The Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, the rollout for which is always a uniquely hyped affair, is going all out for the 2021 edition.
Namely, Grammy winner Megan Thee Stallion—as one of three separate cover stars—has now become the first rap artist to appear on the publication’s swimsuit cover. As Megan explained, this marks another example of taking a childhood dream and making it reality.
“I was the little girl looking at the cover of Sports Illustrated saying, ‘One day this is going to be me.’ And I manifested it,” Megan, who recently celebrated the RIAA platinum certification of her Good News album, said.
For the cover feature, Megan was photographed by James Macari in Miami, Florida. She also linked up with Sports Illustrated cover alum Tyra Banks, resulting in a to-be-revealed conversation spanning everything from the shared experience of being on the SI cover to their respective passion projects.
Speaking with People about the process of bringing her SI cover to life, Megan reveled that her “earliest memory” of the publication’s swimsuit special was a cover featuring Banks.
“I remember thinking, ‘Wow, this girl looks like me!’ Here is this stunning Black woman owning her curves and it made a big impact,” Megan said. “It made me think, maybe I can be on the cover of SI Swim one day. And guess what — I am!”
In a separate interview with CNN, Megan said shooting the cover made her feel “really empowered and happy,” adding that it felt good “to know that women who have bodies like me can be celebrated.”
Meanwhile, in a message to fans shared early Monday, Megan extended a special thanks to “all the strong women” in her life who inspired her.
See more from Megan’s SI cover feature below. The full issue hits newsstands July 22. The other two cover stars are Naomi Osaka and Leyna Bloom, the latter of whom is making history as the first trans person to appear on the cover of SI’s annual special.
Earlier this month, Megan—as mentioned above—saw her debut studio album receive platinum certification from the RIAA. She also starred in a campaign in promotion of a new BAPE and Coach collaboration.
