It’s hard out here, even for a second-generation model!

Aoki Lee Simmons announced that it’s a wrap for her modeling career after constantly hearing that she’s “not pretty enough” amid comparisons to her iconic mom, Kimora Lee Simmons.

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Like many other 22-year-olds, Aoki is going through it! After overwhelming rejection and cold-blooded criticism, she’s getting out of the game. Despite years of elite experience and growing up in a fashion empire, it sounds like she doesn’t have much motion. TMZ reports Aoki vented about the professional pivot in a recent video posted online.

The Baby Phat heiress is preparing her exit strategy while she still has a few more bookings in the pipeline. The industry was already cutthroat, but how can she compete against her own mother?

“I think I’m probably wrapping up modeling soon,” she declared. “It just feels like one big fat comparison all the time. Like ok, I get that. My mom is always going to be a way better model than me. It’s just annoying to have that comparison sometimes.”

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This isn’t the first time Aoki was ready to tap out. As BOSSIP previously reported, she announced a break from modeling this summer because of an experience that was “dark AF.”

She swore off “any kind of fashion week unless I’m mentally prepared for it and feel loved and supported. The last one ruined my mental health.” Aoki clarified that she could handle basic rejection because “that’s life,” but she took the “genuine cruelty” personally.

What will she do instead? Don’t hold your breath on her becoming a full-time influencer or reality TV star yet like a lot of celebrity seeds. The Harvard alum decided to put her Ivy League degree to work. The political science major has both beauty and brains. She graduated last year at the age of 20, making her one of the youngest Black women to graduate from Harvard.

“I think I’m going to end up switching back to working in government, which is what my degree is in,” she continued.

It says a lot about how rough things are that Aoki could look at this political landscape and still decide it’s easier than the modeling industry. And the toll it takes on self-esteem.

“It’s hard to go somewhere and get told over and over and over, ‘No, you’re not pretty enough, you’re not pretty enough, you’re not pretty enough,” she continued with her voice cracking.

“That’s not a fun time,” she said. “I worked really hard at it, but it’s a hard industry. Like there’s a lot of beautiful great girls who are great models that don’t have a job.”

If Aoki isn’t pretty enough, then who is?

The BCBG baddie referenced advice from her mother about walking away before revealing how much thought she put into it. The next steps include “taking the foreign service test so I can get back into international relations, which is what my degree is in.” Until then, she’s determined to “finish strong” and make mama proud.

Kimora previously revealed initial concerns about her baby girl following in her high fashion footsteps. After all, the OG has endured the severe criticism since she was only about 10 years old. Still, she taught Aoki that rejection is part of life, whether she modeled or not.

Even if she gets dragged for it, Aoki keeps it real about what’s on her mind. Hopefully, she can put it at ease with a career away from the catwalk.

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When it comes to Kandi Burruss, we all know she can find a check to cash, and it seems the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree.

Though Real Housewives of Atlanta is no longer Kandi koated, it seems her oldest daughter Riley is joining the Bravo family. According to PEOPLE, Riley will be one of several cast members for a new show titled Making It In Manhattan. The full cast has not been released but it is rumored to include Ming Lee Simmons, Damon Dash‘s daughter, Ava Dash, a host of influencers and several children of popular housewives across franchises.

Though Kandi has had her share of shows on Bravo, the singer songwriter says that she “couldn’t be happier” since making the decision to leave RHOA after being the only original cast member to stay on the show since its inception.

“Not that I don’t like the show, I just feel like when I left, I had done 14 seasons straight. No other Housewife had done that,” she says. “So a lot of times, I was filming all year-round reality, and that can be a little draining.”

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Earlier this month, Kandi appeared on two episodes of Hulu’s Reasonable Doubt as recovering addict Eboni Phillips, a role she received after meeting the show’s creator on a flight.

“I thought that was just she and I having women a business talk, supporting each other type of thing,” Burrus said. “I didn’t think it was going to be an opportunity for us to work together so soon. I was thinking maybe off in the future, maybe she could think of me if they had something, but it was immediately after that her team hit my team and they asked me to come in for this role. I was so excited.”

Kandi and her husband, Todd Tucker, have also joined the production team for the newest Broadway revival of Shakespeare’s Othello starring Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Ari Lennox‘s sobriety journey is taking a new turn as she plans to unplug from social media permanently. The singer recently took to Instagram to inform her fans and followers that she plans to permanently delete her social media pages by the end of 2024. This comes almost two years after Lennox decided to change her lifestyle and give up drugs and alcohol.

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On Friday, October 11, the “Pressure” singer posted a mirror selfie attached to a lengthy caption. In the post, she detailed her plan to “transition off of social media for good.” She continued to describe what social media has done to her mental health and psyche. She then stated that her last day using social media will be December 18th, the two-year anniversary of Lennox’s sobriety decision.

“I’m working on a plan to transition off of social media for good. I don’t believe I’ll ever mature and be happy as long as i have it. So my last day of socials will be December 18th, my 2 year sobriety anniversary. I will be deleting my FB, IG and TikTok permanently,” she wrote.

The 33-year-old alluded to her previous desires to leave social media but was scared that leaving the apps would set her back in her career goals. However, she is no longer concerned about losing brand deals and music sales. She stated she believes she will find a way to reach her fans without socials.

“The fear of losing brand deals, music sales, n****s and b***es will no longer keep me here,” she stated.

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Lennox completed her caption by speaking directly to her fans. She admitted that social media had compromised her happiness, and she was no longer willing to make that sacrifice. She also provided spaces in which her fans c a still interact with her content. Fans and music listeners can stay updated on her upcoming releases there.

“I’m so exhausted with my addiction to the internet and gossip and attention and validation and yearning to be in control and oversharing. I just want to be free and complete. I would like to offer other spaces where you can find me and that’s YouTube.com/arilennox and Arilennox.com and on the singing stage or outside.”

A Look At Ari Lennox’s Sobriety Journey

You may recall that in December 2023, Lennox took to social media to announce the one-year anniversary of her decision to stop drinking. According to Hip-Hop DX, in the post, she admitted that she was using alcohol to cope with trauma and pain. She also detailed her excuses to drink being tied to a fear of flying as well.

“You see, drinking was my ritual to combat my immense fear of flying,” she wrote in the now-deleted post. “Just alcohol’ could’ve killed me. I had many guardian angels watching over me that day. Thank God there was nobody filming.”

After getting sober, the singer realized that she could fly without using alcohol.

“I decided December 18th 2022, would be the day I got clean. You know what I realized after 1 year of many sober flights? I never needed alcohol to get through the flight. I thought I needed alcohol to escape my reality and to cope. I needed an excuse to drink and not feel the pain of every day life and trauma. It was my numbing vacation to avoid my purpose and my truth,” she stated.

Though she is making an exit from social media, Lennox announced her new single, “Smoke,” will be available on October 18.

We wish Ari Lennox the best on her continued sobriety journey!

Kayla Nicole stirred up drama over a 10-year-old Halloween costume, and Teyana Taylor entered the chat to drag the “disrespectful” storytime! While visiting Angel Reese‘s podcast, Kayla described the craziest thing she has done in a relationship. Social media sleuths uncovered she was probably referencing Taylor and her ex-husband, Iman Shumpert. However, Taylor was not feeling the call out and took to social media to let everyone know.

Source: Dia Dipasupil/Matt Winkelmeyer/ / Getty

Kayla Nicole, a model, content creator, and Travis Kelce’s ex-girlfriend, recently joined Angel Reese on her new podcast, Unapologetically Angel. While there, the two discussed several things, including her former relationship with Kelce and the backlash she experienced when he began dating Taylor Swift. Nevertheless, the juiciest part of the interview came when Reese asked Kayla the craziest thing she had ever done in a relationship.

Before spilling the tea, Kayla clarified that she does not have many “crazy” stories, but this was her favorite. She then stated that after a guy she was dealing with dumped her for a “singer/actress,” she dressed up as them for Halloween — and posted it on Instagram. The picture went viral and had her ex-boo calling her crazy.

“So I was dating a guy, and he dumped me through a text message. And he dumped me for this singer/actress who was famous at the time. He dumped me for her. Lied about it for months then popped out with her and it became this public thing,” she stated.

To further clarify her actions, Kayla said that she had moved to New York to be with the mystery man and was heartbroken when she found out the truth.

Kayla Nicole Clears The Air On Social Media & Teyana Taylor Seemingly Airs Her Out

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While Kayla tried to remain vague when telling the story, social media warriors were quick to dig up the old Instagram post. After the clip of Kayla’s story went viral, it was revealed that the content creator was talking about Iman Shumpert and Teyana Taylor. A picture of Kayla dressed in Taylor’s iconic outfit from Ye’s “Fade” video began circulating social media, confirming the speculations.

Soon after, Taylor took to Instagram Stories with a clip of Left Eye saying, “And everyone, get ready to do your math,” alluding to the allegation that Shumpert was simultaneously dealing with Taylor and Kayla. According to TheShadeRoom, Taylor began dating Shumpert in 2013, and they popped out on Instagram in 2014.

After social media began to react to Kayla’s story, she took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to clear the air. In one tweet, she asserted that people had taken the story too far.

“I share a sliver of my truth for once and here y’all come with the group chat think pieces,” she stated.

In a separate tweet, Kayla made it clear that she does not condone her past actions, but she has a right to share her story.

“Sometimes I’m asked about my personal life and decide to share the lessons I’ve learned. To reiterate what I said in the hour-long interview – learn from my mistakes. If u watched in its entirety, you’d know I don’t condone the “crazy” decision I made literally 10 YEARS AGO,” she wrote. “Will continue to speak on my life experiences when I see fit with zero shame, because it’s my story to tell. And if it helps just one woman avoid the tough lessons I’ve learned, my obstacles will not have been in vain.”

Despite providing more context, Teyana Taylor did not feel the extra attention that Kayla’s story brought her. In a now-deleted comment on TheShadeRoom’s post, Taylor put her “petty panties on” to react. She put Kayla and her story on blast because she felt the influencer was being shady.

“She pulled the Black card when it came to Taylor Swift, but in the same circle, turned around and tried to bully the Black woman that was married to her situationship she claimed ‘dumped her’ for me. Dressing up like me for what? Crazy part about all this is, I actually showed love under her pic when she posted it. Like I did the other 3736262626 people that dressed up as me for Halloweeen. Whole time I ain’t even know she was being shady. Now I do. so in that case petty panties on. I had my lil fun I said what the f**k I said & now I’m done and headed back to set,” she wrote.

Check out Kayla Nicole’s full interview on Unapologetically Angel below.

Social media is seemingly split on who is in the wrong here. What do you think? Was Kayla Nicole being shady when she told the story?