SZN 1 EP 10: Velonika Pome'e

She's beauty, she's grace, she's a Tongan baddie in these United States! Ya'll have no idea how excited I am to close out the very first szn of The Xtra Sznd Podcast with the one and only, Velonika Pome'e! I initially met Velonika Pome'e at New York Fashion Week during Covid and have been fortunate enough to collaborate with her on multiple photoshoots. The fact that she was able come to Utah and participate in this podcast is a huge deal and I'm grateful she took the time to stop by. In this episode, we talk about her journey as a model and what that looked like for her. Velonika was catapulted into the spotlight when she became the first pasifika model to grace the pages of Sports Illustrated. Since then, she's been able to move to NYC and grow her platform in order to showcase the intersectionality between her modeling career and her passion for community. We get to hear all about her experiences from navigating through cultural expectations within her Tongan heritage to her opinion on body positivity and the plus size movement within fashion. So tune in and get inspired because this girl is someone you need to keep an eye out for!