LEIOMY

November 11 · Editorial, Fashion, Features · ballroom, fashion, Israel Mejia, Leiomy, Leiomy Maldonado, Nico Kartel

PHOTOGRAPHY BY NICO KARTEL | FASHION AND STORY BY ISRAEL MEJIA

LEIOMY MALDONADO IS STARTING TO GET IRRITABLE. I really can’t blame her, because I am too. It’s been a long, humid day, and our mouths have been masked for hours. We are in a studio on one of those eerily abandoned streets in Brooklyn, nearing the end of our shoot for this story. I remind her that we have one more shot before we can all go back to our mask-free homes. She takes a deep breath, lowers herself to the ground, seduces the camera and just like that, we’re back in business.

TRUTH BE TOLD, once you get to know Leiomy and the life that has led her to this moment, you would come to understand that anyone who can survive what she has, can endure anything. But keep in mind, she is only made of flesh and blood like you and I, therefore allowed to feel whatever emotion she is going through. In order to truly familiarize yourself with her, you have to look beyond what you see on your screen. 

Beyond the virtuoso Ballroom performances on YouTube ( 5 Elements of Vogue; Hand Performance, Catwalk, Duckwalk, Spins and Dips, and Floor Performances); beyond the exquisite costumes worn on HBO Max’s “Legendary”; and beyond the her impeccable reputation as a worldwide Ballroom pioneer and icon, she manages to stay true to herself. If you can just peek past all of the aforementioned, you will find a woman who is constantly making herself laugh, and spending as much time as she can with her grandmother.

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