Biography of Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell is a supermodel, UN Commonwealth ambassador, and philanthropist. She entered the modeling business at 15 and became the first black model to grace the cover of both British and French Vogue. Since then, she has appeared on the covers of over 1,000 magazines, participated in campaigns for famous houses, including Burberry, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Marc Jacobs, and Louis Vuitton, and walked in iconic shows for Chanel, Azzedine Alaïa, Christian Dior, and Versace.Beyond her work in the fashion and entertainment industry, Campbell has used her influence for numerous charitable and non-profit initiatives worldwide.
Childhood, Youth, Family
Naomi Elaine Campbell was born in the spring of 1970 to young Valerie Morris, a girl of Jamaican descent. She grew up in Streatham, a southern district of London. Her father, who was half Chinese, was not listed on any of the girl's documents. Naomi never communicated with him—her mother, who was abandoned by the man during pregnancy, decided this.In one of her many interviews, the Black Panther, as she is called for her grace and dark skin, stated:
Naomi spent the first years of her life in Rome because her mother was a dancer and received a job offer from an Italian dance troupe. At three years old, Naomi was enrolled in Barbara Speake's stage school, and she started her studies at Dunraven School.I have never seen my father. My mother didn't want it, and my birth certificate says: 'x x x'. She doesn't want it, and I have always respected her wishes.
Returning to London, Valerie left Naomi with relatives and began performing abroad with the Fantastica troupe, sending money home. This money was also for Naomi's dance classes, and in 1980 she entered the famous London Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts to learn ballet. "They taught me posture, how to present myself, and to be polite," the supermodel later noted in an interview.
At eight years old, Naomi appeared in Bob Marley's music video for the song "Is This Love?" and also featured in Boy George's video "I'll Tumble 4 Ya." Additionally, she participated as an extra in the filming of Pink Floyd's "The Wall" music video.
When her mother remarried, Campbell tried to spend less time at home due to constant conflicts with her stepfather, whose last name she now bore. In 1985, her half-brother Pierre was born, and Naomi went to Paris for a photo shoot.
During a walk in Covent Garden, a scout from the Parisian modeling agency Beth Boldt noticed the future Black Panther of the runway.
Career and Charity
80s
After featuring on the cover of British Elle in 1986, Naomi also appeared in the advertisement for Yves Saint Laurent's Jazz perfume. Shoe designer Azzedine Alaïa, who treated her like a daughter, offered her a room in his home in Paris.American supermodel Christy Turlington drew Gianni Versace's attention to Naomi, who then brought the sixteen-year-old onto the runway. He invited her to his shows for the next twenty years. "Gianni never did a show without Naomi," said Donatella Versace.
In 1986, Naomi posed for her first portfolio for American Vogue. She lived with Christy Turlington in her Soho loft. Soon she joined Turlington and Linda Evangelista on the runway for Isaac Mizrahi's first collection show.
A year later, Campbell, Evangelista, and Turlington—known as "The Trinity"—performed together at Parisian shows. Over the next few years, their close-knit group became the leading trio of supermodels, earning record fees and making headlines wherever they went.
Later, Campbell quoted her loyal colleagues and friends who said, "If you don't take Naomi, you won't get us." Naomi made history as the first black model to appear on the cover of French Vogue. In the eighties, the model debuted as an actress on "The Cosby Show," playing the role of Julia.
In photo sessions, Campbell worked only with leading photographers: Peter Lindbergh, Herb Ritts, and Bruce Weber. The latter captured the young model with boxer Mike Tyson, who said, "She has a magnificent body. And she fears nothing."
In December 1987, she first appeared on the cover of British Vogue. In 1989, she posed for her first American Vogue cover, wearing a red sequined pantsuit, gold hoop earrings, and layered pearls—the first black model to grace the September cover.
90s
The start of 1990 was marked by an iconic image: Campbell, Turlington, Evangelista, Tatjana Patitz, and Cindy Crawford appeared together on the cover of British Vogue, shot by Peter Lindbergh. Pop heartthrob George Michael soon featured them in his hit video "Freedom! '90."Shortly after, Campbell posed for Vogue with dalmatians, wearing spotted clothing—including wild Vivienne Westwood leggings, an Isaac Mizrahi trench coat, and a Bill Blass bandeau top.
Then, again for Vogue, Patrick Demarchelier captured her laughing in a light elbow-length wig and a wildly adorned Versace Atelier jumpsuit.
In the early 90s, the model also appeared in a documentary by Peter Lindbergh. At the fall-winter 1991 Versace show, a quartet of supermodels—Linda, Cindy, Naomi, and Christy—walked hand in hand, lip-syncing to George Michael's hit song "Freedom! '90." This was the peak of the supermodel era.
Campbell was also stunning as the passionate lover of Michael Jackson in his music video "In the Closet." This was followed by a Time magazine cover that read, "Supermodels: Beauty and Bucks."
Lindbergh captured her for a Vogue spread sitting on a motorcycle in a Harley-Davidson cap, feather-sleeved bodysuit, boots, and Chanel necklace. "Naomi acts like she always wears what she models," commented Grace Coddington, the fashion editor of the spread.
In late 1991, Naomi played a singer in the film "Cool as Ice." She also sang backup vocals in Vanilla Ice's song "Cool as Ice" and appeared in its music video.
For a while, Campbell worked with photographers Irving Penn and Arthur Elgort for Vogue. She also participated in the famous photoshoot with a ladder full of top models dressed in white shirts and Gap jeans, marking Vogue's centenary.
In 1992, Naomi appeared in Madonna's music video for "Erotica" and posed for the singer's provocative book "Sex." Campbell donated her earnings from a shoot in Tanzania to the African National Congress, led by Nelson Mandela.
In 1992, Naomi had a mishap during a Vivienne Westwood show: she fell in blue snakeskin shoes on a twelve-inch platform. Laughing at her fall, she quickly regained her composure, got up, and finished the runway show.
Those shoes were later exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and Campbell reportedly used another pair as a doorstop.
Soon, Campbell, Turlington, Helena Christensen, Claudia Schiffer, and Stephanie Seymour posed in matching striped shirts and shorts for a Vogue cover shot by Herb Ritts.
In September 1994, Naomi released her first single "Love and Tears" and debut album "Babywoman" (a nickname given to her by designer Rifat Ozbek). The album cover, shot by Ellen von Unwerth, features Naomi in a bathtub shaving her legs; the back cover shows her scandalous platforms by Vivienne Westwood with a mobile phone sticking out.
That same year, Campbell's book "Swan" was published. For the launch party, Vivienne Westwood dressed her in a white dress with feathered panties. Irving Penn composed a black-and-white portrait of the nude model for Vogue.
The model accepted an invitation from the African National Congress to visit South Africa to meet Nelson Mandela. He became friends with Naomi, calling her his "honorary granddaughter" in 1997. She began supporting many of Mandela's campaigns and causes in the following years.
In 1995, Campbell played the role of Kaia in the comedy "Miami Rhapsody" with Sarah Jessica Parker and Antonio Banderas. She also appeared in Spike Lee's film "Girl 6."
A significant event for the model was recording the hit "La La La Love Song" with Japanese pop star Toshinobu Kubota. The chart-topping single sold millions in Japan.
In 1998, Campbell launched a line of 50 denim items, dresses, and T-shirts called Naomi Campbell Jeans and starred in the documentary "Naomi Conquers Africa," directed by Douglas Keeve, which documented her trip to South Africa for a charity fashion show by Versace benefiting the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. Donatella Versace told journalists:
In 1999, Naomi appeared alongside Claudia Schiffer, Stephanie Seymour, Shalom Harlow, and Amber Valletta in a humorous Versace Jeans advertising campaign shot by Steven Meisel.She is very misunderstood. They say she is spoiled and annoying. But that's not true. She is very determined and very generous, and these are two qualities that no one ever talks about. She has a big, generous heart.
Vogue writer Jonathan Van Meter presented Campbell in the article "The Last Supermodel" with photographs by Helmut Newton. The article discussed her engagement to Formula 1 race director Flavio Briatore and her first global cosmetics contract with Cosmopolitan Cosmetics, a Wella division (for which she would release several signature fragrances).
The model later posed in a Richard Tyler Couture outfit with twelve other supermodels for the cover of Vogue Millennium Issue, shot by Annie Leibovitz.
Towards the end of 1999, Naomi had a photo session in a white string bikini and fur for the Playboy cover. Besides that, the thriller "Prisoner of Love" was released, in which Campbell played the lead role of Tracey—a witness to a murder who falls in love with a hired killer, Johnny.
2000s
The first five years of the new millennium were challenging for Naomi. Peter Lindbergh worked with her for a portrait book shot in Ibiza, Paris, and Camargue, published as a supplement to Italian Vogue.Campbell participated in a Special Olympics charity event at the White House during Bill Clinton's presidency. Soon after, the Daily Mirror reported her attending Narcotics Anonymous meetings and detailed her drug abuse. She sued the publication, and a UK court ruled in her favor for breach of privacy.
In 2001, her photobook NAOMI was published, and she appeared with rapper P. Diddy on the October cover of British Vogue with the headline "Naomi and Puff: The most powerful duo." Milliner Philip Treacy chose Naomi as the model for Campbell's Soup hat.
Alongside Kate Moss, Amber Valletta, Angela Lindvall, Liya Kebede, and Karen Elson in a desert near Dubai, the model participated in a Louis Vuitton spring ad campaign by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, later making Vogue's list of most stylish women.
In August 2005, Naomi carried the Olympic torch in Athens on the final leg of its journey through 34 cities.
The highlight for the model was founding her charity organization, Fashion for Relief. The first star-studded show took place during New York Fashion Week, raising over a million dollars for Hurricane Katrina victims. Campbell also donated her Fashion Week fees for humanitarian aid.
In 2006, Vogue columnist Andre Leon Talley detailed Campbell and designer Marc Jacobs' first visit to Moscow.
In 2007, another scandal involving the model's name surfaced: her maid Ana Scolavino claimed that Campbell hit her with a jewel-encrusted mobile phone and sued her employer. Campbell pleaded guilty and was sentenced to community service in New York's sanitation department. She served her court-appointed community service in designer workwear (in a fedora, furs, and—upon completion—silver demi-couture Dolce & Gabbana dress with sequins).
The model wrote about her community service experience in "Naomi's Diaries," illustrated by Steven Klein. Campbell later joined Linda Evangelista, Amber Valletta, Shalom Harlow, Angela Lindvall, and Gisele Bündchen on the runway for the Dior couture show in Versailles, marking the sixtieth anniversary.
In a Dunkin' Donuts commercial directed by actor Zach Braff, the model, dressed in an evening gown, broke a heel while working in the garden and threw a fit, hurling the shoe at a glass window.
She participated in the Louis Vuitton fall show in a nurse outfit with a transparent plastic coat designed by artist Richard Prince. Among six supermodels, Naomi posed on a 1970 Dodge Challenger belonging to artist Richard Prince and for Louis Vuitton's spring campaign, photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.
In 2008, Campbell was permanently banned from British Airways flights after throwing a tantrum over lost baggage and allegedly assaulting a security guard at Heathrow Airport. She later pleaded guilty to four of the six charges and was sentenced to community service again.
She later became the face of Yves Saint Laurent's fall ad campaign, styled by Stefano Pilati and shot at the house's headquarters on Avenue George V. Simultaneously, Art Basel Miami hosted a retrospective of Naomi Campbell portraits by leading world photographers.
Campbell organized the Mai Mumbai fashion show during Lakmé Fashion Week for the victims of the November 2008 terror attacks in India. In one of the episodes, she joined former and current top models for a discussion on the modeling industry and posed with Stephen Meisel's favorite faces, including her "Trinity" friends Evangelista and Turlington.
Additionally, Naomi posed for Louis Vuitton's spring-summer 2010 bag campaign, in support of the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood, where she was elected goodwill ambassador. Soon after, Campbell led the Fashion for Relief show to support CARE's Haiti earthquake recovery program. Her friends—models Kate Moss, Christy Turlington, and Linda Evangelista—joined her on the runway.
In spring 2010, Naomi became a guest editor for the Russian Vogue issue dedicated to her in honor of the model's 40th anniversary. She was also entrusted to close the Vogue Fashion's Night Out extravaganza at Lincoln Center in New York.
Dolce & Gabbana celebrated Campbell's 25th anniversary in fashion with a limited-edition T-shirt collection priced at $200, featuring photographs of the model by leading world photographers. She and the designers went on a global tour to promote the T-shirts, with all proceeds going to aid victims of Pakistan's floods.
In early 2018, Campbell returned to the runway to close Kim Jones' final menswear show for Louis Vuitton. She also received the Fashion Icon award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America.
In spring 2020, during the mass lockdown, Naomi started her YouTube show. Her first guest was Cindy Crawford.
In 2023, the film "Invisible Beauty," executive produced by Campbell, premiered.
Naomi Campbell's Personal Life
The model had quite an impressive list of admirers and fiancés, having numerous romances. Her boyfriends included Mike Tyson and Sylvester Stallone.Since 1992, Naomi began a relationship with actor Robert De Niro; they broke up and got back together several times. She also dated rock musician Eric Clapton.
In 1993, Naomi was engaged to U2 bassist Adam Clayton, who gifted her an extravagant emerald and diamond ring. A year later, they broke up.
She briefly dated Leonardo DiCaprio, and then the world-famous flamenco dancer Joaquín Cortés. When the Spaniard left her, the model fell into a depression.
In 1999, it became known about her engagement to Formula 1 executive Flavio Briatore, but the wedding never happened—they parted ways in 2003.
Naomi also dated Russian real estate tycoon Vladislav Doronin. Their relationship lasted until 2013, during which time the supermodel spent some time living in Russia. Doronin built a house for his beloved in Barvikha, sparing no expense—the yacht-shaped building was designed by British architect Zaha Hadid, who had never before worked on residential real estate. After breaking up with the supermodel, the oligarch put the house up for sale, but no buyers were found for such a property.
Campbell had contact with American financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was convicted of human trafficking and sexual crimes:
In the spring of 2021, Campbell announced she had a daughter and later posed with the baby for a Vogue photoshoot. Two years later, the supermodel announced the birth of her son, revealing that both children were born via a surrogate mother.What he did is unforgivable, when I heard what he did, it turned my stomach inside out, just like everyone else, because I had enough sexual predators, and thank God, there were good people around me who protected me from that. I support the victims. They are traumatized for life. For life.
Naomi Campbell Now
Recently, the supermodel has been focusing more on children while continuing her public and charitable activities. In June 2024, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London featured Naomi Campbell as the subject of an exhibition highlighting her active stance and charitable work. The exhibition also showcased one hundred carefully selected outfits that Naomi wore throughout her modeling career.Additionally, Campbell worked on a book where she promised to share details with fans about the birth of her children and her current life.
Interesting Facts
- In 2022, Naomi launched her global initiative, EMERGE, a business development platform focused on discovering, showcasing, and promoting creative talents from developing communities.
- In 2010, Naomi testified at a war crimes trial in The Hague regarding the "blood diamonds." These were gifted to her by former Liberian President Charles Taylor, reportedly received at a dinner hosted by Nelson Mandela. She later handed them over to Jeremy Ratcliffe, the director of the Children's Fund, but he never donated them as he suspected their illegality. During the investigation, the diamonds were confiscated from him. The supermodel was not charged because there was no criminal intent found in her actions.
Important Life Events
- 1978: Appeared in Bob Marley's music video "Is This Love?"
- 1980: Enrolled in the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London.
- 1986: Featured on the cover of British Elle.
- 1987: Appeared on the cover of British Vogue.
- 1988: Appeared in "The Cosby Show." Became one of the "Trinity" supermodels.
- 1989: Became the first black model to appear on the cover of American Vogue.
- 1990: Appeared in the film "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."
- 1991: Featured in Peter Lindbergh's documentary and the film "Cool as Ice."
- 1992: Met Nelson Mandela.
- 1996: Recorded the hit "La La La Love Song" with Japanese pop star Toshinobu Kubota.
- 1998: Featured in the documentary "Naomi Conquers Africa."
- 2001: Released the photo book "NAOMI." Daily Mirror reported her attendance at a Narcotics Anonymous meeting, won a legal case.
- 2004: Ranked among the most stylish women by Vogue.
- 2007: Participated in the Dior anniversary show in Versailles. Completed community service for a legal case.
- 2008: Banned for life from flying with British Airways.
- 2009: Organized the Mai Mumbai fashion show to benefit victims of the India attacks.
- 2015: Closed Zac Posen's show at New York Fashion Week. Appeared in the drama "Empire."
- 2021: Announced the birth of her daughter.
- 2023: Announced the birth of her son. Became a producer for the film "Invisible Beauty."
- 2024: An exhibition entirely dedicated to the supermodel took place at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
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