Tracey 'Africa' Norman: The Trailblazing Model | LGBTQ+ Elders Project

LGBTQ&A

After being discovered at a casting for Italian Vogue, Tracey "Africa" Norman's modeling career skyrocketed. In 1975, she memorably appeared as the face on a box of Clairol hair dye sold in drugstores across the U.S. In the middle of this formidable rise, Tracey was outed while on a shoot for Essence magazine. "And that's the day my career ended," she says. "Because the next day I called my agency and there was nothing." Tracey joins us to look back on her legendary modeling career, talk about how being outed affected her relationship with both the Black and LGBTQ+ communities, and says the fashion world has still not fully embraced women of color. "I'm not seeing anyone of color do the things that I have done and sign contracts. It's only been my white counterpart who are working, who are doing the shows, who are on the covers of major magazines." This is part of our new LGBTQ+ Elders Project. Click here to listen to our recent interview with the 87-year-old trans elder, Barbara Satin. LGBTQ&A is hosted by Jeffrey Masters and produced by The Advocate magazine, in partnership with GLAAD. A condensed transcript of each week's interview is posted on The Advocate's website. Follow us on Twitter: @lgbtqpod [This interview was originally recorded in December 2020.]