{"id":17857,"date":"2019-09-12T15:43:20","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T19:43:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dia.com\/blog\/?p=17857"},"modified":"2022-06-22T11:01:20","modified_gmt":"2022-06-22T15:01:20","slug":"jazzmyne-robbins-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dia.com\/blog\/know\/jazzmyne-robbins-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Jazzmyne Robbins Is 100% Her, No Matter What"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When my best friend told me that Jazzmyne Robbins<\/a> was walking in a runway show that her girlfriend designed items for during New York Fashion Week, I immediately texted back in all caps, \u201cCAN I INTERVIEW HER?\u201d Ever since Jazzmyne was featured on a panel at last year\u2019s theCURVYcon<\/a>, I\u2019d become obsessed with her unapologetically bold looks and colorful makeup style. I wanted nothing more than to get the chance to sit down with her\u2014even if for only a few minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I arrived at the Brooklyn Museum for DapperQ<\/a>, the biggest queer fashion event during Fashion Week and the site of the Sharpe Suiting<\/a> show, and attempted to find the balance between gushing fangirl and serious journalist. When I saw her standing next to me waiting to chat with the designer, I momentarily froze before working up the courage to introduce myself. After a brief rehearsal\u2014where I got to see the incredible models of all sizes, colors, and genders walk the runway for the first time\u2014Jazzmyne and I searched for a quiet place to chat. The only option was two puffy beanbag chairs. When I told her that I\u2019d never conducted an interview from a beanbag before, she responded, \u201c[There\u2019s a] first time for everything!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though she was fresh-faced and wearing activewear in preparation for getting into show mode, on an average day, makeup and fashion are two of the many ways Jazzmyne expresses her individuality. But back in Illinois where she grew up, what made her so unique was also what made her so anxious about fitting in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the only plus-size person of color in her friend group, she couldn\u2019t help but notice how much she stood out, especially when she couldn\u2019t shop in the same stores as her peers. \u201cI was in a teen\u2019s body when my friends were at a 3rd-grade-level body,\u201d<\/strong> she told me. \u201c[I always felt like I was] a little disconnected\u2026because of my body.\u201d Thankfully, her parents were there to teach her that there was nothing wrong with her size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was in a teen\u2019s body when my friends were at a 3rd-grade-level body.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"jazzmyne
Jazzmyne slaying in neon hues and skin-tight separates.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

But even with the support of her parents, Jazzmyne went to extreme measures to try to blend in with the crowd. \u201cFor so long I tried to go on diets, I developed eating disorders, tried to be smaller, tried to straighten my hair, tried to wear the clothes that they wore. And I just tried to not be me<\/strong>,\u201d she told me. \u201cI didn\u2019t realize until a lot later that it really did something to me until I got around people who were more like me. <\/strong>It was hard\u2014and I\u2019m going to therapy now and working through that. But now it\u2019s the total opposite. I\u2019m very, very lucky to be where I am now, but it did come from a place of a little bit of a struggle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Jazzmyne, the healing began when she started trusting herself over following society\u2019s expectations. \u201cI started leaning into what I truly wanted to do. <\/strong>I started in my little Midwest town where nobody was wearing lipstick. I started shaving one side of my head. I started wearing zebra-print glasses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After college, Jazzmyne wasn\u2019t positive about what she wanted to do\u2014but she knew what she wanted to accomplish. \u201cWhen I moved out to LA from the Midwest, I gave myself pillars to go off of. [I told myself] if you\u2019re moving 2,000 miles away, one, you\u2019re going to work someplace that will accept you for you, no matter what. Two, you\u2019re going to inspire people to become confident and to love themselves in whatever you do. And three, you\u2019re going to be happy, genuinely happy to go to work. And, four, you\u2019re going to make money,\u201d she said. That\u2019s what led her to work at Sephora to inspire people through makeup\u2014and why she eventually took the video-producer role at BuzzFeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I asked her how she snagged that coveted position at one of the most popular media platforms on the internet, she told me that she \u201cworked [her] ass off\u201d to move up to video producer after first getting hired as an intern. But what set her apart from the six interns who didn\u2019t make the cut was her mission\u2014to \u201chelp people feel confident no matter what.\u201d <\/strong>After all, \u201cyou can teach anybody technical skills. You can\u2019t teach someone to inspire others.\u201d<\/strong> And that\u2019s exactly what Jazzmyne has done for so many\u2014including me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For so long I tried to go on diets, I developed eating disorders, tried to be smaller, tried to straighten my hair, tried to wear the clothes that they wore.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"jazzmyne<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Jazzmyne in a \u201cEuphoria\u201d<\/a>-inspired makeup look.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you watch Jazzmyne\u2019s videos\u2014\u201cWe Had a Sketch Artist Draw Our Vaginas\u201d<\/a> is a personal favorite\u2014you walk away immediately feeling uplifted. But her tone isn\u2019t the usual brand of cheerleader-type body-positive content we\u2019ve all seen our fair share of. Instead, she\u2019s able to, without any affectations or forced bubbliness, empower her viewers to accept their bodies and remember that all sizes are worth celebrating. She\u2019s immediately relatable\u2014and, for me, her approach to building self-confidence feels so achievable because of that authenticity. Plus, with her signature bold lip and graphic eyeliner, she looks damn good while doing it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jazzmyne never imagined she\u2019d one day be walking in her second fashion show (her first<\/a> was in 2016 for Stuzo Clothing) or inspiring so many through her work. \u201cWhen I originally started working at BuzzFeed, I wanted to make content that made people feel good and made people feel confident to be themselves. And from that, I\u2019ve come to really inspire some people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One way that Jazzmyne inspires people is through her hugely popular Instagram account<\/a>\u2014I\u2019m talking 538,000 followers huge. \u201cStaying true and authentic to myself has helped me love myself more<\/strong>\u2014but has also helped me grow a following that is very authentic. I\u2019d rather have a smaller following of true-ass, authentic-ass people that really, really support me, rather than millions of followers who don\u2019t care.\u201d Her goal with her photos is to promote visibility\u2014and to encourage everyone that they can wear whatever they want and rock it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staying true and authentic to myself has helped me love myself more.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"jazzmyne
Jazzmyne at theCURVYcon wearing cling wrap (!!). <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And rock it she does. On the DapperQ runway, Jazzmyne stole the show by strutting in a royal-blue bodycon dress, printed trench coat and matching hat, scarf, and sunglasses to \u201cTruth Hurts\u201d by Lizzo and spreading good vibes with every step. The second she walked out, the energy of the audience rose\u2014their cheers made it clear that we were all watching her personal mission of promoting confidence come to life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jazzmyne explained that being part of a show that\u2019s so accepting of all bodies feels fantastic. \u201cFor so long, fashion was supposed to be not inclusive for certain people, whether that\u2019s [because of] the money you have or the privilege you have. <\/strong>Having spaces where everyone can be accepted is uplifting. Why exclude people? There\u2019s no reason.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that\u2019s exactly why Jazzmyne says yes to events like the DapperQ fashion show and theCURVYcon<\/a>. She sees them as safe havens for people who have struggled to find a community in the past because, in spaces like this, \u201cYou can be creative, you can be any size, you can be whatever\u2026if you are gender-conforming or not, it doesn\u2019t matter. <\/strong>You\u2019re going to come here and you\u2019re going to be accepted, no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So far, Jazzmyne\u2019s biggest takeaway from her life and career is the power of accepting and celebrating who you truly are. \u201cFor so long\u2026I tried to dim myself for other people.\u201d Now? \u201cWhat I do is 100% for me and for the comfort of myself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many pieces that make up who Jazzmyne is. There\u2019s \u201cbeing in the LGBTQ+ community, being a woman of color, being a plus-size woman, being left-handed, being bald.\u201d As for how she expresses her many multitudes through style, she can\u2019t quite explain it. \u201cI think the only thing you could say about me is I am 100% me, and you\u2019ll know it when you see it.<\/strong> Sometimes it makes sense and sometimes it doesn\u2019t\u2026but, to me, it feels good. And that\u2019s all I\u2019m looking for at the end of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want more stories from the plus-size fashion community? Bookmark the \u201cMeet\u201d<\/a> category!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second Photo: Bronson Farr<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Answers have been edited and condensed for clarity and length.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When my best friend told me that Jazzmyne Robbins was walking in a runway show that her girlfriend designed items for during New York Fashion Week, I immediately texted back in all caps, \u201cCAN I INTERVIEW HER?\u201d Ever since Jazzmyne was featured on a panel at last year\u2019s theCURVYcon, I\u2019d become obsessed with her unapologetically bold […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":17858,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"class_list":["post-17857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-know"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nJazzmyne Robbins Is 100% Her, No Matter What - Dia & Co<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Find out how BuzzFeed's Jazzmyne Robbins made an entire career out of inspiring others\u2014and why Dia&Co Editorial Copywriter Sarah is a total fangirl.\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dia.com\/blog\/know\/jazzmyne-robbins-interview\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Jazzmyne Robbins Is 100% Her, No Matter What - 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