Grateful is an understatement. This was a powerful creative day spent building visual imagery and direction for the merchandise collection of the legendary Ms. Lauryn Hill, alongside an inspiring team of creatives and talent. the creativity, the unity it all came together in such an organic and beautiful way. one of those days you don’t forget. A room full of vision, passion, and real ones committed to excellence. Honored to have been part of this incredible team. Go tap in at mslaurynhill.com and cop some of these pieces the collection is 🔥 Project Manager @mrdontoh_ Photographer @irma_mchedlishvili Talent @simoneawor @prodigysignal02 @dre.margi3la @wesleykesse / Makeup: @camaraaunique / Style team: @cynvixiousnails , @vvszee @mslaurynhill

I grew up surrounded by Puerto Rican culture. Some of the people I love most to this day are Puerto Rican and I hold them near and dear to my heart. Arroz con pollo, pasteles, chicharrones still some of my favorite foods. Willie Colon, El Gran Combo, Celia Cruz (Cuban) but loved deep in Puerto Rican homes still play throughout my home. Puerto Rican culture is a part of me. So to witness this moment for Benito winning Grammys for a Spanish album he never had to water down hits different. And now the Super Bowl. I’m proud of him not just as an artist, but for his activist spirit too. That’s what really makes me respect him. Support it heavy. Make the numbers undeniable. Let the hate feel small. WEPA!! @badbunnypr

New face: Souleyman never had modeling on his radar. He didn’t even think he could be a model. That’s where my eye came in. I Appreciate @marilynagencyny for still valuing real development. Not just getting him in front of the camera, but teaching him how the business actually works. Glad he’s with a team that still operates from the blueprint. #MarilynModels #DevelopmentBoard #FashionIndustry #MensDevelopment #ModelScouting

I scouted Zoe Saldana after seeing her on 106 & Park, fresh off Drumline, and I just knew she was gonna be big. Tracked her down, met her manager, and had Zoe in the agency the next day. My agency didn’t see it but @claudegrunitzky did when I pitched her to him. Claude was the visionary behind Trace Magazine a trendsetting publication way ahead of its time. It wasn’t just a magazine, it was a movement. Trace celebrated transcultural style, music, fashion, politics, and art and gave shine to Black models and creators when very few did. Claude saw Zoe’s potential and gave her one of her first covers. Then Sean Carter (Jay Z) gave me a call about a project he wanted to bring Zoe in to help rebrand Rocawear with a shoot in South Africa. The campaign hit hard with billboards all over New York and spreads in major fashion mags. Let’s just say I got the last laugh. There’s more to this story, but hopefully, I’ll get to tell it in my book one day.

The next talent up is the daughter of @romarley and @mslaurynhill @selah . I had the beautiful opportunity to work with her on her very first project in front of a professional camera. I actually set up her first professional test, and from that moment I saw the magic. I submitted the images to Teen Vogue, and they booked her as a contributing editor along with a fashion layout. That Teen Vogue shoot took place in Brooklyn inside this really cool vintage soda pop shop. The day was so special and to have her mom on set, just being a mom, made it even more memorable. To see the amazing woman she’s become today makes me so proud, but that’s a given when you look at who her parents are.

I discovered @ajakdengcom and brought her to New York by way of Australia. From the moment she stepped into the office, our connection was instant. Standing at 5’11”, she looked like an Nubian goddess statue, with a smile that could light up an entire room. They called her the modern day Alek, but Ajak wasn’t a copy she was an original. From there, Ajak carved out her own path in fashion, becoming a force on the runways of Dior, Valentino, Givenchy, and Jean Paul Gaultier, while fronting campaigns for Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, and MAC Cosmetics. But what makes her truly remarkable is more than the beauty the world sees. Ajak shined a global light on Sudanese beauty, and once she did, fashion never turned away. Just as powerfully, she made the industry confront how it treated Black models and with the strength of her voice, she refused to let silence be an option. She’s not just a model she’s a woman of strength, resilience, and authenticity, who turned her platform into power and made her name her own.

Sessilee Lopez was the last girl I saw at the open call that day. We rarely find that kind of talent at open calls but there she was, five ten, cheekbones for days, and Jody Watley hoops. I told the new face board I was signing her, and they didn’t see it but I was sure of it. After some back and forth, it finally clicked and she got it. Her big break came fast a 13 page POP magazine story in Brazil. She was only 16, and the catch was she had to cut her hair very short. Not easy for a teenager but Sessilee knew the impact it would have. She did it with some tears but it all paid off, and right then I knew a star was born. Next came a 10 page Sølve Sundsbø shoot in Iceland posing on igloos at 16 and she commanded the set like a veteran. The rest was history. First pic: the very first shot I ever took of her. Second: her cover of the iconic Black Issue of Italian Vogue. Third: her POP magazine editorial in Brazil that lit the match. Manifestation is real and in the end, Sessilee got the last laugh and so did I.

Hannah Davis’s journey into modeling began when her pictures first came across my desk at just 15 years old. I immediately saw the star potential in her, though at the time she looked at modeling more as a hobby than a career. Hannah was just a normal teenager carefree, grounded, and far more focused on her true passion tennis. A natural athlete, she was a champion on the Caribbean National Tennis Team and competed on the Caribbean Tennis Circuit, embodying discipline, focus, and drive even at a young age. When I invited Hannah and her family to New York I instantly fell in love with them. They were warm, genuine, and approachable a family full of free spirits with humility and grace. That grounding energy explained so much about Hannah’s character. She wasn’t caught up in appearances or the spotlight, she was simply herself. We signed her immediately, knowing she had something rare. One of the defining moments of her early career happened during her very first meeting at Ralph Lauren. By chance, when she stepped into the elevator, none other than Ralph himself walked in with her. After their meeting, Hannah left such an impression that Ralph was inspired to create a fragrance Ralph Rocks with her as the face. He said she reminded him of the cool, effortless bohemians of the 1970s, and her free spirited energy became the look of the brand. From there Hannah’s career blossomed. She would go on to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated, becoming one of the most recognizable faces in modeling. And yet, what makes Hannah’s story truly remarkable is that she never lost sight of herself the humble teenager from St. Thomas who treated modeling as a fun adventure, not her identity. Today, Hannah continues to inspire not only as a model but as a devoted mother and wife to baseball legend Derek Jeter. Her journey is proof that true star power isn’t about chasing fame it’s about authenticity, humility, and being unforgettable simply by being yourself. @hannahbjeter

My former talent Jasmine Tookes came to me at 17. She was from L.A, and we clicked instantly. I asked her what her dream was, and without hesitation, she said, “I want to walk the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.” Truth is, I believed in Jasmine before anyone else did. Not everyone at the agency saw what I saw in her not at first. But I stood firm. Jasmine was a slow burn not overnight, but undeniable. I believed in her but more importantly, Jasmine believed in herself. I’ll never forget that late night call from Calvin Klein. Around 11PM. I called her after a long day of castings she was wiped out. But she got up, went to that fitting, stayed til almost 2AM and booked it. That was her first major show. From there, she took off. Prada. Marc Jacobs. Versace. YSL. Chanel. Louis Vuitton. Miu Miu. Every major show. Every major city. Jasmine walked it all. And just like she said on day one, Victoria’s Secret came calling. First a campaign. Then the runway. Then the wings. She found the balance high fashion and commercial and moved with grace through all of it. Magazine covers. Cosmetics campaigns. Global recognition. Today, Jasmine is happily married, a proud mother of one, with another on the way and yes, she still models. I’m proud of the journey we shared and even prouder of the woman she continues to become. @jastookes

#Flashbackfridays - And another one I found on the L train. Beth Hoefek, circa early 2000s on her way to work as a receptionist in Manhattan. She didn’t see what I saw but again, my eyes never deceived me. Let’s just say The next day, she had a contract with IMG, and the following week, she was in Milan, walking for Prada and every major show after that. Then came the campaigns, the Tokyo Vogue cover, and shoots with legends like Craig McDean and Patrick Demarchelier. Her beauty was quiet. Unassuming. The kind most people would’ve walked right past. But I knew the top clients would love her. That L train changed my life. Truly a “subway to runway” moment. This is Page Development. Scouted with purpose. Built with intention. #PageDevelopment #BethHoefek #ScoutedWithIntention #SubwayToRunway #IMGModels #Prada #TokyoVogue #CraigMcDean #PatrickDemarchelier #ModelDiscovery

#TBT to one of my first discoveries Wilson Ortega, from Brownsville, Brooklyn. I spotted him on the L train, headed to the unemployment office. He had no idea he had something special. But I saw it. Took a few quick snapshots. The next day, he was signed to Ford Models. A week later, he was shooting with the legendary Richard Avedon for a global GAP campaign alongside supermodel Carolyn Murphy. This was the mid-90s a Afro Latino with locs on billboards across NYC? That was rare. But it made an impact. From there, Wilson walked every major runway in New York, Milan, and Paris and was shot by fashion legends like Patrick Demarchelier and Steven Meisel. His GAP image caught the eye of Macy Gray, who saw him on a plane and personally cast him as the lead in her Grammy-winning video “I Try.” He didn’t know he had it. But Page Development did. This is Page Development. Scouted with purpose. Built with intention. I’ve always created access. But access means nothing if you don’t believe you belong. #PageDevelopment #WilsonOrtega #FromTheBlockToTheRunway #ScoutedWithIntention #FordModels #RichardAvedon #PatrickDemarchelier #StevenMeisel #CarolynMurphy #GAPcampaign #MacyGray #Itry #BlackModelsMatter #ModelHistory #BrooklynToTheWorld #LegendaryFaces

Who is Page Development? When I was an agent at IMG on the New Faces board, I became known for discovering talent others overlooked on subways, at open calls, and right in the heart of the city. What set my scouting apart was that I found people who didn’t even know they had something special. They weren’t paying thousands to attend model conventions or being groomed for the industry they just hadn’t been seen yet. Now with Page Development, I’ve taken everything I learned and brought it back to my community. My mission is to create opportunities for untapped talent who may have never had access to the industry not because they lacked potential, but because no one ever opened the door for them. Yes, stats matter. But what truly makes a model stand out is personality, personality, personality. You can’t teach presence but you can develop it. And I do just that. I’m still growing, still learning, and proud to have built strong relationships with top agencies in New York. But my purpose hasn’t changed, to develop and empower the next wave of talent who just needed someone to believe in them. This is Page Development. Built with purpose. Scouted with intention. #modelsdotcom ##fashionindustrymodel #ModelDevelopment #modelscouting #OnesToWatch