Paris Jackson, 22, shared rare childhood stories with her late father, Michael Jackson.
In an interview with Naomi Campbell, Paris said that while she grew up with a privileged life, her dad taught her a strong work ethic and made sure that she and her sibling didn’t take things for granted.
“My dad was really good about making sure we were cultured, making sure we were educated, and not just showing us like the glitz and glam, like hotel hopping five-star places,” Paris said. “It was also like, we saw everything.”
“We saw third world countries,” Paris added. “We saw every part of the spectrum.”
Naomi then asked Paris —who is now a supermodel— about the fashion world and how she went into modeling.
“I’d been told for a long time, with my height and my genetic make-up that I could pursue modeling,” Paris said. “So I decided to finally take that advice and start modeling.”
“I felt at the time that would be the most effective way to grow my platform so I could use it for good.”
Naomi told Paris that because she is Michael Jackson’s daughter, she should not do casting to land modeling jobs. But the latter said she believes in earning her own success.
“Even growing up it was about earning stuff. If we wanted five toys from FAO Schwarz or Toys ‘R’ Us, we had to read five books,” Paris explained. “It’s earning it, not just being entitled to certain things or thinking ‘oh I got this’”.
“It’s like working for it, working hard for it, it’s something else entirely,” she added. “It’s an accomplishment.”
When the King of Pop died, Paris was only 11-years-old.
Right now, Paris is following in Michael’s footsteps and released her debut album in November last year.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Paris said that she hopes the album will help people feel a little less lonely amid the ongoing pandemic.
“I found so much healing through creating this,” Paris said at that time. “And there are moments where I’ll listen back to certain songs and I’m like, ‘Wow I was so naïve.’”
“But for the most part, it’s just like so much gratitude and joy that I get from listening to these songs and just seeing the development and the evolution.”