From Social Media Sensation to Podcast Powerhouse; The Journey of Charlotte D’Alessio 

Photos / Emma Craft @/emmacraft

Digi Tech: April Blum @/aprilblumphoto

1st Assist: Thomas Miller @/tomm_furyy

Stylist: Britt Theodora @/britt.theodora

Make up: Cass Lee @/cvsee

Hair: Rachel Hopkins @/rachel_hopkinshair

Set Design: Caylah Leas @/caylah.jean

Studio: Shio Studio @/shiostudio

Story /Anais Gamboa

Around eight years ago, overnight sensation Charlotte D’Alessio was discovered at the infamous Coachella festival. Charlotte and her friend had taken a picture at the festival and she was scouted from just one post. Since then, her life has blossomed and has been filled with many modeling opportunities, campaigns and much growth in her social media page.

 In her more recent years, Charlotte has taken a different approach in addition to her modeling lifestyle. Her podcast titled, “Between Good and Evil” has taken off by storm, leaving many of her fans wanting more. Many of her fans have enjoyed listening to her relatable words and her deep conversations with various artists as guests on her podcast. “Between Good and Evil” is coming up with its third season soon and Charlotte is very eager for what’s to come. In this exclusive conversational interview, join us as she tells us about how her career got started, her perspective on today’s fashion choices and trends, her journey through the world of modeling, and what’s to come on her inspiring podcast. 

Aritzia shirt Vintage Alexander McQueen skirt from Vintage Grace Jimmy Choo shoes Lelet rosette Heaven Mayhem earrings Celeste Starre ring Acchitto ring Jenny Bird ring

 

So I’ve learned that you’re originally from Canada, and now you’re based in beautiful sunny LA, can you tell me a little bit about how that transition was for you? 

My dad lives in LA, he moved in LA when I was like nine or eight I can’t remember. Since my dad lived here, I would always go on our vacations because my parents had split custody, so I would go and see my dad a couple times a year in LA and I loved it so much as a kid. I just remember being like “THIS IS THE BEST PLACE EVER!!!” Then my mom, when I was fifteen almost sixteen, decided to move to London for her fiancé’s job at the time. So I was like okay, I could live with my dad, or I could move to London because Toronto wasn’t going to be an option anymore. I then decided to go ahead and live with my dad. It was a VERY spontaneous decision because I didn’t know I was going to move until like two weeks before, but I ended up staying here and I love it here. 

I know a lot of people when they are young, they sometimes think about their dream place to move, was moving to LA ever on your mind? Was that a possible goal for you?

Funny enough, I remember when I was younger I really wanted to go to UCLA. My computer password literally used to be UCLA. I don’t know if you’ve ever watched those videos on YouTube, the “I’m Shmacked” videos? OH my GOD, that is literally to me, how I was picking what college I wanted to go to because I would just sit and watch those. In Canada we didn’t have colleges like that, I mean we do it’s just I feel like when you don’t live in the states, you look at the schools in the states and it just seems like this foreign thing, so I remember being OBSESSED with these videos and just like oh my god I have to go to a US college. That was something I wanted to do, of course before modeling took over. 

What’s some of the biggest fashion differences that you’ve seen personally, between your hometown Canada and LA?

 I would say Toronto is like an anti-fashion city. It’s very rare for people to take fashion seriously there. Even if I go back now, they dress the same as how I remember in high-school, which is not a bad thing, it’s just part of the culture. Here it’s a little bit more individual, but it’s still in comparison to like New York, it’s not as crazy. I live on the eastside of LA, so the east side is much more fashionable. Everyone has their own taste here and I love it so much, it’s honestly part of the reason why I moved. Everyone is either like goth, or fairy or hippie, they are all just dressed differently and I love that and appreciate that so much. 

I definitely got to listen to a bit of your podcast, and in the episode, titled “why I changed my style.” You mentioned how you don’t have a specific style, and how it’s always evolving, But how would you describe your new style at the moment?

I’ve noticed that people find something they like and then suddenly that’s their thing, and I like that, I like when someone has a signature thing about them. For me though, I can’t commit to one thing, I like so many different types of styles that I think in turn that has ended up being my style. People have asked me before and I’ve always ended up saying I don’t know, because I don’t know! I’d like to describe myself as random because I just don’t know. I’ll look at myself in the mirror and if I like it, I’ll wear it. It’s whatever I like that day, and it changes a lot. I just like it all and I don’t want to limit myself to one vibe. 

In that same episode, you go on to talk about trends, do you feel that following trends has really created a lack of individuality? 

Hmm, let me think about this…I think trends are helpful for some people. I look at it as kind of tiers of caring. For example, you can care a lot about clothes and a lot about having an individual style and creativity, and then you can care about clothes, kinda care about clothes, you don’t really care but you dress up occasionally. For some people trends are very helpful to get people into fashion. They see something that’s trendy and they can at least appreciate it. You can’t ask everyone to care at the same level as I care or maybe you care. If you’re not in fashion or just starting out in fashion, then I can see it being helpful. It’s interesting because trends are not only in fashion but in other things as well, for example it’s in media, skincare, home life, so I’m thinking in my head, can we ever REALLY get rid of trends? Because I don’t think we can, it’s just what it is. Overall I’d say trends are an accessory, you can’t get rid of it, it’s there if you want it or not.

So along the lines of your move and fashion, I know everyone has their own unique stories so I’d love to hear yours. Tell me a little bit about how it was you got discovered. 

I’ve been scouted when I was a kid a couple of times. My first agency was when I was around ten or eleven, and I made like no money. I remember I worked for Sears and I remember doing jobs after school or getting out of school to take a job. It was a lot of commercial modeling at the time and I remember not being passionate about it at all. That was my first introduction into modeling. Fast forward six months after I moved into the states, I went to Coachella and I got photos of me and my friend from the festival that went viral online and then I got scouted from that. I remember some celebrities had posted our photos and a couple of articles about it and at the time it was like a thing, like “girl got scouted at Coachella” it was cool for me at that moment. 

What has been your all-time favorite modeling project you’ve done so far? 

I like doing video projects a lot, I work with my friends Sam and Connor. We’ve done like ten projects together and anytime we work together, I think is my favorite projects I get to do. Since they are my friends, they allow me to help with the writing aspects of it and the creative process so that just makes it more fun for me because I’m like part of the creative and I love that. 


Vintage Balenciaga top and skirt from Vintage Grace Jimmy Choo heels Vintage Escada bag from The Millennial Decorator Ninon earrings

 

What are some of the upsides of being a model but also the downsides; what is your realistic take on a modeling career?

I think any job in entertainment, I’ve noticed you have a lot of downtime, which is a positive and a negative. You don’t know when your next job is going to be. This can be a positive and negative because it can be spontaneous and fun but at the same time you might not be working for like the next six months until your next gig. However, when you do get your next job, it kinda equals out because then that job could pay your rent for like the next five months. You can afford to do it but it’s all over the place. I feel like the negatives I have are more my fault not the industries fault. Since you’re not in a job where you are talking much, I felt at the time, my worth came from being able to just take a picture, like I didn’t feel like I had much to say. You’re almost like a mannequin, which is cool! But, I feel like over time, that alone would make you feel unhappy. 

Moving onto your more personal projects, before we get into a little bit of your third season of your podcast, can you tell me a little about the podcast in general, what really started “Between good and evil?”

I had a blog that my podcast was named after, it’s called “Between Good and Evil,’ I’ve had it since I was eighteen. That was like a tumblr thing and then I started answering questions until it ended up being like an advice column pretty much but I really loved doing that, I really loved answering these questions from the bottom of my heart. My sister, right before the podcast wave, asked me and said “Would you consider ever having a podcast?” and I was like yeah!…maybe. I dont think I’m alone in this but I really struggled with seeing value in myself at the time, so I was like why would I even have a podcast? My sister really started the whole thing because she really believed in me and even helped with sound and stuff. From there I would basically just ask my friends about the podcast, and they were all down so I would just do that and film them. I really do love having a podcast, I think what I find most attractive about it is how cool it would be to have these videos and interviews to look back on when Im fifty or sixty years old of me at this time and this guest at this time.I just think it’s cool to have this evidence of growth with people who some of them I don’t even know and some of them I do and each episode creates that chemistry with that person.

 

I have a bit of a fun question, who would be your dream guest that you would like to have on your podcast? 

I have SO many, I would love to have Robert Greene on or Duncan Trussell or someone fun like Lindsay Lohan or something. People who have their own books I would like to have on, but I would also love to have a comedian, maybe Jason Segel, someone fun you know? Jason Segel was also my BIGGEST childhood crush, So I’m like, come on my podcast, please!! Also, oh my god, actually this is like a TRUE dream guest if I’m being serious. I like controversial people so Jordan Peterson, I would LOVE to have on my podcast. I just feel like I can ask that guy anything and he’d have an answer for it. 

What drew you to be so open and deep with your fans within the recent episodes of your podcast, and what would you say to anyone who has yet to give your podcasts a listen, but is curious about the contents within it? 

Um, oh my god that’s a good question..thinking about this. I don’t look at it as being too open or vulnerable which I think helps me in my head, I guess I just look at it as being honest. In my head, I’m like, what’s the big deal? It’s just true. I think that’s my whole perception of life. I care about the truth and what is true and that’s important to me. To say what things are true for me, such as these are my problems, this is all of what’s happening, I don’t look at it as revealing because It’s true. I don’t look at it as a shameful thing, I don’t feel like I’m the only one with problems, we all do, I just say mine. What I would say to people who have not heard my podcast? I don’t know. I feel like if you like podcasts, the spoken word kinds, or like monologues and videos then you might like it. I’ve always said I care to reach my niche of people, I don’t want to make it something that doesn’t resonate with me. If you like personal experience podcasts and raw interviews, then you’d like it. I would say, watch someone that you already find interesting first on my podcast and then there’s a couple of solo episodes for people who want to watch more but that’s it. 

Now that we are coming into the third season of “Between Good and evil” what is something that your fans can look forward to in the next coming episodes of your podcast?

I think some very interesting guests have gotten back to me. I now have some of my favorite interviews ever, I’m so excited about that. I want to branch out into different careers, I feel I have a lot of entertainment people and I’m trying to branch out of that and go more into specialty careers. Things that have a different perspective on something, such as psychologists and authors. Everyone has their things, I just find that more cool to listen to. Those are the types of podcasts I listen to so I feel like I should migrate that into mine. That’s going to be a newer edition, yes I’ll have people in entertainment, but I’ll also have different types of jobs and different types of specialists. I’m very excited about it, and I’m very excited to share them as well. 

 

Vintage Courreges jacket and skirt from Allison’s Archive Calzedonia tights Vintage Dolce & Gabbana shoes from The Millennial DecoratorAlexis Bittar bangles

Aritzia shirt Vintage Alexander McQueen skirt from Vintage Grace Jimmy Choo shoes Lelet rosette Heaven Mayhem earrings Celeste Starre ring Acchitto ring Jenny Bird ring
Cou Cou Intimates top Vintage Chanel jeansfrom Vintage GraceVintage AlexanderMcQueen bolero fromVintage GraceJimmy Choo shoesAlexis Bittar earrings

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