Ashley Graham is making her mark.
The model, 36, strutted the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show runway for the first time on Oct. 15, showing off her model walk in a sparkly bodysuit, sheer robe and gold flower-embellished wings. The supermodel ascended to the stage as Lisa sang an angelic version of “Moonlit Floor.”
“I am feeling really excited,” Graham told PEOPLE ahead of the show. “I’m not nervous, and everything’s very secure, we’re not going to have anything pop out, which makes me feel good so I can strut it, and I’m honestly more excited just for the full representation that’s going to happen during the show.”
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Graham joked earlier in the day that before she landed on her look, the brand gave her something on the small side — and she asked for a swap.
“The first thing they gave me was this tiny, tiny little underwear, and I said, ‘Hello, I just had three children,'” she told PEOPLE exclusively. “Even though it was like two years ago, but I was like, ‘Is there any more we can put on?’ So then I got a bodysuit and I feel really sexy in it, and then when the wings came out, that’s when I was like, ‘Oh yeah, I feel like an Angel. This is hot.'”
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Graham also told PEOPLE what an exciting moment it was to be asked to join the brand for the grand return of the show after its six-year hiatus.
“At first when they asked me to be in the show, I was a little bit hesitant because there has been a brand DNA that’s been very hard to be a part of for so many years, for so many of us, especially growing up with the brand and not always fitting in the brand and the brand not making sizes for us,” she told PEOPLE exclusively.
“When I talked to the head of Victoria’s Secret and they ensured me that their hope and their plan is to have extended sizes, I said, yes so that there could be more women that could see themselves represented on the runway because we did not see that during Fashion Month.”
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Graham and the brand shared the news of her joining the show on Instagram on Oct. 11, with the caption, “You thought we were done? Not even close. @ashleygraham will be joining the iconic cast of the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.”
She jokingly said in the video that the wings were very “comfortable” on her “big arms.” She added that she was “born in heels” so she was thrilled to get to stomp down the runway in the custom Rene Caovilla sparklers created for the models.
Graham ended by noting that she is excited to represent so many “curvy women” of all shapes and sizes by walking the runway this year. As a curve model, it’s a role she takes great pride in.
She told PEOPLE in 2022 that there will “never be a time” that she won’t talk about her body and empowering women.
“There just won’t,” Graham said while discussing a partnership with Pandora. “It’s just a reality of who I am and the ethos of my brand. Can you imagine waking up every morning and having to talk about something that you think the world should just get over?”
Graham is joined on the runway by other iconic models like Tyra Banks, Gigi Hadid, Adriana Lima, Candice Swanepoel and more.
The brand’s popular show is returning this year after a six-year hiatus, with its last show in 2018. Victoria’s Secret canceled the 2019 show amid backlash it was receiving for its lack of model diversity on the runway. It continued to keep the show canceled during COVID-19 and further decided to hold off on the show until it could relaunch with a new, more modern approach — and under new management.
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The 2024 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was announced earlier this year with an Instagram video teasing a new vision for the event.
“We’ve read the comments and heard you,” the caption read. “The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is ✨ BACK ✨ and will reflect who we are today, plus everything you know and love—the glamour, runway, wings, musical entertainment, and more! Stay tuned…it only gets more iconic from here. 🪽”
