Tyra Banks was a model.
Tyra Banks . Born in Inglewood , California , she began her career as a model at age 15 , and was the first African American woman to be featured on the covers of GQ and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue , on which she appeared twice . By the early 2000s , Banks was one of the world 's top-earning models . In 2010 , she published a young adult novel titled Modelland , based on her life as a model which topped The New York Times Best Seller list in 2011 .