Interview with Samm Harrison — Mom, Model, Mogul
Samm Harrison is a 22-year old model residing in San Diego, California.
How would you introduce yourself to our readers?
I was born and raised in Palm Springs, California and always had the itch to get out. My big Broadway dreams led me to move to Los Angeles at 18, only to find out there’s no theater there! Seattle was a better fit and is also the birthplace of my modeling career. When I got pregnant with my daughter, I moved back to California to be closer to family and focus on maternity modeling as well as later producing fashion shows on my own.
When, how and why did you first get involved in the modeling industry?
Theater has a funny schedule in that you audition in the summer for an entire year’s worth of work. I had no intention of becoming a model, but while I was waiting for my big break to Broadway, I decided to fill the time with modeling. It caught fire and I ended up loving it!
What are your personal and professional goals? Where do you see yourself in five to ten years?
Having a child had really thrown all my goals for a loop. I had planned on modeling long enough to see my face on a billboard and singing on Broadway until I died. Problem is, you can’t tap dance when you’re 9 month pregnant! Now I only focus on my performance passions when I see profitability and long term see myself behind the curtain, producing shows and managing careers so that other people can achieve their dreams. In the meantime, being an Iggy Azalea impersonator is a pretty amazing gig!
How often are you modeling and what does it usually consist of?
I’m very particular with my modeling. I want to be proud of what my face is attached to! Sometimes I have outbursts of inspiring projects and I’ll go to a different photoshoot every day for weeks and sometimes I’ll go months without being in front of a camera. I strive to never do anything average, I want to inspire people with things they’ve never seen before. Every image should be striking.
Please tell us about the best and/or worst experiences you’ve had so far in modeling.
I love to work with my favorite photographers over and over again so that we experience a journey together. The most beautiful case is having the same photographer shoot me before I got pregnant, during maternity and afterwards with my daughter. We shared so many special moments and he really got to see my life full circle!
Because I’m so careful with what projects I attach myself to, I haven’t had many bad experiences. If there is ever any nonsense, I speak up early or detach myself from the project entirely. I’m a mom now. I don’t put up with BS.
Have you had anything funny, embarrassing or completely out of the ordinary happen during your modeling career?
Once during a photography workshop I was assigned to a group of 20 or so photographers and we had to roam the streets of downtown Seattle while they worked on their natural lighting techniques. It looked like paparazzi were following me around! On top of that, the group was a fun bunch and they were really playing it up with the staring bystanders making comments like, “Have you heard her new album?” or “I can’t believe she’s really here!” This was very early in my modeling career and strangers were whipping out their cellphones to take pictures because they were convinced I was famous!!
Is there anything you would change about the modeling industry if you could?
I personally stand in oppositions of the fat model movement that’s sweeping the industry. I understand that women come in all shapes and sizes and no woman should ever look like they snort coke like it’s food, but preaching that all body types are beautiful also has a slippery slope that I think everyone is ignoring: health concerns. Don’t kill yourself to be skinny, but don’t use the “Everyone’s Beautiful” movement as an excuse to be lazy and ignore your diet and exercise routine. There should be an exclusivity to modeling, and that’s why I’m paid for it and Sally Somebody isn’t.
Do you practice any sports and what do you typically eat? Please elaborate on the importance of nutrition and exercise in your life.
Nutrition is very important to me! I was a vegan before pregnancy and always took my diet very seriously. I definitely don’t deny myself enjoying fare like coffee and chocolate, but I also know when to say no. I have the same relationship with exercise: I’m not an every day activity person, but I know when I’ve been too lazy and need to kick my butt into gear.
Please share something people don’t know about you.
I never make promises. I don’t take promises lightly, which is why I never make them. I would only promise something I’m 100% committed to not letting fail.
Would you change anything about yourself?
As beautiful of an experience as pregnancy was, I could do without these stretchmarks! Or maybe I’d like some big white Chicklet teeth. Yea, definitely the teeth.
Are you currently in a relationship? How would you describe your partner?
I am madly, deeply, truly in love with the girl of my dreams: my daughter! I wear a ring on my wedding finger of her name because she’s the only one I’ll ever need. Being pregnant was like sharing the world’s most intimate experience with someone you’ve never met.
This isn’t to say I wouldn’t mind a man sweeping me off my feet though.
Visit Samm Harrison’s website for more photos and information