Competition for the title of Beyoncé’s #1 fan is stiff, but the modelling star may be the front runner.
How Tabria Majors Went from a Beyoncé Fan to an Ivy Park Campaign Star
Competition for the title of Beyoncé’s #1 Fan is stiff, but Tabria Majors may be the front runner. The 30-year-old model from Tennessee is front and center in the latest ads for Ivy Park, the superstar’s athleisure line, but she does more than make the clothes look good. Majors serves as the face of Ivy Park’s size-inclusive evolution. The “Flex Park” collection expands the brand’s sizing to include 4X and introduces swimwear. As a Beyoncé enthusiast since the days of Destiny’s Child and a vocal body positivity advocate, Majors found the opportunity to have her dream come true. “When I got the call saying I was officially booked for the campaign, I was so excited,” she shares from Los Angeles. “I think it’s obvious that I’m a huge Beyoncé fan, [so] for the rest of that day I was floating. Her music is so much more than a listening experience for me.”
Way back in 1999, when Majors picked up her copy of Destiny’s Child’s breakthrough release, The Writings on the Wall, she couldn’t have imagined where it would lead. “Their album was one of the first I was able to own as a kid,” she says. “When I heard “No, No, No” I was an instant fan.” As Beyoncé evolved as a solo artist, Majors’ admiration grew. “Her work is so thoughtful, intentional, and purposeful, which is absent from a lot of music nowadays,” says Majors. “I love how she represents women, especially Black women, and reassures us that we’re powerful, beautiful, and talented.”
Majors’ immersion in the inspiring songs from Dangerously In Love and Beyoncé’s eponymous visual album in 2013 coincided with her journey of self-acceptance. On social media, she’s been open about her struggles with body image issues. In 2013, when she received a direct message on Instagram from Muse Model Management’s founder Conor Kennedy, encouraging her to model, Majors couldn’t see herself finding a place within the fashion industry. “At that time, I didn’t believe I could model, so I kind of wrote it off,” she says. “I couldn’t imagine that I would be living the life I am today.” Months later, when a friend submitted Majors’s pictures to a modeling contest run by the fast-fashion company Wet Seal, she began to see the potential. “I ended up winning, and after that, I went back to the agency hoping they were still interested.”
Naturally, they were, and Majors began racking up work. She also started to share her creativity on social media via dance videos and Instagram posts, a move that would eventually lead to an epic homage to her favorite artist. Last year Majors created “Beylloween,” a viral film where she reenacts famous scenes from Beyoncé’s music videos. “I wanted to do something outrageous,” Majors explains. “We were in the middle of the pandemic, and I wanted to give people something to enjoy.” Though she toyed with the idea of simply posing in versions of the star’s red carpet looks, after a brainstorm with director Matt Alves, Majors knew she had to take things a step further. “We started going through all her videos trying to decide what video we would do, and we both knew we couldn’t do just one,” she says. “Everything snowballed into what eventually became Beylloween; it all fell into place naturally.”
The tribute made headlines thanks to its attention to detail and the impressive choreography. Majors even received the surest sign of a Beyoncé stamp of approval: a personalized Ivy Park gift box delivered to her door. Fast forward eight months, and Majors is in the campaign, a welcome surprise that left her feeling a bit of trepidation in the days leading up to the shoot. “Anytime I get an extensive call sheet for a job, I get slightly nervous, especially for this campaign because I didn’t know what to expect,” she says. “On the day of the shoot [though], I was mostly excited and anxious. I couldn’t wait to get on set.”
Once there, Majors had fun getting to experience the clothes up close. The fluorescent orange mini-dress and sultry two-piece she wears in the images were entirely in line with her tastes. “I loved how bold the color was; you’re definitely going to get noticed when wearing any of these pieces,” she says. “[Everything] was well made, structured, and hugged every part of my body perfectly.”
Seeing herself plastered on billboards and all over the Ivy Park site was heartening for Majors, a full circle moment connected to a performer whose music has meant so much to her. “I admire her in every way and hope to make an ounce of the impact she has,” says Major. “Growing up, I set ceilings for myself; now, there are no limits.”
This story originally appeared on: Vogue - Author:Janelle Okwodu
