long interview jada simone for print

8/7/2019 Long Interview Jada Simone for Print

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J A D A

SIMONE

Interview ALFIE JAMES GARDNER

FASHION’S FASTEST RISING STAR ON LIFE, MUSIC AND STYLE - WATCH

HER SOAR

Jada Simone is someone you cannot help but

be inspired by. She’s a character of elegance

on the murky streets of South London. Jutting

out above the ‘regular people’ of Brixton and

sauntering along indiscreetly in her eight

inch black patent heels, laced to the mid-calf.

I’ll never forget what Jada was wearing the

rst time I met her. (She changed her name

recently from Jade Simone-Li to Jada Simone

which “sounded less militant Chinese”)

A vision of gargantuan and Amazon-like

beauty, and character strength of an almost

overbearing scale in a pair of high-waisted,

black and white graphic printed leggings, a

black and gold Queens guard army jacketand patent black heeled Dr. Martens.

A wild forest of long mahogany hair

with natural auburn highlights sat upon her

head and her artfully painted eyes obscured

by offbeat black glasses in true Lennon style.

She stuck out like a sore thumb, but she

was the life and soul of the party. Attracting



people to her cool ame and itting to and

fro in conversation, paper cup of quadruple

whiskey and coke in hand.

She’s well versed enough to make any

interviewer, even a friend, panic at the speed

of their shorthand skills; and sincere enough to

push the person asking the questions to tears.

She could make even a ‘social buttery’want to retreat back into their cocoon.

A freelance fashion stylist, iconography

obsessive and fashion personality on the up

rise, Jada Simone is constantly pushed by her

passion for the perfect world and the perfect

wardrobe. Amassing a small fan club across

the globe -Twitter users from as far aeld as

Japan, Mexico and Alaska are all eager to

read her thoughts- and with a plethora of new

projects coming up she is eager to let world

domination begin one giant leap at a time.

Jada’s heritage is a tough subject “I’ve

heard absolutely everything!” she shouts

“from Moroccan, to Russian, to Iranian. The

truth is I’m half Chinese; quarter English

and a quarter German”. Whilst Jada is a mix

of various heritages, her family life has not

“IT’S SAYING, THIS IS WHO I AM,AND I DON’T GIVE A FUCK WHAT

YOU THINK ABOUT IT”

always been so mixed. “My entire life, I’ve

felt completely detached from my family”

she admits “I never had a close relationship

with my three siblings, or even my mother.

It was hard to know that your house was not

your home.” She was never part of the typical

family structure, “I was the black sheep. They

labelled me as a freak.”

But Jada remains strong, and refuses to

let it get her down and be bitter about it. If

anything, it made her stronger “I thank them

for it. It fuelled me to be independent in my

thoughts” and the time soon came that she

learn to embrace her individuality in a family

that doesn’t truly appreciate it, she says “Then

that liberating day comes when you learn to

celebrate your indifference in this world.”

I have always appreciated Jada’s ability

to make the negative into the purely positive, but her talents lie much further than that. Her

work as a stylist is ignited by her fervour for

fashion, as well as her passion for all things



creative and beautiful, Styling photographic

fashion spreads for magazines such as youth-

run LIVE Magazine. Jada’s work is edgy,

current, and creative.

She knows that in order to be unlike any other

stylist, she needs to channel her own unique

presence into her work, “My image is the

core of my soul” she says “but I’ve alwayswondered why the most creative geniuses in

the industry lack in a sense of personal style.”

She goes on to explain, “At the end of a

runway show, when the designer pops out to

bow to their applause wearing a t-shirt and

jeans it kills me a little inside. They present

themselves as so monotone” she says. “But

I guess with such an innovative mind your

work speaks for itself. You can hold your

crown high, no matter how raggedy your

armour may be.”

Jada’s own style, however, is what’s setting

her apart from the rest; slowly but surely

pulling her up the ladder of renown across

London. “Having a personal sense of style

is an extremely brave virtue in a person.

It’s wearing your heart on your sleeve, and

bearing yourself open for criticism”. In a

“THE WORLD IS TOO BIG ANDBEAUTIFUL TO NOT EXPLORE.”

world where people who express themselves

are stigmatised, it can be difcult, and she

faces criticism from everybody who explicitly

criticises her look “I have never let it get to

me though, It is somewhat heart-rendering

when being yourself is frowned upon by the

world but conformity is the jailer of freedom,

and the enemy of growth. So many peopleconne themselves to live within limits” her

thoughts are free spirited and powerful, she

says “I’ve found my freedom, so I know I’m

safe.”

If she had the opportunity she’d tell those

who would try to pass judgment on her: “you

laugh at me because I’m different, I laugh at

you because you’re all the same. The body is

simply a blank canvas for you to turn yourself

into a work of art. Hath no judgment on meuntil you have walked the miles I have in my

nine inch heels.” Powerful words indeed.



Jada’s stylistic elements are a direct relation

to her love of music. Whether it’s her blacked-

out Lennon style glasses denoting her love for

the great man himself, or the black bandanas

tied round her wrists expressing her worship

of 90’s Hip-Hop artists like Lauryn Hill and

Snoop Dogg, music plays a massive part as

inspiration for her image.“I always say that music raised me” the 6ft

tall South-East Londoner says, elevated by

a pair of eight inch heels “A life without

music, is a life not lived. I have always felt

stuck in a past time, whether I listen to 70s

Rock n Roll, 90s Hip-Hop or 20s Jazz, I

have always felt a strong sense of nostalgia.”

Jada admits, “Music is love, compassion

and self-expression. Fashion and Music

allow us to express our individuality, and the

link between the two is not accidental; it is

inevitable”

Forgive the ‘cliché’ for a minute; for Jada’s

true source of inspiration lies in Stefani

Joanne Angelina Germanotta, also known as

arguably the biggest star of the 21st century,

pop sensation and stylist’s dream, Lady Gaga.

“Never in my life have I been more besotted

with a person. I found a sense of escape in

her art form.” Her family has a lot to do with

her love for Gaga, “I never had a role modelto look up to while I was growing, but I never

blended in with the traditional status quo. But

then I found a woman with so much courage,

beauty and gumption who helped me to erase

all of my insecurities”.

To say that the iconography of Lady Gaga has

been a source of inspiration to Jada Simone

is an understatement. “To her I am forever

indebted.”

She’s also inspired deeply by the work of Alexander McQueen, “In my eyes Lee

Alexander McQueen was the greatest

designer that ever lived. His style was a

mantra of couture inspired construction

and shape; It’s the perfect blend of dark

and light. Both romantic and ethereal, with

erce tailoring and beautiful gowns. The

greatest always die young.” she also loves

the strength and power of Thierry Mugler

and the almost ethereal and abstract stylings

of milliner Piers Atkinson. Jada’s inspiration

almost always stems from the concept of

power and gender.



Growing up in the heady mix of London

nightlife, she frequents old school Hip-Hop

nights in Dalston, East London; as well as

throwing shapes in popular gay clubs across

Central London. Anything to appreciate the

true mix of different people in the capital.

To Jada Simone, hedonism, vices and

guilty pleasures are all part of the mix. “Themost peculiar characters who just so happen

to be on the borderline of insanity are the

most interesting people in the world” she

admits eagerly “I’ve always been fascinated

by these eccentric yet beautifully minded

people…sometimes delving into the deepest

and darkest parts of your mind is fun” and in

a city like London, where the guilty pleasures

of the world unite, it is hard to ignore.

So, what does the future hold for Jada

Simone? Only time can really tell. At

present, she is working on a project that will

unite young talent in the fashion industry

“It’s an empire that I’m starting to build. But

I shan’t go into too much detail about it. I

would rather my actions speak louder thanmy words.” She wholeheartedly admits that

she won’t truly be able to recognise that she’s

succeeded to her full capacity until she has

transformed the way people are, “It will be at

the pinnacle of my career as a creator, when I

have changed lives and made a difference in

the fashion world and our society.”

Jada Simone is relatively unknown to

those who live in London (aside from thosesnapping pictures of her on their camera-

phones) and only known to those who dare

to delve into the lesser-known, but highly

commended individuals in the underground

art and fashion world. All we know is she’s

set on taking over the world. One Thierry

Mugler weaponised heel at a time.

“I FOUND WHAT MOST PEOPLE SPEND

THEIR ENTIRE LIVES SEARCHING FOR,

THE VERY ESSENCE OF WHO I AM.”

Follow Jada Simone on Twitter at twitter.com/

Jada_Simone

All Photographs by JADA SIMONE

All Clothing MODELS OWN

long interview jada simone for print

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