City Of Angels’ Latasha

Latasha: “One thing I learned from my mom is that tough times do not last; tough people do.�

[Our Beauty Of The Day]

Where She’s From: Latasha Johnson was born and raised in the City of Angels, Los Angeles, California. She has an elder brother and one younger sister.

She lost an elder brother before she was born and another one when she was 11. “His best friend was showing off his father’s gun and accidentally shot my brother. His death was extremely tough on me because he and I were really close,” she recalls, adding that shut down emotionally until many years later, then realized “not everyone you are close to will leave you.”

She adds, “One thing I learned from my mom is that tough times do not last; tough people do. She came a long way from being the little country girl from Pineapple, Alabama, to a respected elementary school teacher.”

“She also taught me that you don’t need a man in your life to get what you want. You get out there and work hard on your own and everything else with fall into place,” Latasha says.
 
Latasha attended George Washington Preparatory High School in Los Angeles and Cal State University Dominguez Hills (CSUDH)  for two and a half years before financial burden became too much. “After a extensive break from college I decided to return and moved to Atlanta where I now attend Clark Atlanta University majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance, where my pending graduation date is May 2009,” she notes.
 
Where She’s At: “I was in high school when the seed on modeling was planted,” Latasha says.

“Ever since my first photo shoot at the age of sixteen, you couldn’t keep me away from posing. I’d practice hours in the mirror to see what angles and expressions worked best for me. A visit to Los Angeles’ annual Black College Expo is where my dream would potentially become a reality when I was approached about a modeling career,” she adds.

Latasha says she then ate, slept, dreamt, breathed, and danced modeling. “I’ve been known to rip the runway down to its seams,” she adds, with a laugh. “My aspirations are to become a world known supermodel with beauty and brains. I want to grace the cover of fashion magazines all over the world.”

She’s also entrepreneurial and is now developing her own sultry yet sexy calendar entitled “Beautiful” that will be out in 2009.

“Since moving to Atlanta one of the major challenges in modeling is receiving compensation for your work,” Latasha says. “I have been to numerous castings or auditions that love to ‘expose’ you but not compensate you. Another challenge is finding real work that doesn’t include being a video vixen or some rappers eye candy.”
 
Latasha has worked in shows for Young Jeezy and worked for Jermaine Dupri’s club opening, but she’s got her eyes on New York’s Fashion Week.
 
“In this industry it is typical to be acknowledge only for your looks, but when you have more to bring to the table you are a step ahead of the rest that only rely on their looks to get the job,” she says, referring to the importance of brains. “Having beauty is nice, but having the brains to know what that beauty is worth when discussing compensation is priceless.” Moreover, she’s a readaholic, with 120 books that she’s read at least twice, in her collection.

So how does this lovely model and entrepreneur prepare to step out?

“I love jeans and the best pair that I found that makes my tail look right and tight are Rock n’ Republic,” she says. “They are the perfect fit for a 5′ 9 long-legged beauty like myself. As for shoes, my favorites are Steve by Steve Madden. They have a 3 3/4 inch heel to die for and also boots from Aldo. I am a boot fanatic. I am embarrassed to say I actually have two closets in my room, one for clothes and the other for shoes. Oddly enough I am not a big fragrance type of gal, but I have found myself using ‘Desire” by Victoria’s Secret. My favorite makeup is by MAC.”

Latasha’s  Words Of Wisdom: “Comes from Horace Odes ‘Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero,’ meaning ‘seize the day, trust no tomorrows.’ Don’t be afraid to step outside your box because opportunity is waiting.”
Latasha’s  Secret To Success: “Patience. Knowing that my hard work will not be in vain and knowing that having a positive attitude will turn positive results.”
Latasha’s Favorite Movies: “The Last Dragon, by Berry Gordy; The Wiz, and The Best Man.”
Latasha’s  Favorite Books: “The Coldest Winter Ever, by Sista’ Soulja; Addicted, by Zane; and All That and A Bag of Chips, by Darrien Lee.”
Three Leaders That Most Inspire Latasha: “Oprah, supermodel Liya Kebede, and Nelson Mandela.” 
The First Three Things Latasha’s Would Do As President: “Return our troops home from a war that is destined for disaster. Secondly I would be sure Social Security and Health Care issues would be resolved. Finally I would raise the minimum wage. After moving to Atlanta my eyes have open to how I had it made living in California. In Atlanta I have come to understand the meaning of the working poor and that needs to change”
Latasha’s Favorite Cars: “Range Rover for when I’m feeling tough yet cute and a Maserati GranTurismo for when I’m feeling low key sexy and smooth.”
Latasha’s Favorite Entertainers: “R. Kelly, Anthony Hamilton, Joss Stone or John Legend.”
 
Latasha’s Favorite Websites: “Style.com, ModelMayhem, Concreteloop, Myspace, Facebook and SchoolSlam.com.”


For more on Latasha please see 
http://www.myspace.com/ldjohnson98


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