‘My agent didn’t call Beyonce back!’ Model Winnie Harlow reveals how she landed a cameo in Lemonade – but it was so top-secret, she nearly said no
- Model Winnie Harlow reveals near-miss with Lemonade cameo
- Beyonce, 34, asked Harlow to appear in shoot for new visual album
- Harlow, 21, made cameo with Serena Williams and clutch of famous faces
- Shoot was filmed at the Destrehan Plantation in Mississippi Valley
- For the latest on Beyonce's new album visit www.dailymail.co.uk/beyonce
Canadian model and vitiligo sufferer Winnie Harlow has revealed how she nearly said no to one of the world's biggest stars.
The 21-year-old, who shot to fame on America's Top Model, makes a cameo appearance in the Beyonce's latest release, visual album Lemonade, alongside a host of more famous faces including tennis star Serena Williams and actress Amandla Stenberg.
However, Harlow, in an interview with W magazine, has revealed that she very nearly didn't get a part, after her agent didn't call Beyonce's people back.
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Winnie Harlow hastily jetted into New Orleans to film her scenes in Freedom, one of the new visual songs from Beyonce's latest album Lemonade, the day after she took the call from the star's aide
Transformation: Harlow stars in the politically charged Freedom, which is set on a New Orleans plantation; her look for the shoot was created by star stylist Kim Kimble
Harlow, who suffers from the same skin condition that Michael Jackson had, told W magazine that the project, which took place just a few days before Christmas, was so secretive that her agent didn't pursue the request for her time when no details were forthcoming.
She said: 'I was actually contacted by their [Beyonce's] team a couple weeks prior but my agent at the time didn’t get back to them because they wouldn’t tell us much about the project.'
Eventually, just one day before the shoot took place, an aide to the pop icon called her directly, saying: ‘Beyoncé wants you. Can you fly to New Orleans tomorrow?’
Unsurprisingly, the rising star didn't hesitate.
Harlow's moment in the spotlight comes in the politically charged song 'Freedom', which is set on a New Orleans plantation.
A still from the scene in Freedom; Harlow says her agent didn't pursue the project originally because Beyonce's team wouldn't reveal what they were going to shoot
The model, real name Chantelle Brown-Young, holds aloft a picture of her grandfather in a scene which then sees the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown and Eric Garner - all young black men shot dead by US police officers - showing photographs of their sons.
After shooting her scenes, Harlow got to chat with Beyonce and her mother Tina Knowles.
Of the conversation shared, she said: 'I wanted to thank her for acknowledging me as a strong black woman and uplifting and continuing to empower us all. That made her so happy.'
Harlow added: 'She said that’s exactly what she wanted to do and feels even more responsible now that she has Blue. I’m so happy to be a part of her iconic story now.'
Since the shoot, rising star Harlow has been posting images from the shoot.
Fellow cameo star Ava Clarke also posted a picture entitled 'Beyonce experience' from the shoot at the Destrehan plantation in the lower Mississippi Valley.
Getting real: Keeping in line with the raw emotions conveyed in each chapter, even her more styled hair looks are slightly undone
Hand-picked: Beyonce chose a selection of powerful female stars to appear in her latest release
'Black Queens' Harlow posted a shot of herself sat next to Beyonce and other guest stars from the shoot
Actress Ava Clarke published a shot from the casting entitled 'Project Lemonade' tagging in some of the other stars who made a cameo including Serena Williams
Beyonce boost: Harlow's cameo in Freedom looks set to further heighten the model's profile
Lemonade is presented in 11 chapters and the film invites viewers on a journey that explores a range of raw emotions, musical genres... and a carousel of different hairstyles.
The spectrum of hairstyles created for the film - including those seen on Harlow - were the impressive work of a 14-person glam squad led by Beyonce's longtime hairstylist Kim Kimble.
Harlow's appearance in the video looks set to catapult her to new heights.
The young star describes herself as a 'vitiligo spokesmodel' on Instagram and has been celebrated for her honesty about her distinctive look.
She has hundreds of thousands of followers on social media and she was recently invited back to her high school to do a motivational talk with students touching on the discrimination she faced.
Winnie first spoke publicly about her skin condition in 2011 by posting a video to YouTube titled 'Vitiligo: A Skin Condition not a Life Changer'.#
Although then just 17, she eloquently told viewers: 'People have black skin, people have brown skin, I have both.
'When I got older, it got harder because when kids get older they get meaner, so I went through a lot of bullying and people calling me like zebra or cow so it was really hard growing up.'
She said at certain points she was plagued with suicidal thoughts but found the strength to pull through.
Moving from California to Canada with her family also provided the opportunity for a fresh start.
Star-studded: Stars like Zendaya (bottom right) appear alongside Beyonce (centre right) in the hour-long special for her new work
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