Ashley Graham Hates the Phrase “Real Women”
The NYDJ you thought you knew―that brand that launched back in 2003 for women of acertain age―is no longer. After going through a bit of a transformation (adding new shapes and styles; tapping a new creative board) it’s clear the brand is eager to shed its matronly feel for something a little cooler. It’s no surprise then that NYDJ’s 2016 campaign stars Christie Brinkley, Lana Ogilvie, Bridget Moynahan, and Ashley Graham, models and actresses who make up a multigenerational crew any woman would want to chill with. “I didn’t feel like I was out of my age bracket modeling and I didn’t feel like I looked older in the jeans,” Graham tells ELLE.com over the phone about the shoot. “I feel like I could tell my 21-year-old sister that she would look just as hot as I would in [the jeans].” Here, the plus size model, designer, and image activist tells us more about her awesome day, her lovefest with Christie Brinkley, and why she takes issue with the phrase “real women."
Courtesy of NYDJ
Congratulations on the campaign! Walk me through that day when you were shooting.
When NYDJ called me and told me that Christie Brinkley was going to be on set with me I freaked out. And when I met Christie, she had a little freak out because she said that her daughter Sailor loved me so much. She called her on the phone and I chatted with her, and it was so funny because the stuff I’d been telling Christie, Sailor was telling me. It just came full circle. It was so amazing. It just felt like a normal―like it should be on a photo shoot. I wasn’t nervous or anything like that, I just felt like one of the supermodels.
I was actually going to ask you, standing next to Christie, was there any sort of intimidation factor? You said you felt like one of the girls?
Yeah! She told me that I needed to become a movie star because I have that something, and then we actually just became friends on set. She has such a young spirit, and is so vivacious. It was such a fun, fun shoot.
What was the vibe like?
We were definitely dancing on set. We were definitely cool girls; putting our hands in each other’s back jean pockets. It was a very old classic type of looking campaign. And I think the simpler the better for things like this. You really get to understand that this jean is a classically fit jean, and that’s exactly how we were modeling. It was a lot of fun.
That’s great! NYDJ has recently gone through a rebranding. What were you surprised to learn about who the brand is today?
I was surprised to learn how young and cool they actually were. I actually came on and was like, ‘Okay, where’s the ripped jeans? Where’s the studded coolness?’ And they pulled it all out for me. I didn’t feel like I was out of my age bracket modeling, I didn’t feel like I looked older in the jeans. I feel like I could tell my 21-year-old sister that she would look just as hot as I would in them.
I feel like often times plus-size women say they have trouble finding denim. What—
Oh, it sucks. It’s terrible. First of all, no woman likes to go shopping for denim, and if you’ve got hips, or a butt, or a stomach it’s never never easy. NYDJ has a little bit of stretch in all the denim, and they run big, so you can go down a size. That just makes you feel better, right? And the fit, it’s not like these low-rise, that’s not realistic for me. I like mid-rise or high-rise, and they’re all about the fit.
I spoke to Bridget Moynahan for NYDJ last year and she said the same thing about the denim. She absolutely loved the rise.
They’re comfortable. Who doesn’t want to be comfortable all day long?
Courtesy of NYDJ
Definitely. What denim fit tips do you swear by?
There has to be a little bit of stretch. One more thing is it has to hit right at or right below my belly button. Not even an inch below my belly button, because otherwise I’m going to be pulling my pants up all day, and I’m just going to have a terrible day. Because if your clothes don’t fit, just like bras or anything, it’s not a good day.
Agreed. What are some of your favorite denim moments in history?
Brooke Shields in Calvin Klein. While we were shooting for NYDJ I actually went into the Brooke Shields position, and then they were like, 'yaaassss!’ She started it and I’m here bringing it around full circle for her, and for the denim campaigns of the world.
You’ve made huge strides in the body image and positive body image sector. How does it feel to be tapped for a campaign like this after all you’ve done?
It feels good. It feels like it’s supposed to happen. It feels like, 'alright, we’re making progress.’ And there are very large companies like NYDJ who are taking notice of women with curves, and not only making clothes for them, but including them in the campaign, because that’s exactly what the average woman wants to see. She wants to see herself in a campaign. She wants to see what she’s going to look like in the jeans, and also be celebrated throughout all of this. So, I think it’s amazing, yet it’s supposed to be happening.
It’s nice to see "real women,” I guess you could say, in campaigns like these.
You know, I don’t like to use the words “real women,” honestly. I like to use the word woman. And I say that because there are so many women out there who are naturally thin, or are naturally curvy, and I think when we start putting a label on the type of woman it gets misconstrued and starts to offend people. At the end of the day we just all want to be known as women or models or actresses or whatever.
