Jessica White en Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition 2009

Jessica White (born 1984 in Buffalo, New York) is an African-American model and occasional actress.



At the age of 16 she was scouted in her hometown of Buffalo, New York and had gone to Personal Best modeling school, run by Susan Makai, at age fourteen.



Then was whisked off to Paris where she signed a contract with the IMG agency.



In the next six months she landed campaigns for CoverGirl, Chloé, and Gap.




She was soon walking the runways for New York’s top designers including Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, Marc Jacobs and Tommy Hilfiger.



Tyra Banks dubbed her "the model of her generation."



In June 2007 White signed a contract with cosmetics giant Maybelline, making her the first Black model to land two major cosmetics contracts.



She has walked the runways for New York’s top designers including Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, Marc Jacobs, and Tommy Hilfiger.


She has done pictorials for Harper's Bazaar, Teen Vogue, King and covers shots for Surface and Trace magazines.



In 2003, White was chosen for a coveted shoot in Sports Illustrated's famed Swimsuit Issue.


She was also featured in the 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2009 issues.

In 2005, she became the first African-American model to be featured in three consecutive editions of the annual feature.



In addition to working with world class photographers she was the object/subject of several Joanne Gair body painting works in these editions.



She holds the distinction of being the first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model to appear on the cover in a body painting although only as an inset


White is currently part of Elite plus in New York City.


In 2006, White had a small role in Big Momma's House 2 and has appeared in music videos for singer John Legend, rapper Jay-Z and Robin Thicke. In 2008 she appeared in The Young and the Restless.

Birth name	Jessica White
Date of birth	1984 (age 24–25)
Place of birth	Buffalo, NY
Height	5'9.5 (US), 176.5cm (EU)
Hair color	Black
Eye color	Black
Measurements	34-24-34 (US), 86.5-61-86.5 (EU)
Dress size	4 (US), 34 (EU)
Shoe size	7 (US), 39 (EU)
Agency	Elite Model Management