Meet James Edward, The Model Taking TikTok by Storm

Meet the model/influencer taking the online world by storm, and hear about his creative inspirations and future plans.

James Edward is a model and influencer gaining exceptional traction on social media and excelling in his modelling career. Under the renowned management of MGM, James is set to have a stellar career in the industry.

With impressive followings of 159k on Instagram, and 1.4 million on TikTok, James has herded a cult audience that tune in to watch his genius hair styling content, such as “100 years of men’s hair”, and day-in-the-life style vlogs. Aligning with big names, such as Moncler and Givenchy, the young model is just getting started with his already impressive portfolio.

James’ energy is infectious and a refreshing one to stumble across on the abyss of social media. We sat down with the soaring talent to get to know him offline.

Read below about his profoundly creative mind and future plans…

How are you? What are you up to right now?
Hey I’m good thank you, I’m just finishing university for the year and am gearing up for summer.

When did you start modelling and what excited you about the industry?
So in terms of modelling I was scouted in 2020 by Milk model model management off instagram, and as someone who had never even considered modelling as a potential career it was so mind blowing to be a part of. I mean getting paid to wear cool clothes and be photographed is a thing of fever dreams so yeh it’s pretty cool.
 
How has TikTok helped evolve your career?
When I started TikTok, I don’t think anyone expected it to be what it is today. Least of all myself. I mean it was just a platform to post fun videos on during lockdown. Now it seems to be constantly opening doors and giving me all these crazy opportunities I never even thought would be possible. It’s pretty nuts.
 
What about the platform is compelling to you?
I love the fact that there’s so much freedom for creativity. I feel you can get really restricted on other platforms, as to what you can or can’t post. And there’s also so much freedom to just let go and be yourself. There’s no expectations as to how you should or shouldn’t act and I love that because that in an essence is exactly why I started posting in the first place.
 
We love your video going through men’s hairstyles from the past 100 years! Have you always been interested in fashion history or what inspired that video? Which decade, in your opinion, had the best look?
So from the age of 16 I became infatuated with films, and more notably the fashion chosen to compliment each film. I think it’s a detail that in my opinion can make the difference between a good production and great one. While it can also give a birds eye view into the fashion in that time period. I think it’s something often done very well in every project that leonardo di caprio takes part in. And if you watch the video closely you can probably notice quite a lot of the styles are taken from looks he’s had. My personal favourite however is probably either the 80s or 90s. The slick back is very timeless hair style, while the 90s just has a look about it that feels fresh and chic.
 
How do you express your creativity through hair? How long have you been changing up your look?
So when I was 15 during the summer I shaved my head for the first time. I’d always had really quite long hair, and because at the time I was playing tennis full time in Spain it was too hot. So it had to go. And since then I kinda realised that changing up your hair and your looks really isn’t as a big a deal as everyone makes out. And I felt it quite relieving. Then during lockdown I got bored and I’d always seen Tyler the creator dye his hair so I asked my mate to dye it. And it went from there. And now even when I can’t dye my own hair, styling my hair in different ways and switching up my look is something I do on a regular basis. I’m in love with the idea each day you can wake up and be someone entirely new purely based off of how you look, and how i style my hair is the beginning of that.
 
How do you balance sharing your life online with your private life?
It can be incredibly tricky, as I’ve grown to love the platform more I’ve found myself sharing more and more of my day to day life. And it sometimes can get very overwhelming, as it feels like you are giving so much of yourself away. Simultaneously though getting to share real experiences with other people from all around the world who can relate and feel involved can be really rewarding. And hearing that my content made someone’s day or helped them through a tough time makes it worth it. 
 
What has been the highlight of your career?
Probably shooting in Milan for baracuta. Firstly I love Milan so having the ability to fly out there for work was magical. But also the set itself was incredible as we shot in this 18th century mansion. So I’d probably say that. 
 
Where do you hope to see the industry in the future?
I hope to see a greater incorporation of social media creators into the real world media. I think there’s a lot of really great creators out there.