On Monday, the 2024 Met Gala took place and while a myriad of stars dressed from head-to-toe in haute couture gave onlookers and viewers at home a feast for the eyes. But there’s one woman whose beautiful doll-like face stole the show: supermodel Anok Yai.
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Dressed in a bodysuit made of Swarovski crystals according to Vogue, the 26-year-old South Sudanese beauty turned heads in her ombre black and blue ensemble. And if hundreds of crystals were n’t enough, Yai completed her look with a totally blinged out ring, necklace and earring, that sealed the look in ultimate high glamour.
But it was her perfect face that really stunned. As for her makeup and hair de ella, she rocked a short brown pixie cut and opted for a nice ice blue eye look, that complemented the hues in her outfit de ella all while finishing it off with a nude glossy lip.
So who is this stunning woman that has the internet abuzz? Here’s what we know, but first let’s shower her with more high praise:
“Anok Yai’s face card is INSANE. “One of the most beautiful people I have ever seen,” https://twitter.com/ifiwerearoy/status/1787646617446760562.
“Anok yai is one of the most beautiful ppl I’ve ever seen,” https://twitter.com/LilTravi2/status/1787832321124495732
“Anok Yai’s face was definitely sculpted by the gods because how does one look so good all the time???” https://twitter.com/jacquemusx/status/1787646170841378872
“I’m so in love with this woman, just look at all this beauty. anok yai truly is a real life goddess,” wrote another.
“ANOK YAI THE SERVER THAT YOU ARE! when you think of these stones being hand applied it really puts into perspective for all how much detailed work can go into fashion i think this is a great example of timelessness considering that we as a society will never skip a beat on glitz,” https://twitter.com/s34ns34ns34n/status/1787648808265933163.
Now let’s get into how this divine face made it into the mainstream.
Yai was discovered by a street style photographer during Yardfest at Howard University’s 2017 homecoming celebration. But little did she know, that one photo would be the start of everything changing.
Per Yai to British Voguein 2018: “I didn’t think anything about it until the next day when my phone started blowing up. My first thought was that my friends had put up an embarrassing photo of me on Twitter, and I thought I’d become a meme. I was really happy when I found out it wasn’t that. I started off with 150 followers on Instagram and that night it was 30,000. The next night it was 50,000, and then I started getting calls from agencies.”
She would go on to eventually sign with Next Models and then, in a historic move, become the first Black model to open a Prada show since 1997, when the icon Naomi Campbell graced the runway. She opened Prada’s 2018 Fall-Winter runway presentation during Milan Fashion Week of that year.
Since then, she’s gone on to walk for Versace, Louis Vuitton, Fendi and more. She’s graced the cover of several high fashion magazines such as Vogue (Korea, Italy, Japan, German, Brazil, Dutch, American, Spain, Italy and more), Elle Magazine, iD Magazine, CR Fashion Book, W Magazine, and others. She’s also appeared in campaigns for Chanel, Tiffany & Co., Alexander Wang, Chanel, Alexander McQueen along with so many more.
