Women in the Caribbean, especially Jamaica, are widely known for being incredibly gorgeous and sensual.
As someone who’s been to the island frequently, I am confident to call myself an expert on Jamaican beauty, which by the way, comes in all shapes and sizes.
From tall, long-legged beauty queens, to curvy bombshells, to voluptuous goddesses, women in Jamaica are blessed with smarts, wits, looks, and a whole lot of character.
To introduce you to Jamaican beauty, we compiled a list of the Island’s Instagram’s rising stars, models, and beauty queens.
DATE SEXY CARIBBEAN WOMEN
Tami Williams
Williams is a Jamaican-born haute couture model currently based in New York. She was discovered at 11 by model agent and SAINT CEO Deiwght Peters.
This Caribbean stunner with an impressive track record has strutted the catwalk for countless fashion brands, including Dolce & Gabbana, Valentino, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Roberto Cavalli, Marc Jacobs, Gucci, and many others.
Jeneil Williams
Williams is another Jamaican boundary-breaking model that keeps making a difference in the world of fashion. Like Shena Mouton, she was discovered when she won the 2005 Caribbean Model Search. Some of her biggest professional achievements include covers, editorials, and catalogs in Elle, W, Modes, Teen Vogue, Turkish and Italian Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and many others. Jeneil Williams wrote history when she appeared in the “all back issue” of Vogue Italia in July 2008.
She fronted campaigns for Topshop, Coca-Cola, Jimmy Choo, and Sephora and walked the runway for the biggest names in the industry, such as Balenciaga, Kenzo, Vivienne Westwood, and Jonh Galiano. While expecting her first child back in 2020, she also modeled for Nike’s first-ever maternity collection.
Naki Depass
Discovered at her high school at 16, Depass can be proud of a fruitful career that propelled her into fashion stardom almost instantaneously. Thanks to the SAINT CEO Deiwght Peters, she had her big break at the Burberry Fall runway show in London in 2016.
Just a year later, she signed an exclusive contract with Giorgio Armani, and ever since, the graceful strides of this Jamaican “back gazelle” have been a constant presence on the Armani runway. She has strutted the runway for the luxury fashion house at least 16 times.
Jaunel McKenzie
Jaunel McKenzie is one of Jamaica’s most sought-after models. Her face has graced the covers and pages of Cosmopolitan, ELLE, She, Allure, Glamour, American Vogue, W, and many more. Even though she hasn’t walked the megapopular Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, she has done catalogs and e-commerce projects for the lingerie giant.
In 2008, the prestigious Ebony magazine put Jaunel on the throne as one of the most influential and successful black models ever. Jaunel also wrote history when Models.com declared her the first-ever Caribbean to be ranked the #1 black model in the world. Years later, Januel is still making big moves in the fashion industry, side by side with icons such as Tyra Banks and Chanel Iman.
Shena Moulton
Can you imagine winning a prestigious modeling contest and signing a major contract at the age of 13? As the youngest person to ever win Saint’s Fashion Face of the Caribbean, Shena Moulton was instantly signed by Muse Models – a New York-based modeling agency and catapulted to stardom.
She also walked the runway for some of the biggest fashion industry brands such as Calvin Klein, Marc Jacobs, and Jean Paul Gaultier and booked gigs with Christian Dior, Benetton, Gap, Louis Vuitton, and many others.
Kai Newman
With almost a decade of experience in the fashion world, this Jamaican stunner boasts one of the most runway-packed schedules and an impressive modeling career. After a hiatus she took in 2018 to raise her daughter, Kai had an explosive comeback in 2022, walking the Fall/Winter shows for Loewe, The Row, Burberry, Prada, Valentino, and a few others.
Throughout her career, Newman appeared in editorials for the American and Spanish Vogue, Elle, Pop Magazine, Glamour, V, and many others. Kai was also voted one of the top 10 newcomers of the 2013 season by Models.com.
Nakeisha Robinson
Nackeisha Robinson’s name echoed worldwide when superstar Naomi Campbell endorsed her as the “new Naomi” almost two decades ago. As Naomi’s protégée and muse of the UK designer Julian McDonald, Robinson had every door open in the fashion world.
She has regularly appeared at London, Paris, Milan, and New York fashion weeks and worked with top brands such as Just Cavalli, Diane von Furstenberg, Givenchy, Dolce and Gabanna, Alexander McQueen, Kenneth Cole, Gharani Strok, and more.
Kaci Fennell Shirley
Kaci Fennell Shirley is one of the most sought-after faces in the fashion industry. This Jamaican beauty queen won Miss Jamaica Universe in 2014 and placed 4th Runner-Up in the Miss Universe pageant in the Philippines the same year. Kaci also won Jamaica’s Next Top Model contest and became a fashion ambassador for Jamaica.
Kaci has appeared in Buzz, SHE Caribbean, Nirvana Magazine, Profiles 98, The Jamaica Observer, the Outlook, and many others.
Yendi Amira Phillipps
This long-legged Jamaican siren is a perfect example of how beauty, brains, and soul go together. Having won Miss Jamaica World and Miss Jamaica Universe in 2007 and 2010, respectively, Phillipps has represented her home country at the two biggest beauty pageants.
Her success at both pageants (placed top 16 in 2007 and became 1sr Runner-Up in 2010) put her in the rare company of only nine other beauty queens who have ranked so high at both pageants.
She is also the creator and host of her own YouTube show named “Odyssey with Yendi,” where she hosts guests from all walks of life.
Tricia Campbell
Being the only plus-size beauty on this list, Trisha Campbell is probably the most boundary-pushing model coming from Jamaica. With a long list of heart-stopping achievements, this gorgeous Jamaican has been changing the fashion industry one photoshoot at a time.
Campbell appeared in many magazine editorials, brand campaigns, and runway shows and designed her own line of swimwear called GLAMOUR GLAMOUR Swimwear. However, the biggest achievement of her prolific career is being Oprah Winfrey’s stand-in plus-size model for the O Magazine!
