Ukrainian ''Harpers Bazaar'', ''
V'', ''i-D'', ''
Pop'', Italian, British, and Indonesian ''Elle'', Italian ''
Vanity Fair'', and several international ''Vogues''. In February and July 2007, Iman appeared on the cover of ''
Teen Vogue'', with
Karlie Kloss
Karlie Elizabeth Kloss (born August 3, 1992) is an American fashion model. ''Vogue Paris'' declared her one of the "top 30 models of the 2000s" when she was 17.
Kloss was a Victoria's Secret Angel from 2013 until 2015; she resigned to study at ...
and
Ali Michael, photographed by
Patrick Demarchelier
Patrick Demarchelier (; 21 August 1943 – 31 March 2022) was a French fashion photographer.
Early life and education
Born near Paris in 1943 to a modest family, Demarchelier spent his childhood in Le Havre, Normandy, with his mother and four ...
, then in November 2009 she appeared on the cover again, this time with
Jourdan Dunn
Jourdan Sherise Dunn (born 3 August 1990) is a British model. She was discovered in Hammersmith Primark in 2006 and signed to The Squad Management in London. She began appearing on international runways in early 2007. In February 2008, she was t ...
. Iman's other covers include American, British, and Italian ''
Elle
''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the w ...
'', American and French ''
L'Officiel
''L'Officiel'' () is a French fashion magazine with a USA edition. It has been published in Paris since 1921 and targets upper-income, educated women aged from 25 to 49. In 2006, it had a circulation of 101,719. A men's edition of ''L'Officiel'', ' ...
'', ''
i-D'', Dubai and Ukrainian ''
Harper's Bazaar'', ''Lula'', Korean, Teen, and American ''
Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine
** ''Vogue China'', ...
''.
She has walked the runways for
Burberry
Burberry is a British luxury fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry headquartered in London, England. It currently designs and distributes ready to wear, including trench coats (for which it is most famous), leather accessorie ...
,
Tom Ford
Thomas Carlyle Ford (born August 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched his eponymous luxury brand in 2005, having previously served as the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. Ford wrote and direct ...
,
Gucci
Gucci (, ; ) is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house based in Florence, Italy. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and branding to Coty, Inc. for fragran ...
,
Balenciaga,
Max Mara
Max Mara (Italian aks 'ma:ra is an Italian fashion business. It markets up-market ready-to-wear clothing. It was established in 1951 in Reggio Emilia by Achille Maramotti (7 January 1927 – 12 January 2005). In March 2008, the company had 2, ...
,
Versace
Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978 known for flashy prints and bright colors. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as ...
,
Yves Saint Laurent,
Oscar de la Renta
Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo (22 July 1932 – 20 October 2014), known professionally as Oscar de la Renta, was a Dominican fashion designer. Born in Santo Domingo, he was trained by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Antonio del Castillo. De la Renta ...
,
Stella McCartney
Stella Nina McCartney (born 13 September 1971) is an English fashion designer. She is a daughter of British singer-songwriter Paul McCartney and the late American photographer and animals rights activist Linda McCartney. Like her parents, McCa ...
,
DKNY
DKNY is a New York City–based fashion house for men and women, founded in 1984 by Donna Karan.
History
Karan worked for 15 years at Anne Klein, including 10 as its head designer. In 1984 Karan and her late husband Stephan Weiss were offered t ...
,
Moschino,
Tommy Hilfiger
Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( /hɪlˈfɪgər/; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger Corporation.
After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's Place in upst ...
,
Jason Wu
Jason Wu (; born September 27, 1982) is a Taiwanese-Canadian artist and fashion designer based in New York City. Born in Taiwan and raised in Vancouver, he studied fashion design at Parsons School of Design, and trained under Narciso Rodriguez ...
,
Dior,
Michael Kors
Michael David Kors (born Karl Anderson Jr. August 9, 1959) is an American fashion designer. He is the chief creative officer of his brand, Michael Kors, which sells men's and women's ready-to-wear, accessories, watches, jewelry, footwear, and f ...
,
Hugo Boss
Hugo Boss AG, often styled as BOSS, is a luxury fashion house headquartered in Metzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company sells clothing, accessories, footwear, and fragrances. Hugo Boss is one of the largest German clothing companies, ...
,
Ralph Lauren,
Dolce & Gabbana
Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...
,
Kenzo
is a common masculine Japanese given name.
Possible writings
Kenzō can be written using different kanji characters and can mean:
*賢三, "wise, three"
*健三, "healthy, three"
*謙三, "humble, three"
*健想, "healthy, concept"
*建造, "bu ...
,
Hermés,
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton Malletier, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French high-end luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ranging from luxury bags and leather ...
,
Alexander McQueen
Lee Alexander McQueen CBE (17 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) was a British fashion designer and couturier. He founded his own Alexander McQueen label in 1992, and was chief designer at Givenchy from 1996 to 2001. His achievements in fashio ...
,
Roberto Cavalli
Roberto Cavalli (; born 15 November 1940) is an Italian fashion designer and inventor. He is known for exotic prints and for creating the sand-blasted look for jeans. The high-end Italian fashion house Roberto Cavalli sells luxury clothing, per ...
,
Marc Jacobs,
DSquared2,
John Galliano
John Charles Galliano (born 28 November 1960) is a British fashion designer from Gibraltar. He was the creative director of his eponymous label John Galliano and French fashion houses Givenchy and Dior. Since 2014, Galliano has been the crea ...
, and
Bottega Veneta.
She has appeared in advertising campaigns for
Jean Paul Gaultier
Jean Paul Gaultier (; born 24 April 1952) is a French haute couture and prêt-à-porter fashion designer. He is described as an "enfant terrible" of the fashion industry and is known for his unconventional designs with motifs including corset ...
,
Dolce & Gabbana
Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cosmet ...
,
Ralph Lauren,
DKNY
DKNY is a New York City–based fashion house for men and women, founded in 1984 by Donna Karan.
History
Karan worked for 15 years at Anne Klein, including 10 as its head designer. In 1984 Karan and her late husband Stephan Weiss were offered t ...
,
Bottega Veneta,
DSquared2, Dennis Basso,
Swarovski,
XOXO,
Benetton,
J. Crew,
Barneys New York
Barneys New York Inc. is an American luxury brand founded in New York City in 1923. It has introduced major designers including Armani, Azzedine Alaïa, Comme des Garçons, Christian Louboutin, and Ermenegildo Zegna to the US market.
Barneys ...
,
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; colloquially Saks) is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street shopping district of Washington ...
,
Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor was the oldest brick and mortar department store in the United States, in business from 1826 to 2020. The brand was purchased during former owner Le Tote's 2020 liquidation bankruptcy and relaunched by new owner, Saadia Group, as ...
,
GAP,
Express,
Mizani, and
Victoria's Secret
Victoria's Secret is an American lingerie, clothing, and beauty retailer known for high visibility marketing and branding, starting with a popular catalog and followed by an annual fashion show with supermodels dubbed Angels. As the largest ...
.
She has walked in the 2009,2010 and 2011
Victoria's Secret Fashion Show
The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was an annual promotional event sponsored by and featuring Victoria's Secret, a brand of lingerie. From 1995 to 2018, Victoria's Secret used the show to market its goods in high-profile settings. Models unde ...
. In 2010, she became a
Victoria's Secret Angel and was used in several of the company's campaigns.
Television
In October 2007, Iman appeared with her mother
on an episode of the ''
Tyra Banks Show
''The Tyra Banks Show'', also known as and shortened to ''Tyra'' or ''The Tyra Show'', was an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks that aired from 2005 to 2010.
While Banks's show covered a variety of topics, there was a sensationalized focus ...
''. On March 21, 2009, she appeared as a correspondent in
MTV's brief revival of ''
House of Style'' with
Bar Refaeli
Bar Refaeli ( he, בר רפאלי; born ) is an Israeli model, television host, businesswoman and actress. She is among the most internationally successful models to come from Israel, appearing on the cover of the 2009 ''Sports Illustrated'' Sw ...
.
On September 9, 2009, Iman appeared as a guest judge on the two-hour season premiere of ''
America's Next Top Model, Cycle 13'' and also appeared on an episode of ''
America's Next Top Model, Cycle 23
The twenty-third cycle of ''America's Next Top Model'' premiered on December 12, 2016 on VH1. It was the first cycle to air on the network following the series cancellation by The CW. As opposed to the past three cycles, this cycle followed the s ...
'' posing with the contestants of that cycle.
She also made an appearance on a January 2016 episode of
Spike
Spike, spikes, or spiking may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Books
* ''The Spike'' (novel), a novel by Arnaud de Borchgrave
* ''The Spike'' (book), a nonfiction book by Damien Broderick
* ''The Spike'', a starship in Peter F. Hamilto ...
's ''
Lip Sync Battle'', as part of
Olivia Munn
Lisa Olivia Munn (born July 3, 1980) is an American actress and former television host. After an internship at a news station in Tulsa, she moved to Los Angeles where she began her professional career as a television host for the gaming netwo ...
's performance of
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...
's "
Bad Blood".
Acting
Iman appeared in the 2015 film ''
Dope'' which premiered at the
2015 Sundance Film Festival
The 2015 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 22 to February 1, 2015. '' What Happened, Miss Simone?'', a biographical documentary film about American singer Nina Simone, opened the festival. Comedy-drama film '' Grandma'', directed by ...
. In 2017, Iman appeared in the
Crackle
Crackle or crackling may refer to:
Foods
* Cracklings, the tissue remaining after lard and tallow have been extracted from animal fats
** Pork rinds in American English, pork scratchings in British English when served in small pieces as a snac ...
original movie, ''
Mad Families
''Mad Families'' is a 2017 American comedy film directed by Fred Wolf, and starring Charlie Sheen, Leah Remini and Charlotte McKinney. The film is an original production by Crackle
Crackle or crackling may refer to:
Foods
* Cracklings, t ...
''.
Other projects
Ventures
Early in 2010, Iman opened a clothing boutique in
Culver City, California called The Red Bag with the help of her mother.
Iman appeared in
Beyoncé's music video for "Yonce". She also appeared in singer
Usher's music video for "
Dive" and
The Weeknd
Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, romance, and ...
's music video for "
Can't Feel My Face
"Can't Feel My Face" is a song performed by Canadian singer the Weeknd from his second studio album ''Beauty Behind the Madness'' (2015). The song was released on June 8, 2015, as the third single from the album. It was written by Max Martin, Pe ...
". In 2012, she attended the
Met Ball with fashion designer
Tom Ford
Thomas Carlyle Ford (born August 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched his eponymous luxury brand in 2005, having previously served as the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. Ford wrote and direct ...
.
Intel
Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 seri ...
released a
Kinect video game on
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) is a digital video game download service available through the Xbox Games Store, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360. It focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent ...
starring Chanel Iman,
Chris Evans and
Redfoo
Stefan Kendal Gordy (born September 3, 1975), better known by his stage name Redfoo, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, record producer and DJ best known for being part of the musical duo LMFAO, and for their hit songs " Pa ...
of LMFAO. Iman signed a contract with Utah-based electronics company
Skullcandy
Skullcandy Inc. is an American company based in Park City, Utah, that markets headphones, earphones, hands-free devices, audio backpacks, MP3 players, and other products.
Products
Skullcandy's products are primarily targeted at the outdoor act ...
. For 2012, Iman was
Sunglass Hut
Sunglass Hut is an international retailer of sunglasses and sunglass accessories founded in Miami, Florida, United States, in 1971. Sunglass Hut is part of the Italian-based Luxottica Group, the world’s largest eyewear company.
As of December ...
's summer ambassador along with
Jourdan Dunn
Jourdan Sherise Dunn (born 3 August 1990) is a British model. She was discovered in Hammersmith Primark in 2006 and signed to The Squad Management in London. She began appearing on international runways in early 2007. In February 2008, she was t ...
and
Joan Smalls
Joan Smalls Rodriguez (born July 11, 1988) is a Puerto Rican supermodel and actress. In 2011, she became the first Latina model to represent Estée Lauder cosmetics. In 2013, she entered ''Forbes'' magazine's "World's Highest-Paid Models" list ...
.
Iman was a model for
Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
Fashion's 2012 holiday campaign. In 2015, she appeared in
Rick Famuyiwa
Rick Famuyiwa (born June 18, 1973) is an American director, producer and screenwriter of productions including '' The Wood'' (1999), ''Brown Sugar'' (2002), '' Talk to Me'' (2007), '' Dope'' (2015), and ''Confirmation'' (2016). His films have be ...
’s
''Dope''.
Philanthropy
In 2011, Iman traveled to East Africa on a work trip where she became one of a handful of celebrities attached to
USAID
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...
and
Ad Council
The Advertising Council, commonly known as the Ad Council, is an American nonprofit organization that produces, distributes, and promotes public service announcements on behalf of various sponsors, including nonprofit organizations, non-governme ...
's FWD campaign, an awareness initiative tied to
that year's drought in East Africa. She joined
Uma Thurman
Uma Karuna Thurman (born April 29, 1970) is an American actress and former model. She has performed in a variety of films, from romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction and action films. Following her appearances on the December 1985 an ...
,
Geena Davis
Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis (born January 21, 1956) is an American actor and
Josh Hartnett
Joshua Daniel Hartnett (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor and producer. He first came to attention in 1997 for his role as Michael Fitzgerald in the television crime drama series '' Cracker''. He made his feature film debut in 1998 in th ...
in TV and internet ads to "forward the facts" about the crisis. As an advocate for education, Chanel is currently working on setting up primary schools in impoverished rural areas in Tanzania and Uganda. Her immense passion for charity work led her to sponsor several young girls in Kenya as well, in which she contributes funds for their daily necessities and academic tuition.
In May 2011, editor-in-chief of American ''
Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine
** ''Vogue China'', ...
'',
Anna Wintour
Dame Anna Wintour (; born 3 November 1949) is a British journalist based in New York City who has served as editor-in-Chief of ''Vogue'' since 1988 and Global Chief Content Officer for Condé Nast since 2020; she is also the artistic directo ...
, chose Iman to co-host her Runway to Win fundraising event in Chicago. In conjunction with the event, Iman designed a backpack to raise money for President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
's 2012 campaign.
Personal life
In early 2013, Iman began dating rapper
A$AP Rocky.
[ In April 2014, they were reported to be engaged,] however they separated in June 2014. In August 2015, it was confirmed that Iman was dating Lakers basketball player Jordan Clarkson, although they ended the relationship shortly after.
On December 2, 2017, Iman announced her engagement to New York Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard
Sterling Clay Shepard (born February 10, 1993) is an American football wide receiver for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oklahoma. Shepard was drafted by the Giants in the second round of ...
. The couple married on March 3, 2018, at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The couple have two daughters: Cali born on August 10, 2018 and Cassie born on December 17, 2019. The couple announced they were getting divorced in January 2022.
References
External links
*
*
The Internet Fashion Database
*
Chanel Iman
at Vogue.com
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Iman, Chanel
1990 births
African-American female models
American models of Korean descent
American people of Korean descent
Fairfax High School (Los Angeles) alumni
Living people
Female models from California
People from Atlanta
Models from Los Angeles
Female models from Georgia (U.S. state)
IMG Models models
Victoria's Secret Angels
21st-century African-American people
21st-century African-American women