Kansas native Simone Lewis took a risk when she signed on to
America's Next Top Model cycle 14: with very little modeling experience under her belt, she left her friends and deferred a semester at Duke University to film the show pursue Tyra's title.
See where Simone stands in our Week 4 Top Model Photo RankingsDespite being eliminated after a vampire-inspired photo that the judges deemed sexy but "contrived," that risk seems to have paid off for Simone. She's back at Duke, but plans to continue modeling--and there's no question that she'll be ready for anything after surviving through Tyra's outrageous photo shoots on
Top Model.My full interview with Simone, after the jump. What kind of reactions have you gotten from your friends and classmates?Everyone's
been really supportive, I've gotten nothing but positive feedback.
What
was your favorite photo shoot?
The water shoot, it was really challenging all the wind and water
and coldness, but in the end like we all came out looking lovely and it
was a lot of fun.
What about your least favorite?My
least favorite, I honestly don't have a least favorite. I just liked all
the different challenges and elements they put together, especially
the styling. I just like dressing up too.
Congratulations on winning the Bluefly.com Challenge. What was that photo shoot like?
That photo shoot was a blast. It was really
nice, it was kind of break being away from the other girls and being on a
real set, on a real job, because that challenge was very important to
me. It was extremely rewarding.
What did you think of your makeover?I really like my makeover, I think it's
flattering. I would have wanted something more versatile, just because I
ran into a couple of incidents with stylists where we hit some
roadblocks because I didn't really have anything to work with, but over
all i think it's really flattering on me. I've kept it. I've grown it
out on the sides a little, but kept the same shape and everything.
Were your parents supportive of your decision to leave school to be on Top Model?Absolutely. My parents recognized it was a
once in a lifetime opportunity and they 100% supported me for leaving
school for a semester.
What's it like to watch yourself on a reality TV show?It is kind
of strange, reliving all those moments, it's kind of surreal. It's still
really cool. I enjoy it.
What's your take on all the fighting that went on in the Top Model house this cycle?I mostly treated the fighting as an inconvenience.
It was never realy directed towards me. I was always involved in
comforting the girls that were involved and talking it out and trying to
mediate. Mostly I just didn't understand it.
Who did you become friends with in the Top Model house?I mostly got to know Brenda and Raina in the house.
But since the shows ended and the cameras off, I've kept in touch with
most of the girls.
Is Brenda really as whiny as she comes across on the show?Brenda's not whiny as a
person. Just the haircut was a shock to her, as well as the other girl's
criticisms with the "Chucky" and all that stuff. It was hard on her
admittedly.
What did you expect going into judging panel after the vampire photo shoot?I had an idea that I was going to get
eliminated, just because of my pictures the last two weeks. They weren't
horrible, but I'd never been best photo. So I saw it coming. It wasn't a
total surprise.
Who do you think should win this cycle?I definitely think Raina should win hands
down. She has the whole package and she's a really beautiful person in
every single way. That's something people will look up to and people in
the industry would like to work with.
(Image courtesy of the CW)