America's Next Top Model crowned female model Jourdan Miller the twentieth season's winner during The CW's Friday night finale broadcast of the first-ever Guys & Girls edition.
 
Jourdan, a 6' 0" unemployed 19-year-old from Bend, OR, defeated runner-up Marvin Cortes, a 6' 1" 20-year-old sales associate from Bronx, NY, after Top Model judges Tyra Banks, Kelly Cutrone and Rob Evans evaluated and scored both contestants' entire body of work throughout the course of the season. Contestant Cory Hindorff finished in third place.

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As the winner of America's Next Top Model, Jourdan walked away with a $100,000 national ad campaign with Guess, a fashion feature in Nylon Magazine and a modeling contract with Next Model Management.

In an exclusive interview with Reality TV World on Tuesday, Jourdan talked about her Top Model: Guys & Girls experience and victory. Below is the first half of Jourdan's interview.

Check back with Reality TV World soon for the concluding portion of Jourdan's interview. Also, be on the lookout for our exclusive interviews with Marvin and Cory.

Reality TV World: When you were standing next to Marvin in the end, did you fully anticipate Tyra would be calling out your name as the winner or did you feel deep down Marvin might be taking it from you?

Jourdan Miller: I honestly thought that Marvin was going to based solely on the fact he was a guy, and I know that the judges really, really wanted a guy to win for the first time this season.

But unfortunately, when it came down to the modeling skills and when it came down to who won "best photo" so many times, and who could give the client what they want, I prevailed in the end and it was a complete shock when she called out my name. But it was the best feeling in the world!

Reality TV World: Tyra did admit to you she really badly wanted a guy to win. Looking back on the season, do you think the guys therefore had an advantage of some sort all season long since the judges were basically rooting for them more? Like do you think the fact more girls got eliminated than guys in the beginning of the competition was a sign of a little bias maybe?

Jourdan Miller: My thoughts on that are actually based off of the contestants and their skills alone. There were a few weeks when I thought a certain contestant should not have gone home, like [Nina Burns]. But for the most part, I think that it all just was based off of how we performed that week, how we did in the challenges, how dedicated we were to the prize in the end.

Reality TV World: Were you surprised that Marvin was the other finalist over Cory? Cory obviously only lost by one point. I know you said you thought Marvin was going to win the whole thing, but it sounds like that was just because you thought a guy was going to win.

Jourdan Miller: Right, right! I thought that it didn't really matter which guy I was up against. I just felt like the judges wanted a male to win, and so, yeah, it was interesting when Cory did lose the competition, because I thought Cory had a lot more modeling skills than Marvin did.

Because Cory's more mature and it just shows off of his little side-commentary in that he can see things for what it is, and with Marvin, I think he has some growing to do and he still looks like a little boy to me.

Reality TV World: In terms of the judges wanting a guy to win, did you ever personally feel any bias or remember any times when maybe you felt your success was downplayed or overlooked in order to hype a guy's performance up?

Jourdan Miller: I think that when it came to the Style Fashion Week when I didn't book any of those runway shows, I was a little confused, because everyone has seen my walk plenty of times on ANTM and it was just really confusing to me as to why I didn't snag those two castings.

I just felt like there was some sort of bias towards the other models or maybe it was that I was having an off-day that day, but when it came to that point in the competition, I was just very confused with whether it was me who was not performing or whether it was other things that I could not control.

Reality TV World: It appeared like Rob was a little displeased when you were crowned the winner of Top Model. Did you get that sense from him when you won, and if not, did you notice it watching the episode back? Why do you think he wasn't thrilled, was it just because he really believed in Marvin or maybe, more simply, he just wanted a guy to win?

Jourdan Miller: You know, I did not catch his emotion at the end, because I think I was really overwhelmed with the emotions I was feeling.

But yeah, I would have to say just based off of hearing that, he was probably just disappointed because he wanted a guy to win, and you know, he's a top model so he probably would've just liked to see somebody follow in his footsteps. But unfortunately, it didn't turn out that way.

Reality TV World: Tyra admitted you can actually take a higher percentage of good pictures than she can in a photo shoot. Did that comment surprise you or did you feel like that's what you were bringing to the table all along?

Jourdan Miller: When she told me that, it just confirmed why I had won "best photo" so many times and breaking that ANTM-history record.

Just hearing that from her and all the things she's accomplished with being an Angel for Victoria Secret and just modeling for so long in her career, hearing that come from her -- from a legend that I've looked up to for so long, since I was a little girl -- it's just absolutely amazing. I know that I have some big shoes to fill after hearing that, so yeah, the pressure is on!

Reality TV World: During the first part of the finale, Cory said you lacked versatility and had the classical blonde bombshell look -- which is beautiful -- but people have seen it time after time, and he feared with that continuing to happen, the modeling industry would never progress. Tyra also noted during final deliberations she worried you didn't have a "signature face." What's your reaction to all that and how would you argue that you are unique in the industry right now?

Jourdan Miller: I have to say that based off of a picture, you can't really tell what someone's personality is like. And when it comes down to a client and impressing the client, I think there's just something about me that catches their eye whether it's personality, whether it's the way I move in front of a camera, whether it's just the pictures that come out.

There's something about me that I've noticed people are drawn to, and so, I think that that is what makes me so special and sets me apart. I'm not just a pretty face that's going to come in and be like, "Oh hi, you know, I'm here for my photo shoot."

I'm going to go in and be like, "Hey, I'm Jourdan! Let's have fun, let's do this, let's work!" I'm a go-getter and I think that's what sets me apart from all the other models out there right now who are working.

Reality TV World: Looking back on the final photo shoots of the season, like the Nylon Magazine shoot and the Guess campaign, where did you see yourself fitting in the most? Which photo shoot do you feel you really excelled in and why?

Jourdan Miller: I would have to say that I excelled in the Nylon photo shoot just because we had more outfit changes and it was a longer shoot. It was a very relaxed environment and it was a lot of fun working with Marvin Scott Jarrett. It was an absolute honor.

And the Guess photo shoot was also amazing, but you know, everyone can tell from that day, I wasn't on top of my game. I wasn't feeling too well during my photo shoot, but I just pulled through in the end. But yeah, that Nylon photo shoot was probably the most memorable and one of the most fun experiences that I had in Bali, Indonesia with the ANTM crew.

Reality TV World: You mentioned a couple times this season runway was your "thing" and the judges raved about your walk in the final runway challenge. How much runway experience did you have prior to appearing on Top Model?

Jourdan Miller: Prior to Top Model, I did model for a couple years in my teen years, so from 15 to about 17. I worked back and forth from LA to New York, and I did take some walking classes. I was actually taught by the same teacher who taught Coco Rocha, and that's kind of the extra experience I brought with me.

But I was a little rusty because I hadn't done it in two years and I wasn't sure on whether or not I'd be able to bring it back out. But I did and I'm proud of myself for it, and it just confirms that the first time I modeled and I stopped, that point when I gave it up is when I realized I loved it so much.

And it's just like they say, "You don't realize what you have until it's gone," and this is my second chance, and I'm never going to give it up again!

Above is the first half of Jourdan's exclusive interview with Reality TV World. Check back with us soon for the concluding portion of the Top Model winner's interview. Also, be on the lookout for our exclusive interviews with Marvin and Cory.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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