February 22, 2005 @ 3:07 pm

Online Exclusive: Model Talk with YaYa Da Costa

by: Patrick Taliaferro

High fashion models aren’t usually known for being incredible thinkers. Obviously, no one shared that bit of information with America’s Next Top Model outspoken runner up, YaYa Da Costa, who constantly received ribbing from the judges for ‘th

If you had it to do all over again, would you? Yes Thanks for that detailed answer. How is life after the show? Today I had an acting class, and yesterday I had a rehearsal for this pilot for a TV show. It's just for experience, so I don't think I am going to commit to it. It's a pilot, so who knows if it's going to even be picked up. You were constantly being photographed, what were some of your favorite shoots? The shoot in Jamaica and the beauty shoot later on were my favorites. Just because it was very new and fresh, and it felt pretty natural, instead of thinking too much about the critiques from the judges. Was the YaYa we saw on the show an accurate portrayal, or a character created in the editing room? The answer is yes and yes. I can't deny that what you saw was me, but it was definitely a lot of things taken out of context and dubbed over. Sometimes I would be standing, then sitting, and then standing again. So there was definitely a difference from what I saw and what I remembered. Have you been signed to an agency? Directly after the show I was signed with Ford. They were like, "We still want you even though you weren't the winner." Any campaigns? It's so interesting, because all of these interviews and stuff are happening pretty early. The 'runway ahead' thing is being filmed now, and a lot of the girls are saying they haven't had a chance to do much. After the show ended, we all spent a week out in L.A., and once we got back it was straight into the holidays. I just feel lucky to have landed a contract. How was it watching yourself each week on television? In the beginning it was fun and cute and I'd planned on having a party. But when I realized what was going on, it became more of a (she pauses) What do you mean, 'What was going on?' Let's see....once I started seeing my families reaction watching it. I come from two parents who are educated. And we were always taught to be analytical and question everything. And it was difficult to hear their reactions about seeing me as someone they've never seen in that light before. We had a lot of fun watching it, but there were a lot of moments they were shaking their heads. It's so hard to say, since we are contractually forbidden from talking about anything that would make the show seem less real. But there was a lot of magic going on- a lot of work that makes the beauty of reality TV exist, and makes so many fantastic things that happen within an hour. The judges were constantly ribbing you guys, how did that affect your confidence? The word confident was used a lot when talking about me, and that's funny because on the show I never felt confident. I felt confident within myself but not as a model. Even when I was doing well, there was always a question mark in my head. On one hand I thought, I have the illest pictures, and yeah it was about that but it was about so many other things too. You were the front runner for the entire show, but when you lost to Eva you were so gracious, how did you deal with that situation? By that point I had really come to an understanding of the competition and the experience. I had really come to a place of acceptance; I was more excited that I was still there. The feedback I'd been given was invaluable. I was extremely happy for Eva when she won. Because she wanted it, she needed it, and she's going to work it. It was not so much an elimination as it was a graduation. Standing there looking at the pictures, [the competition] felt longer than a couple of months and more like years. Do you think Tyra had an agenda for a black woman to win this year? When Amanda left of course, we took notice that a brown woman would win. We were told that for the first time in the history of reality television that both finalist were black. This is a country that's majority red states, and so many of the countries cues are taken from television and the media. So for this image of two young black women on another black woman's show winning something and that whoever won would break a status quo was amazing. But Tyra said, "The two best girls just happen to be black." So since Tyra said it, I believe it. Your name is very unique, how did you get the name YaYa? Actually I have many names, and YaYa is my second name. My first name is Camará and it's the name you hear a lot in Capoeira songs. I have a double last name but I am using the first one as my artistic name, which is Da Costa. Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently? I think I would have prepared myself more, because I didn't know what I was getting myself into. You can't really predict how you're going to feel, or react to different things until you do it. I never watch television, except for the weather, news or music videos. You're a confirmed hottie, what's going on with the love life? There are so many special people in my life. I have so much love for life and inner beauty. I've never been a big external beauty person. I definitely have special people in my life who have kept me sane through this experience. And that's all I am going to say about that. Since you're so great at evading my questions, let's play a game. Tell me what comes to mind when you hear these words. Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston Public Naomi Campbell Hot Jamie Foxx Amazing Harlem Home Ms. J. Fabulous Janice Dickenson Hardcore, I want to say something nice. She's nice because she understood it was a TV show and she had fun with it. She's Hardcore.

Article tags: Online, Exclusive, Model, Talk, YaYa, Da, Costa 

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