I made my living being 20 or 30 pounds heavier than the average model. And that's where I got famous.

When I was a young girl, I lost a lot of weight over one summer - involuntarily - and was just really depressed and sad. There was nothing I could do to gain weight. I would look in the mirror and call myself disgusting every day.

I've always seen modeling as a stepping stone.

Never dull your shine for somebody else.

I love being able to go to a store, let's say... a store like Topshop or Zara or maybe even Macy's, depends on what department, and not have to look at the price tag.

I'm trying to build a strong business. I want to create new stars, new shows and new products for my audience and create a legacy that outlives me. There are so many other ways I want to reach women besides doing a talk show.

As my mom wiped the tears from my face, she said, 'Tyra, you know what we’re going to do about this? We’re going to go eat pizza.' We sat in a tiny pizzeria in Milan and strategized about how to turn my curves into a curveball. In a way, it was my decision not to starve myself that turned me into a supermodel, and later on, a businesswoman.