21 Questions With… Model Afiya Bennett

With idols like Naomi Campbell and Oprah Winfrey in mind, model Afiya Bennett is setting out to achieve serious greatness while staying humble and compassionate (of course). The model, who has appeared in ads for Reebok, Fenty Beauty and Levi’s, was also Naomi’s protégé on the modeling competition series The Face. Now, after meeting on the set of a Nike campaign, she’s engaged to fellow actor/model Lloyd Dickenson and planning her Antigua wedding between modeling shoots. We caught up with the gorgeous model to ask her our quickfire questions.

The first thing I do in the morning is… say a prayer to thank God for waking me up, for my health, for waking up in the right frame of mind and for giving me another chance to get it right.
The last thing I googled was… hotels in Mykonos, Greece. I love traveling and was looking for the best hotels to stay at during my time there.
If my days had one extra hour… I would invest it in my business. There is a saying, “If you don’t pursue your dreams, you will spend your entire life building someone else’s.”
The best beauty advice I ever received was… “true beauty comes from the inside out.” For me, that means not only your nutritional health, but also how you treat others and your spirit and energy as a person. It is easy to be the most beautiful person on the outside, but true beauty is being kind, loving, humble and compassionate.
My desert island beauty product is… a good SPF to ensure that I don’t get burnt.
The best makeup artist tip I learned backstage was… to let my eyebrows grow out. It sounds like such a simple tip, but when you have full eyebrows it makes such a difference in pictures, both in magazines and on the red carpet.
When I’m stressed… I clean. I feel like when my surroundings are organized I can think clearer. I also write down everything that I am stressed about. Organizing my thoughts helps me tackle them one by one.
When my self-confidence has taken a hit… I say a little prayer and ask God for a sign of encouragement and he always sends one. It can be the smallest thing that lifts my spirits, but it does the trick. For some people, working out may help or getting super dolled up and making yourself feel beautiful works, too.
My guilty pleasure is… ice cream. I love ice cream! Every person has that one thing that they wouldn’t mind having at any point during the day and for me, that’s definitely ice cream.
My most memorable career highlight was… when I landed a billboard in Times Square for my Reebok/Six:02 campaign. Growing up in New York, I have been in Times Square a million times, but never in a million years did I picture myself on a billboard there.
When it comes to working out… I prefer to work out in the morning to get it out of the way. If I wait until the evening, I never have the energy to get through a full workout.
When it comes to my relationship with Naomi Campbell… I always have the utmost respect and honor. I respect the idea that if it weren’t for models such as herself paving the way, there wouldn’t be room for models like me.
If you looked at my desktop you’d see… a million folders organized with photoshoots that I have done over the years.
My most memorable travel experience was… recently to Antigua. I am newly engaged and the wedding will be taking place in Antigua. To secure a wedding venue, my fiancé and I visited the island last month. I was absolutely blown away by how beautiful the island was and the sparkling clean and blue water. I have been to several different islands, but this island is truly special.
I’m dying to splurge on… a house. In the upcoming year, I am looking to become a homeowner and there is nothing more rewarding than building your dream home. I believe that your home is your place of peace and it is up to you to create and protect that.
The thing I’m most looking forward to in Fall 2018 is… killing every second of fashion week and launching my very first product line.
My favorite place to shop is… Zara. I love Zara, its clothes are super stylish and affordable. I can never go wrong when shopping at Zara.
The best advice for looking great in a photo is… saying in your head, “I am the shit.” That confidence and self-assurance will be conveyed in the camera and it translates as powerful.
My most treasured possessions are… the cross I wear on my chest and my engagement ring. Both pieces of jewelry are symbolic of love. My cross was a gift from my mother and my engagement ring is from my fiancé. I feel incomplete if I don’t have either one of them on.
My biggest fashion regret is… dyeing my hair a reddish copper color when I was in high school. I spent so much time trying to be different that I didn’t appreciate the beauty in just being myself.
One thing I wish people knew about me is… that I am attracted to greatness and I will do whatever it takes to get there. One of the greatest gifts is to be able to influence the masses. Being able to use your platform for positive changes is when legends like Oprah, Muhammad Ali and Nelson Mandela are created. My goal is to create a platform for myself that can be used for positive change in the world. I want to leave my mark here on Earth as a person that persisted in the face of adversity and opened the doors for others. No dream is too big or too small and having that mindset leads to opportunity to create the avenue for greatness.