If there's one iconic former model we're glad has made a comeback, and who plays the authentic and timeless Y2K girl, it's Defantlee
Devon Aoki
.
Nor is it an exaggeration to say that the hands of time hardly touched her.
She started modeling when she was 13, and a year later Kate Moss, who "discovered" her on the pages of "Interview" magazine, offered her agency at the time to sign the young talent.
A short time later, in terms of the fashion world, the New York-born model's career took off after her debut on the runway in 1997, when she walked for fashion houses such as Comme des Garçons, Balenciaga and Chanel.
Aoki has become one of Karl Lagerfeld's many muses, starring in his haute couture runway shows as well as advertising campaigns for the coveted French fashion house.
So what's going on with her today?
Devon Aoki (Photo: GettyImages)
Alongside sharp criticism that was heard from all over the networks, and not only, from the moment it was known that the Met Gala 2023 would be dedicated to the memory of the late Lagerfeld, and being a controversial figure (he was accused of racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, manophobia and what not), Aoki actually remembers him kindly.
In an interview this month with "Vogue" magazine, she describes that her relationship with the renowned designer was "undoubtedly one of the greatest gifts of my life" and continues, "As a young girl he made me feel worthy, loved and special. He took me out of this uncertain place of not standing out to being His muse. It was really such an amazing thing for me as a young biracial girl who was shorter than most other girls and non-traditional looking."
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The unique look and natural talent of the model who was "only" 1.65 tall were so impressive that Versace chose her to replace Naomi Campbell as the face of the brand and when she was only 16 years old.
The New York native, raised in California and educated in London, went on to dominate the New York Fashion Week runways in the early 2000s, walking for Diane von Furstenberg, Oscar de la Renta and Kimora Lee Simmons.
Aoki soon became a cult favorite in the Hollywood swamp as well, and was naturally cast in voice girl roles in several hit movies, from "Fast and Furious 2," "Sin City" to "The Mutant Diaries."
She even participated in the documentary "I will rest in my grave", a documentary about her brother - DJ Steve Aoki, one of the most famous DJs in the world.
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The 40-year-old Aoki owes her unique and mesmerizing look to her Japanese father, ex-wrestler Hiroaki "Rocky" Aoki who founded the popular restaurant chain "Benihana", and her mother Pamela Hillberger, a jewelry designer of German-English origin.
"It was really an accident," she was quoted as saying in an interview with a British magazine, "I always thought models had to fit a certain mold. I never thought I had what it took. I'm too small and my appearance is quite odd. I don't fit the status quo. I guess that's a thing Good. There's more diversity now. It's okay to be shorter and look a little different."
In September 2007, she even collaborated with the Danish giant Levi's, when she designed the Levi's + D capsule collection for the Asian market.
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She had an impressive array of famous suitors over the years, which included Damon Dash, Rick Solomon and even Lenny Kravitz, but none of this impressed the stunning model.
In 2011, Aoki married James Bailey, a financier by profession, and from the moment their children were born she chose to stay away from the spotlight of the film and fashion world to "focus on motherhood" according to her.
Today she is the mother of four beautiful children, whom she dresses matchy match and it is incredibly sweet.
It seems that her daughter, Alessanda, is already following in her mother's footsteps and managed to participate in the campaign for Guess Kids.
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Aoki is the definition of a fashion icon par excellence, which the fashion industry proudly crowns.
In 2017, she was named by the British magazine Dazed as "one of the most recognizable alternative faces of the 90s".
In 2019, Marie Claire magazine named her one of the 15 supermodels of the 2000s who changed the face of fashion, while ID magazine called her "one of those few faces that defined the turn of the millennium".
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Her fashion moments on red carpets, high-profile parties and behind the scenes of the runway shows offer suitcases of inspiration from then until today, especially when the Y2K trend is still ruling and is probably here to stay.
She made her formal fashion comeback in 2017 when she was injured on the Moschino runway, and in the last two years Aoki has returned big time to the front of her fashion work.
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From breathtaking campaigns for Acne Studios and Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama, a family session for Ivy Park x Adidas (which turns out to be the last campaign of Queen Mother Beyoncé), with the peak being last month when she graced the May cover of the American "Vogue" magazine, alongside other iconic models such as Naomi Campbell, Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid, in an issue dedicated to a tribute to Karl Lagerfeld and as a prelude to the Met Gala that took place earlier this week.
By the way, Aoki of course wore an appearance inspired by the Y2K style that is so associated with her, but in an elegant interpretation, designed by her longtime BFF, the designer Jeremy Scott (for whom she is also a muse).
On the Moschino runway in 2017 (Photo: GettyImages)
The look Scott created for her was inspired by a white winged leather mini dress she wore right after his Fall/Winter 2001 show in Paris, and of course in black and white inspired by Lagerfeld's Chanel aesthetic.
We are not entirely sure about the hair extensions that are currently flaunting a platinum blonde.
You will be instantly returned to the slow girl of yesteryear with the soft devilish brown hair, which is more appropriate for someone who has kept her style and aesthetics as authentic as ever, with the minimum of effort.
They have a long history together - Devon Aoki and Jeremy Scott at the Met Gala 2023 (Photo: GettyImages)
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