About
Jourdan Sherise Dunn is a British model who rose from a West London teenager to one of the defining fashion faces of her generation. Born on 3 August 1990 in Brent and raised in Greenford, she stepped onto the global stage in 2007 and has stayed there ever since. Her runway résumé spans Prada, Burberry, Balmain, and countless others, and cosmetics giant Maybelline tapped her as a brand ambassador in 2014. Models.com lists her among the “New Supers,” a nod to both longevity and influence. Beyond catwalks and campaigns, she speaks up for diversity in fashion and for families affected by sickle‑cell disease, a cause close to her heart.
Before Fame
Dunn grew up with her mother, Dee, a receptionist, and two younger brothers in a lively, multicultural household. Friends often suggested modeling, but she couldn’t picture the job—she preferred basketball and hanging out at home. Everything changed in 2006 when a scout from Storm Management spotted her while she was browsing a Primark store in Hammersmith. Within months she debuted during New York Fashion Week for Marc Jacobs, and in February 2008 she became the first Black woman to walk a Prada show in more than ten years, breaking an uncomfortable barrier in high fashion.
Trivia
- Runway record‑setter: That Prada appearance is still cited in industry histories because it jolted major labels toward better representation.
- Kitchen creativity: Dunn loves to cook. Her YouTube series “Well Dunn with Jourdan Dunn,” produced for Jay‑Z’s Life+Times channel in 2012, showed her whipping up jerk pork, sticky wings, and other comfort foods—often joined by famous friends.
- Screen moments: She popped up in Zoolander 2 (2016) and lent star power to music videos such as Beyoncé’s “Yoncé” and Drake’s “Nice for What.”
- Accolades: British Fashion Awards named her Model of the Year in 2008, and Glamour honored her as an Inspiration in 2015.
- Advocacy: Dunn hosts “Cell for Gratitude,” an annual fundraiser that channels proceeds to sickle‑cell research, inspired by her son’s diagnosis.
Family Life
Family has always been Dunn’s anchor. She gave birth to her son, Riley, in December 2009 at age 19. Riley lives with sickle‑cell anemia, and caring for him pushed Dunn into health activism; she serves as a global ambassador for the Sickle Cell Disease Association.
In February 2020 she announced her engagement to British rapper and streetwear entrepreneur Dion “Sincere” Hamilton, sharing a joyful beach photo of the trio on Instagram with the caption, “2009 my son entered my life, 2019 my life partner entered my life, stepping into 2020 with both by my side is priceless.”
The model also remains close to her mother and brothers, crediting their grounding influence for keeping her “steady in the storm” of fashion weeks and photo shoots.
Associated With
Throughout her career Dunn has collaborated with many of fashion’s biggest names—designers such as Ricardo Tisci at Givenchy, Olivier Rousteing at Balmain, and Christopher Bailey during his tenure at Burberry. Fellow models Naomi Campbell, Karlie Kloss, Cara Delevingne, and Joan Smalls have shared runways, campaigns, or charity evenings with her; Campbell and Delevingne even turned up to support her sickle‑cell benefit in New York.
Music royalty crosses her path too. Beyoncé tapped Dunn for the visual trilogy “XO,” “Yoncé,” and “Mine,” while Rihanna and Nicki Minaj have danced alongside her at events and video shoots. Drake featured her in the star‑packed “Nice for What,” cementing her status as a pop‑culture fixture.
