LONDON – South Sudanese-American model Anok Yai delivered an emotional message as she accepted the Model of the Year award at the 2025 British Fashion Awards on Monday.
At the Royal Albert Hall, the fashion world’s best-dressed celebrities, stylists and designers stepped onto the sapphire carpet for the 2025 British Fashion Awards presented by Pandora, an annual celebration of international industry leaders and their defining work that shaped the year.
While the evening honoured achievements across the industry—there was one moment that gave fashion fans the same long-awaited satisfaction as Leonardo DiCaprio finally winning his Oscar. That moment, of course, was Anok Yai being named Model of the Year.
At 27, Yai has become one of fashion’s most influential models, with major campaigns, covers and runway appearances to her name.
“To all my little Black girls who are watching me right now – your colour is not a curse. You are not a trend, you are not unfortunate. You are worthy, you are capable and you are more powerful than you can imagine,” she said in her acceptance speech.
Yai’s rise began in 2017 when a photo of her at a Howard University homecoming event went viral, helping launch her into the global spotlight. Within weeks, she quickly became the fashion world’s hottest prospect, courted by several top agencies before eventually signing with Next Model Management.
By 2018, she had already made history at Prada as the first Black model to open one of the house’s shows since Naomi Campbell in 1997, a breakthrough that immediately positioned her as one of fashion’s most important new faces.
From there came a string of defining moments, including global beauty contracts with Estee Lauder, covers of Vogue and Elle as well as major runway moments with the likes of Saint Laurent, Mugler and Versace.
After winning such an esteemed honour at just 27 years old, it’s clear that Yai will continue to have an enduring influence on fashion for many years to come. With countless campaigns, covers and runways already under her belt, the question now is what bold moves she’ll make next—and we’ll certainly be watching closely.
Additional information in this story was obtained from Vogue and FASHION Magazine.
