Today we’d like to introduce you to Melissa Zimmerman.
Melissa, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Adults will tell children when they’re growing up that they can be anything they dream of. But how many adults actually mean that when they say it? When your angsty, rebellious kid grows up and wants to move to the big city of LA where they know no one, have nowhere to live, and no job, are you going to say that same thing? “Follow your dreams kid, make it happen?” Nah, I highly doubt it. If your parents are anything like mine they’ll put on their best smile, sweat a little bit, and ask if you think that’s the best idea.
I told my parents a little over 3 weeks before the moving date that I was going to dip out of my little hometown to move California to go live with some guy they’ve never heard of and that I’m going to shit away that college degree I just got to go try to make it as model in LA. I think everyone back home thought I was nuts, and quite frankly, they were right. I packed up what would fit in my little Honda Civic, waited for it to stop snowing and the I-5 to open back up, and made the drive down from Eastern Washington. This small town girl was determined to make it and make a difference, too.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Trying to make it on your own in modeling is just plain hard. I don’t look like what you’d see on the runway for Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. I’m not out of shape but I’m also not crazy fit either. I have some curves (some meat on my bones if you will). I change my hair color so often that if you haven’t seen me in a month or two, you probably missed out on a color. I even got so tired of switching up my hair that I ended up just shaving my hair off and becoming bald. I also have quite a few tattoos. I’m not like head-to-toe covered, but I have enough that my grandma begged for no face tats, so you get the picture. That being said, I’m not your typical model. But despite being alternative, I have worked with some of my favorite brands and photographers across the US. I got to be the first tattooed model to be in a companies catalog. I’ve been published numerous times. It hasn’t been an easy road by any means, but its been well worth the struggle.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Who am I? My names not Melissa. I went to college to become an elementary teacher. In an effort to conceal my social media presence and continue to model, I tried to hide my other life from my educators by using my middle name, Melissa. Long story short, that shit didn’t work. But the name stuck. Everyone has wondered who I am and what the deal is with my brand name, mynamesnotmelissa. So I guess that story’s out now. Anyways, after I finished my degree, I decided I had to just commit and move to LA to follow my dream.
What separates me from most models is that I try to use my platform for change. To be frank, I don’t think I’ve really ever given a damn about what people are going to think. It would be so much easier to be what people want to see. I would keep my hair long and blonde and work out and post pictures of my vegan smoothies next to the pool and I’d only talk online about how wonderful and magical my life is, so people think I shit flowers. But instead, here I am. I talk about what my life is actually like. I’m unapologetically myself and try to be so fucking raw and transparent about it. If I’m going through a hard time, you’re going to know about it. I not only speak on difficult topics, but I also organize my own photoshoots to creatively demonstrate how I feel. I create art that people can really feel. I want people around the world to see and feel my art so they can hopefully take away that they aren’t alone in the way they feel.
Mental illness is this taboo topic we aren’t really supposed to talk about so of course I’m going to talk about it. It wasn’t until I experienced an incredibly traumatic event that I had to confront my own mental illness. I went from being someone ignorant and uneducated about things like depression and anxiety until I was that person on my hands and knees, hyperventilating, sobbing for someone to make it all stop. I started putting together shoots that showed how I was feeling and the response was indescribable. I get messages and emails all the time of followers reaching out to thank me for creating and that I inspire others. Even when I go to festivals, I have strangers who will come up to hug me and share how they feel and the impact I’ve made on their life. I’ve always been someone to try to make a change in the world and do what’s right, even if I get burned in the process. I’m damn proud of who I am and the difference I try to make in the world. I might not get signed to that big agency but at least I can say that I truly impact others lives through my art and using my platform to help others. My name is my brand and I’m so fucking proud of it.
What were you like growing up?
I’ve always had an energy that could light up a room. My mom loves to talk about how as a baby it would take a while for me to warm up to adults, but once I did that my smile was like a light bulb turning on to light the room up. I also have the biggest heart, coupled with a huge streak of innocence. For example, I invited the mailman to my 5th birthday party. He always brought all the good stuff in the mail so I figured he would be someone who would like to attend my celebration of my special day. As I grew older, I tried to be kind and do the right thing even if it wasn’t the “cool” thing. I would save articles from the back page of Sports Illustrated called Life of Reilly by Rick Reilly, too. He would talk about real world issues and how to help make a change. My mom would help me make copies of it so I could pass them out at school to get the other kids to help, too.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/mynamesnotmelissa
Image Credit:
Hector Landeros, Justin Gutierrez, Gaby Herrera
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