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Who Is ‘Malik So Chic,’ Co-Star of Tinsley’s Reality Show High Society?

Tinsley Mortimer’s new reality show, High Society, which debuts on the CW on March 10, features a mysterious scenester named “Malik So Chic” who parties while wearing giant lensless glasses and glittery robes. Given that we cover the New York social scene and we’ve never met or heard of this guy, it begs the question: Who, exactly, is he? Jada Yuan found out at a party for the show’s debut.

Name: Malik So Chic
Age: “I’m in my 20s,” said with a death stare
Origin: Shaker Heights, Ohio
Pedigree: Only child of a lawyer father and a “professional” mother

Nickname: Based on his style of dress in high school, Malik was voted best dressed. “I was really preppy. I used to wear, like Ferragamos and Ralph Lauren,” he told us. “So my friends called me Malik So Chic. It was a joke that turned into something major.”
Social Rise: Malik came to New York four years ago. He worked as an assistant for stylist Patti Wilson and V and Visionaire magazines. Then he met Amy Sacco, who hired him to host parties at Bungalow 8, where he in turn met Tinsley, her sister Dabney Mercer, and fellow ‘mocialite Paul Johnson Calderone. The show found him via his regular appearances on the society blog Guest of a Guest. “I’ve been offered to do a lot of reality shows before just based on my look, but this seemed to be something of substance, something fashion-related, that seemed unique and different,” he explains. “I was afraid of the editing and all that, but I had nothing to lose. And of course, I’ve always wanted to do TV.”
Role on the Show: “I’m mostly trash-talking behind the scenes. I think I’m kind of the instigator, since I’m friends with everybody. It’s pretty juicy,” he says. “There’s a lot of drama. Forget about The Hills. It’s got nothing on High Society. This is drama for your mama. Nothing is staged. I think any moment you see has realness behind it for sure.”
Dress Style: Malik’s outfit at the party included his signature giant rhinestone lensless glasses from a Halloween store; fake eyelashes from Makeup Forever; black satin gloves; a homemade white, black, and red robe hand-sewn with fabric from India; and a silver clutch from Zara. That night, he met his idol, André Leon Talley, who is a new judge on America’s Next Top Model, also on the CW. Here’s how it went: “I was like, ‘Hi, I’m Malik So Chic. I’m on High Society.’ And he was like, ‘What’s that?’ And I told him it was this reality show about socialites and he said, ‘You know what show you SHOULD be on? RuPaul’s Drag Race. You’d be perfect for that.’” For more on his dress, check out New York’s Video Look Book of Malik from September:

Who Is ‘Malik So Chic,’ Co-Star of Tinsley’s Reality Show High Society?