2024 Rookie Xandra Pohl Is More Confident Than Ever

Xandra Pohl was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Last summer, Xandra Pohl made a surprise appearance on the catwalk during SI Swimsuit’s runway show at Miami Swim Week. Less than a year after nailing her set at the W South Beach, the Miami-based DJ is the latest rookie to join the ranks of the 2024 SI Swimsuit Issue model class.  

The content creator and musician, who is in the process of signing with a record label, is in the midst of her first official DJ-ing tour, which kicked off in Charlotte last month and concludes in Tennessee in May. Pohl is a 23-year-old graduate of the University of Miami, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome her and her infectiously bubbly personality into the SI Swimsuit family. 

"Xandra Pohl epitomizes the unapologetic fusion of beauty and talent, shattering norms as she takes the DJ world by storm," says editor in chief MJ Day. "Her unfiltered authenticity is what inspires us the most, and we're thrilled to be a part of her journey!"

Xandra Pohl was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

While on location for her photo shoot in Belize, we caught up with Pohl in between takes to talk about all things SI Swimsuit, confidence and more. 

“I love who I am”

Pohl exudes confidence and is unabashedly herself, which has led her to amass more than 1.5 million combined followers on TikTok and Instagram. She regularly shares content from her gigs and tons of quirky “get ready with me” videos. It’s no surprise that since she’s so self-assured, Pohl encourages other women to feel just as confident in their own skin. It’s also one of the reasons why she feels so connected to the SI Swimsuit brand.

“The legacy that Sports Illustrated [Swimsuit] has made, obviously in the first 60 years, has been monumental in not just the industry and the world, but also to all the young girls looking up to all the models of all shapes, sizes, races, whatever it is,” Pohl says. “We are all beautiful [and deserve to be] confident in our own bodies. I feel like that is the best legacy you could ever leave.”

Xandra Pohl was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Pohl, who was photographed by Derek Kettela for her magazine feature, describes SI Swimsuit as “confident, hot, sexy and empowering.” She particularly resonates with the brand’s 60th anniversary issue campaign: Be Legendary.

“[Being] a legend is just being confident in yourself and whatever you are, whatever you stand for, just being passionate about it,” Pohl explains. “I feel like if you’re passionate about it, you’re a legend.”

Her own passion is music, and Pohl initially fell in love with DJing after seeing Alison Wonderland perform at Lollapalooza when she was a junior in high school. Shortly thereafter, she bought a board, taught herself how to DJ and the rest is history. Pohl went on to play her own senior homecoming, and once she got to college, she began performing sets at frat parties before DJing at her first club event in Miami at the age of 18. Since then, Pohl has performed at venues like Ushuaïa Ibiza and Marquee New York—and in an incredibly full-circle moment, Pohl is slated to play Lollapalooza in Chicago this August.

“I like to play music that makes everyone dance and have a good time ... I play a song and then I see how the crowd reacts to it, and if they don’t react to it in the way that I want them to, I can change genre,” she has said of her open-format style of DJing. “My belief is that if the girls are happy, the boys are happy. If they’re dancing, the guys are dancing. So I feel like by keeping the girls happy and making sure everyone has a good time, that’s the best type of music you can play.”

Xandra Pohl was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Since her field is largely male-dominated, Pohl is no stranger to being underestimated. However, the misconceptions people often have about her skills don’t deter her in the slightest. 

“Some common misconceptions I think people have about me is that because of the way I look or the way that I act means that I have an inability to do something,” Pohl shares. “Especially with DJing, being a female in this industry, it has been a lot to kind of break into it. And coming out of this, I just want people to know [that] I love who I am. I’m gonna keep doing what I’m doing, and I’m confident about it, and I’m passionate about it.” 

“Always choose yourself first”

Pohl candidly states that she is in her “I don’t give a f - - - era.” Her advice to fellow women is simple: Regardless of what’s going on in your life, always put your own oxygen mask on first, no matter what. 

“For anyone who’s going through a breakup or going through a big change in their life, if I have any advice whatsoever, it is just to focus on yourself, live your life, put yourself first, really feel your emotions, and I’m telling you, good things will happen,” Pohl advises. “I had a huge change in my life and I took this step of really choosing myself and two weeks later, look where I am … I’m in Belize with Sports Illustrated [Swimsuit] following my dreams. So never give up on yourself and always choose yourself first.”

Xandra Pohl was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

That confident sentiment is similar to one Pohl shared with last summer ahead of her set at Miami Swim Week: “Don’t let anyone stop you,” she stated at the time, a notion Pohl stands by today. 

“A piece of advice I wish I could give my younger self is [to] never take no for an answer,” Pohl says. “People will tell you to give up, that [something is] not going to work out and to move on, find something else. But if you believe in something and you’re passionate about it and you put all your time and effort into it, good things will come your way. If you’re a good person, good things will come. I am a believer in that. Everything happens for a reason. If you were going through something bad, it happened for a reason, and you will learn from it, and you will move on, and you’re going to be 10 million times better.”