i got this idea to make the late Freddie Mercury a father, it kind of made me sad to know that he didn't have any children, let alone anyone to pass down his legendary last name to.
This story will make you realize Freddie did want kids even when hi...
Vanessa Mercury on self-enlightenment, spirituality and her connection to England
January 18th 1997
Read our full interview with Vanessa Mercury from the May issue.
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Vanessa Mercury, daughter of the most famous artist of a generation, is on a mission to empower and is learning that with influence comes responsibility. Her goal? Enlightenment. Via iMac computers, she chats with Alison Veness.
Alison Veness: Hi Vanessa, it's AV for Vogue England ... are you game on now?
Vanessa Mercury: Greetings and salutations! VM here ...
AV: Salutations from English! Love the shoot you did with Patrick and Christine ... First things first: at the Daily Front Row Awards you talked about using the collective voice to make a difference. What was the feedback from the room afterwards?
VM: Aw, thank you!! I had such a blast. Patrick and Christine are super rad. I like to think I got a positive reaction from it? Lol. Not quite sure. A few people did come up to me afterwards thanking me for switching up the vibe in the room, so that was nice.
AV: That's great. Loved your speech – it was very empowering. How does it feel being able to use your voice and elevate issues into the general consciousness?
VM: Thanks so much. That was kind of the goal haha. It feels amazing, honestly. I couldn't be happier with the way things are going. The people are slowly but surely waking up! I'm happy to be playing a part in that.
AV: What are you most passionate about right now?
VM: Well, just that. Waking up the people. I have so many causes that are dear to my heart and fighting for the people, I feel, is my duty. But right now since I'm doing the modeling thing, a huge focus – well, mostly what I'm putting a lot of effort into – is making sure my own personal creativity shows through whatever I'm doing while I'm working. I really want to leave a positive imprint in the fashion world, mostly regarding the media and the stereotypical beauty standard that is blasted all over every magazine you see, every article that pops up on your phone screen, every billboard you see while you're driving down the street. I already have many young girls looking up to me and I want to be something their parents are OK with them looking up to.
AV: How do you plan to leave this positive imprint in regards to stereotypical beauty standards in the industry when a lot of the time it's not about people's voices but their image?
VM: That's the point: to change that. When you begin to break down human psychology, it usually comes down to us wanting to be heard. A lot of anger and frustration stems from feeling ignored or rejected or unheard. Take any protest for example ... whether it be pipelines, or racial equality, or women's rights, we're fighting to be heard. We want the Man to listen to us. This whole "image" thing has been going on for so long it will eventually get old. The people are going to want more, they're going to want more substance, they're going to want honesty. That's already beginning to happen. People can't relate to what isn't honest. So it's not just about me changing it by myself, there are already thousands that want it to happen. All these "perfect" women you see everywhere in the media? It's very difficult to relate to that because it's not honest. What I want my job to be is to make it all very transparent, to be all inclusive, to expand on the word "beauty." If that makes sense lol.
