Tough act to follow
Tyra Banks
After more than 10 years of hosting and producing “America’s Next Top Model,” Tyra Banks has opted to step away from camera range and hand over the hit show’s hosting chores to British singer-actress Rita Ora.
Tyra’s personal choice of replacement surprised and even shocked some people in the TV and fashion fields, because Ora isn’t a model and even known to be associated with high style.
But Banks points out in her defense that her successor has a unique fashion sense, is “connectedly” young—and, in fact, has ventured into a design collaboration with Adidas for a new line of sports and casual clothes.
In addition, Ora has had some TV experience and exposure, by way of a guest-judging stint on “The X Factor,” plus coaching on “The Voice UK.” She has also launched a cosmetics line.
Ora has bumped up her media visibility and popularity in other ways, like acting stints in movies like “Fifty Shades of Grey” and “Wonderwell.” Echoing her “sexy” screen image are reports that she’s also launching a lingerie collection for Tezenis.
So, what’s the verdict? Do all of these “deserving” bio bits translate into a successful replacement of Banks on “ANTM” by Ora?
Uh, not yet. We’ve watched Ora’s early stints on the hit show, and she comes off as strikingly, trendily eye-catching, and stylistically savvy and “connected.”
But, she still lacks the no-nonsense insights and “earned” sense of fashion and flair that the original show host brought with her—and the production “literally” banked on to rule the TV fashion field.
Ora does her level best, along with other resident judges like model Ashley Graham, stylist Law Roach and fashion magazine creative director Drew Elliott. But their combined efforts don’t quite add up to a strong, organizing fulcrum or spine that keeps the show focused and feisty.
We trust that Ora and her cohorts on the show’s judging and mentoring panel will learn fast on the job.
As the show’s executive producer behind the cameras, Banks must be working really hard to “infect” them with her flair, sass and passion for fashion, so we hope that the infection affects them deep down, where they live and breathe.
The big difference—and, perhaps, divide—between Banks and Ora is the fact that the former lived modeling and fashion as her bread and butter, while Ora “evolved” into it after she had already made her mark and millions as a singer and all-around performer.
Is the “transitioning” connection with fashion enough to give Ora the street or even runway “credit” to convincingly prance in Banks’ seven-inch heels? Or will she come up short and stumble for all the viewing world to cynically see and dissingly comment on?
To Ora’s credit, she has added to the tilt’s scope by making contestants realize the importance of establishing, marketing and “selling” their “brand” for maximum popularity and profit, on multimedia platforms.
