Tyra Banks: The Fashion Industry Swagger-Jacked Ideas From America’s Next Top Model

Tyra Banks is tooting her own horn a bit and doling out a few I-told-ya-so's in the process.

During an interview with USA Today, she vaguely remembers the flak she caught for putting aspiring models through the wringer on her reality show, America's Next Top Model. Critics said that the challenges were unrealistic and too avant-garde.

But now when Banks looks at contemporary fashion shows, she sees semblances of her groundbreaking ideas that were implemented on ANTM.

"We were doing themed fashion shows on Top Model, and people were thinking I was crazy," Banks said. "Like, I'm going to have rain all over the runway, or I want girls walking in water that's ankle-deep. And now that's normal.

"Every season, Chanel is in a strange location doing something that's a theme, whether it's a protest or in an airport," she added. 

Banks is also still responding to inquiries about why she up and quit her daytime talk show, FABLife. The streets aren't really buying her excuse—that she wanted to spend more time working on her cosmetics line—but she maintains that's really the truth. 

"I realized that if I stepped away [from show business] for five years to start this business, I need to focus on this and not run my company in emails and in quick meetings between shows of FABLife," she said. "And I made that decision."

For more of black Twitter, check out The Chatterati on The Root and follow The Chatterati on Twitter.

Diana Ozemebhoya Eromosele is a staff writer at The Root and the founder and executive producer of Lectures to Beats, a Web series that features video interviews with scarily insightful people. Follow Lectures to Beats on Facebook and Twitter.

Like The Root on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.