Naomi Campbell Shares the Secret to Her Walk: Coaching From Her Mom

If an ageless appearance is genetic, then Naomi Campbell and her mother Valerie Morris, a former professional dancer, may as well serve as the case study. The mother-daughter duo haven’t lost their glow over the years and still look alike at 64-years-old and 48-years-old. Some of that may be due to their close bond, which Campbell shared in a recent video on her YouTube channel.

In the clip, entitled “My Relationship With My Mother,” Campbell and Morris reflect on the super model’s rise and how she learned her signature walk. “I’m very proud of my mother,” Campbell says to the camera, “My whole being — me sitting here — is because of my mother.”

“She was a very determined child. She was able to dress herself,” her mother says, “and put colors together. She was very particular. If there was something she didn’t like, she would just say ‘no’.” As Campbell confirmed, “I’m very vocal with people that I love. You must tell the person how you feel at all times, and I am that person.”

Apparently, Campbell’s walk came about after watching her mother and super model Iman. “When I used to rehearse, she was always there, trying things on — what kids do,” Morris recalls. “She was prancing about on the steps. I said to her, ‘What are you walking like that for?’ I’m thinking, ‘Obviously, she’s seen Iman’. You’ve got to find your style, your trademark, your identity. So I said to her, ‘Dance. You do baile, tap, jazz.’ We did it for quite a while until she developed her own way of walking. Modeling is about walking so you need to find whatever makes you different from anyone else.”

Campbell also opened up about how her walk looks different from show to show, saying of her mother, “She taught me how to walk. It wasn’t that I didn’t know how to walk. She just taught me how to have a bit more swag and how to listen to the rhythm of the music and how to walk when there wouldn’t be music at all, and also to remember the clothing that you’re wearing. It’s never been about showing myself — Naomi Campbell — it’s been about finding a character within myself to each designer that I worked for in relation to the outfit that I was in.”

The video comes on the heels of Campbell and Morris starring in Burberry’s holiday campaign, alongside M.I.A and Matt Smith, which Morris is still in shock over. “I never thought I’d do a Burberry campaign,” she says. “I couldn’t believe it.” What’s more unbelievable, though, is how flawless they look together.