(Photo: Jake Chessum)

What are you doing today?
I just came from an interview at Phat Farm. I’m wearing my interview outfit, which means that I want to look professional, but not like I work at IBM. And no showing skin—that’s really bad in an interview. You definitely don’t want to show skin.

Are you a Phat Farm fan?
Oh, yeah. I love the way that Russell Simmons gives back to the community. And I met Kimora once— I did her makeup—and we totally connected really well. We talked about a lot of things. I don’t really dress hip-hop. I did in high school, but that was a different time. Now my style is more classy, but I guess hip-hop style is more classy now, too. Not so baggy. My hero is Chanel, and she said, “Fashion fades; only style remains the same.” That’s what I live by.

What did you and Kimora connect about?
Like girl tips and advice. She didn’t really know how to apply eyeliner, and I explained. Also, we talked about our backgrounds, where we’re from. Stuff like that.

Where are you from?
I’m Chinese-American. I grew up in New York, on the Lower East Side. It’s so nice what’s happened to it. It’s pricier but so much cleaner.

What do you wear when you’re not going to an interview?
Jeans. I used to be into flares, but now it’s all about skinny jeans, I guess. So that’s what I wear. And a black top, and then I love to accessorize. Anything that’s covered in skeletons.

What kind of music do you listen to?
It depends on what my mood is. On a train I like to listen to R&B, and at the clubs I like hip-hop and reggae. But I haven’t gone to clubs in a while, so it’s a problem because when I want to go to places, they aren’t really hip anymore! It changes so fast.

Can you name a place?
There was one in the late nineties when Exit was really popular. But that was a long time ago. Now it’s like, Oh, my God, I can’t believe I went to Exit.

Related:

• Archive: “Look Book”
• Articles by Amy Larocca
• Table of Contents: Jan 22, 2007 issue of New York | Subscribe!