Interview with Angel Moret
On July 9, an early Thursday morning, two California girls chatted over FaceTime, one in a cozy cabin in the woods of Lake Arrowhead, and the other in the bustling city of Los Angeles. While I was still in bed, Angel Moret was getting ready for the busy day ahead of her, dusting her eyelids with pink and orange eyeshadow with a smile.
Angel Moret is a 21-year-old content creator and a social media mogul based in Los Angeles who is not afraid to shy away from all of the artistic paths laid out in front of her. Through her role on her YouTube show, NAYVA — which centered around the beauty and fashion world — Moret has developed a substantial following and fanbase.
“I love that I get to connect with so many people all over the world,” Moret says. “It’s honestly one of the most beautiful gifts …It’s a way that I [can] actually influence people to do good things, and I have.”
Her vibrant presence on her Instagram page (@angelmoret) has led her to dazzling opportunities. She was most recently granted the role of an ambassador for Rihanna’s lingerie line, Savage x Fenty. Moret has modeled a lot in the past, but hasn’t signed with any agencies yet.
“I am a model but I don’t like to model for brands I don’t support,” Moret says. “Which is why I love working with Savage. I think that Savage is dope & definitely has been opening doors for more opportunities, and I’m really grateful for it.”
Her Savage x Fenty photoshoot not only spread Moret’s name even more, but also pushed her to confront her body image.
“I felt ashamed of my body... especially when being sexy because I was on a ‘younger audience-aimed’ show,” Moret admits. “But, since doing the campaign, I’m receiving a lot of love and support from my followers around the world. It’s made me realize, ‘Okay, there’s nothing wrong with being sexy.’ I can’t help the way my body is going to be sexualized. But, I can say, ‘Okay, well, even though it will be, at least I’m being body positive, showing girls they can be free & I’m being myself”
Being at the forefront of such a huge platform, it can be any variation of intimidating for anyone. But for Moret, it’s comforting taking the often negative connotations associated with social media and turning it into a brighter outcome.
“It’s a lot of people watching you, a lot of pressure,” Moret says. “I realize that it’s just an app, and that I’m loved on & off social media. I have a beautiful family that supports and accepts me. I’m me, the only person I know how to be.”
Moret struggled a lot with bullying growing up for a number of reasons. She started her YouTube channel when she was only ten years old, teaching her subscribers advice on how to coordinate outfits and gain confidence, not afraid of being openly expressive, energetic, and creative. This was especially hard for others to accept at the Japanese elementary school she attended as a mixed Black Asian girl.
“I never fit in because of my race, but also because of the type of person I am,” Moret says. “[To this day], I’ve never felt like I fit in with anybody...I got bullied a lot in school. In Japanese culture, being mixed with black can be frowned upon, and I got teased a lot by the kids & teachers & I was called a “lion” for my curly hair. [I was] super outgoing and a little hyper too. ”
“So, [to cope with that], I always was like, ‘Okay, well, I’m different. So, I’m going to do everything I can to just express myself.’ For me, fashion really helped me relate to people and helped me feel like myself and helped me kind of validate my differences,” she adds.
Moret is very vocal about the issues she’s passionate about. As a woman of color and public figure, she understands the importance of using her voice because of her experiences as a mixed-race child.
“Our society loves to categorize. People want to tell you, ‘Oh, what are you? Are you straight? Are you this? Are you Black? Are you white?” Moret says. “It’s really hard, I think, for anyone who’s mixed with Asian or mixed with anything to just really be themselves. There’s no place for you, which is why I want to make a place for mixed people. People who just don’t fit in.”
As for her future plans, Moret is open to looking at all kinds of aspects of the creative industry, from posting more regular content on her YouTube channel to auditioning for roles in films, as well as even creating music in her free time. She is also coming out with a new line called Angel (@angel, www.angelmoret.com ), which will sell a variety of jewelry and sustainable clothing items.
“I just really love expressing my creativity,” Moret says. “But I guess my main goal for why I do anything is because I really want to help people be happy & love themselves”
Whatever Angel Moret does next, it would be more than safe to say that it will be iconic and filled with passion. From the half an hour that I spoke with her, I can tell that she puts heart into everything she does, and uses her platform she does what she does to set a good example for her loved ones and everyone who follows her.
“I feel like my biggest accomplishment is just riding through and making it to where I am. Being a big sister is a huge thing for me.” She continues. “My siblings mean everything to me, and I seriously would not be here if it weren’t for them.”
“I’m also kind of like their mom. [I want to] be the best role model for them. Maybe not in everything I do, but at least show them [that] Angel’s done this, this, and this, and she came from the same situation that you guys came from. I want to make sure I pave the way really good and clear and, hopefully, [they feel that] they can make it and follow their hearts down that road too.”
You can find Angel Moret on her main Instagram, YouTube, and follow her brand Angel with an upcoming launch before 2021, with products including “real 18k gold jewelry that’ll last you a lifetime & some beautiful clothing/accessories.”
Angel Taylor Moret is a LA Native, born & raised in Mid-City LA. She’s mixed race, Creole & Japanese, and attended Japanese elementary school from kindergarten to fifth grade. She dealt a lot with bullying in her school days & never felt like she truly ever “fit in” with her peers. In seventh grade (2010), she started her YouTube channel where she made fashion-beauty videos & gave advice to young girls about how to be confident & how to have style! One of her most popular videos “How to make a fake belly button piercing,” has now over four million views & kickstarted her YouTube career. During high school, She traveled all over the world with her grandma, and discovered her love for human connection and helping people & our planet.
She later started the show “NAYVA” in London, UK, where she did fashion challenges weekly while still inspiring people to be themselves.
You can now find Angel getting herself into almost any & everything. A modern day renaissance women, she is a model, nail tech, thrift queen, actress, creative director, activist, stylist, photographer, film maker, makeup artist, artist, cook, tech nerd, anime enthusiast & anything else to do with art & creativity she’s there.
Angel wants to continue to help people find themselves & their voices using her platform. She wants to eventually create major changes in our society on or offline & help people who are less fortunate.
