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Meet Trailblazer Melissa Babaei

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Melissa Babaei.

Can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today. You can include as little or as much detail as you’d like.
I was born and raised in Montreal, Canada. I moved to LA about a year ago and it has been quite a ride, to say the least.

Let me take you back to where it all started: my childhood. I am the youngest of three girls. Growing up I always felt like the black sheep of the family as I was very different from my relatives. I was loud, sassy, had a big personality and absolutely loved performing. From a very early age, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in entertainment. I grew up loving arts, I was really into dance, playing the piano, singing and eventually got into modeling, which is one of my biggest passions. As a young child, I remember being extremely comfortable in front of the camera, sort of like I was born to do it. I used to beg my mom to take pictures of me and I would pose for hours until she would get tired. That was around the same time she started realizing that I had a special talent.

Whenever we would have family or friends over, I would always make sure to get everyone’s attention by performing for them. I would sing songs followed by a dance routine for the guests. I loved entertaining and it became “my thing” to do at parties all throughout my childhood. My mom quickly signed me up for singing, piano, and dancing lessons. I had my hands full and soon after, I started performing in concerts and festivals. It wasn’t long until the word got out at school that I was a good singer and so, during recess, the kids would circle around me on the playground and listen to me sing. This went on until I was about 12 years old and then, my passion for singing unexpectedly died and I gave up singing and piano lessons altogether. I decided to focus more on dancing. I initially started with hip-hop lessons and subsequently fell in love with jazz/ballet. Something about the elegance and grace of the genre really made me fall in love with it. I pursued it until university where I had other commitments that got in the way.

Modeling, on the other hand, was always something I had a true and endless passion for, but never really thought I was good enough to do. I was lacking that confidence to get started. It took me 20 years to actually build up the courage to go for it. It really began with a friend of mine that was interning as a photographer in a clothing boutique in Montreal and was scouting people to pose for her pictures. During our shoots, I just remember having so much fun, like it was something I could do all day, every day. I eventually started building my portfolio and began working with different photographers. I was at a place where I finally found the courage and drive that I was missing. That’s when I started making modeling a priority and projects began to pour in. I realized that modeling was my passion and that even if I didn’t get to pursue it full time, I wanted to at least be able to do it as a side project.

So, in terms of where I am today, I would say that I am continuously trying new things and exploring different avenues. I’m a creative spirit with many passions that I want to pursue. I’m excited to see what the future has in store for me; time will only tell.

Has it been a smooth road? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way? Any advice for other women, particularly young women who are just starting their journey?
Smooth road?! I wish!!! I don’t think anything in life goes smoothly when you want to achieve a goal. I’m sure it comes as no surprise that modeling is not an easy industry. You have to have a thick skin to deal with all the criticism and rejection, which are both very recurrent and simply part of the job. This was something that I had a very hard time with initially. I used to take things personally and that was obviously a big mistake. My advice for young women who want to pursue a career in modeling would be to never lose confidence in yourself; that is one of the most important qualities to have, especially as a model. Knowing that you’re good enough can really help with the rejection and criticisms you’re going to face. Also, modeling is a tough industry in the sense that it’s not necessarily long-lasting and so you definitely have to have a backup plan and a realistic timeline of what you’re getting yourself into and where you will be heading once it comes to an end.

We’d love to learn more about your work. What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc.
On my Social Media, I describe myself as a fashion model, but since you’re giving me the opportunity to explain my work, I would describe myself as a creative spirit or even an artist. I love creating different things that set my soul on fire and fuel my interests. I loved arts from a very young age whether it’d be drawing, painting, dancing, singing or creating beautiful pictures with talented people who are gifted at capturing “the artistic moment.” Most of the photographers I’ve worked with have very different styles of shooting and editing, which I absolutely love. I’m all about immersing myself and experimenting with different photographers and projects as much as I can. I’ve covered a very wide range of looks that include editorial, fashion, lifestyle and commercial. I love that modeling allows me to try new things, which is why I’m so opened to participate in different shoot themes. Modeling gives me the ability to become a different character every time I set foot on a new set. It’s always a fun challenge to go in as Melissa and quickly become someone else in front of the camera. I get to express myself artistically like an actor who gets into character for a scene.

I believe that there are a few things that set me apart from other models. Firstly, I have a very bold and unique personality that I believe is in part captured in photos and reflected through my intentional expressions. Secondly, I think that my dancing background has undoubtedly helped with my flow of movements on set allowing it to be much more natural-looking and in turn, creating better pictures. Finally, I prefer to be involved in all aspects of my photoshoots as much behind the scenes as I do in front of the camera. I truly enjoy collaborating with the photographers in creating a mood board, styling my outfits, and even doing my own hair and makeup. Evidently, it takes a lot of time and effort to undertake these additional tasks, but when I receive the pictures, it’s always so rewarding to know that a lot of my personal touch and vision were put into each project.

Which women have inspired you in your life? Why?
In my personal life, I would say my mom is my biggest inspiration; she is a very strong, kind and hardworking woman who I have looked up to my whole life. She made a lot of sacrifices for my sisters and me and so I’m truly lucky to have her. Despite coming from a conservative family that never encouraged a career in modeling or entertainment, my mom always believed in me and motivated me.

In terms of women in this industry, I have to say that I am a lot more inspired by models in the pre-social media era. Nowadays, Instagram is slowly extinguishing what I call true and authentic beauty. I’m talking about the time where natural-looking women were celebrated for their individual flaws that were viewed as remarkable and that set them apart in a positive way. I was born in the ’90s at which time iconic women like Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Tyra Banks, Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista, Claudia Schiffer and so on were the epitome of true beauty. These were the women I grew up idolizing through magazines and who continue to inspire me to this day. If I had to choose one model that I look up to in particular, I would pick Tyra Banks. There is something about her personality, work ethic, and resilience that set her apart from everyone else. In her show “America’s Next Top Model,” which I use to watch religiously in high school, I grew to appreciate how bright, wise, focused, and fierce she is. She’s an inspiring businesswoman proving to us all that it is possible to branch out of the industry and continue to be prosperous, relevant, and happy.

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
All the editorial black and white pictures were taken by: Jeffrey Rosenberg
the yellow jacket picture where my eyes are closed and the other picture where i’m looking back at the camera in that white dress is taken by: Maya Dondonyan
the profile picture with the red roses was taken by: Leyla Sapad
the picture with the red circle sunglasses where I’m wearing red lipstick was taken by: Charis Kirchheimer
the first picture with me holding the mannequin was taken by: @vassa.za
and that headshot picture right next to it where it’s just my face was taken by: Maggie Sapp

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