Janet Jumbo On Becoming Nigeria’s Rising Supermodel
As we celebrate Black History Month, the 18-year-old star of PORTER’s latest cover shoot tells us how she hopes to inspire a new generation of talent, one photo at a time
It’s been a whirlwind few seasons for Janet Jumbo, the 18-year-old Lagos-born model making waves in the industry. Following her runway debut in Paris in 2019, she has walked for Stella McCartney and Jacquemus, and this year landed her first British Vogue cover in an exceptional shoot that celebrated Black beauty.
“I didn’t see any of it coming,” she says of the surprising turn her life has taken since being scouted at 15 on her way home from church. But despite the trajectory, Jumbo had some hurdles to contend with from the beginning. The fashion industry is so far removed from her life in Nigeria – where she is the eldest of three sisters and respects dress codes that see skirts and dresses worn below the knee – that her family was initially against the idea of her becoming a model at all. Plus, she’d never traveled outside of Nigeria before. “Now, I get to see the world and learn about new cultures,” she says. “It really makes me step back and learn about the world through different perspectives.” She credits her mother as being fundamental in her foray into modeling. “Everything happened very quickly once my mum supported me,” she adds.
“That our culture is being displayed through fabrics and patterns or an expression of something traditional gives me so much joy
”Janet Jumbo
“There aren’t many Nigerian models, and I am so proud of who I am, what I’ve done so far and where I come from… It’s so empowering. I want to inspire young girls, and make my family, Nigerians and Black people proud – all the while putting my home country on the map
”Janet Jumbo
Much has changed since. Today, Jumbo enjoys the fun she is having with fashion and is more experimental. “When I was a new model, I tried to keep my outfits simple, but now I’m more confident to try new styles,” she says. “Right now, I’m really into baggy jeans, suit pants, turtlenecks and a strong blazer – it’s a look that can take me from a work meeting to a casting, then from dinner to a date,” she says. “Bright colors are how I show that I’m happy.”
She’s also proud that African talent is being celebrated across the industry more broadly, with designers emerging from the continent who are “including African culture and what we stand for in their designs,” while simultaneously modernizing them for the contemporary, on-the-go woman. “That our culture is being displayed through fabrics and patterns or an expression of something traditional gives me so much joy,” she says. “I’d love to design my own pieces one day.”
Indeed, Jumbo had dreams of becoming an ambassador for Nigeria before entering the fashion industry, but she hopes that through her modeling she can influence a new generation of young women to follow their ambitions. “There aren’t many Nigerian models, and I am so proud of who I am, what I’ve done so far and where I come from,” she says. “It’s so empowering. I want to inspire young girls, and make my family, Nigerians and Black people proud – all the while putting my home country on the map.”
The Fashion Challenge with Janet Jumbo
From a New York Fashion Week party to a birthday dinner before a flight, Janet Jumbo puts her styling skills to the test as she pulls together three stylish looks for different occasions…