Swimsuit

5 Incredible SI Swimsuit Photos of Kim Petras in Los Angeles

The Grammy Award-winning artist landed the cover of the 2023 issue.

Cara O’Bleness

Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles.
Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Grammy Award-winning artist Kim Petras added another impressive accolade to her résumé last year when she landed the cover of the 2023 SI Swimsuit Issue. The 31-year-old German-born artist posed for photographer Yu Tsai in Los Angeles.

Petras, who released her first single, “I Don’t Want It at All,” in 2017, has said that getting the call to pose for last year’s issue was “so unexpected” and “completely incredible,” and it was certainly thrilling. “I was so excited when I got the call to be in Sports Illustrated [Swimsuit],” she stated. “It’s very iconic, and a lot of very iconic people have done it before, so [it was a] big dream come true for me.” 

Just months before her cover was unveiled, Petras made history as the first transgender woman to win a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. She and Sam Smith took home the honor for their track “Unholy” at the February 2023 ceremony.

Shortly after her SI Swimsuit Issue cover hit newsstands, Petras released her debut studio album, Feed the Beast. And though Petras always looks confident on stage, she admitted that posing in a swimsuit didn’t come naturally to her.

“I just like didn’t think I had that in me to be beautiful in a bathing suit—it’s a hard thing to do,” she said on the red carpet during the magazine’s launch event in New York City last summer. “I’m just so grateful to the whole Sports Illustrated [Swimsuit] team. It was like a true dream.”

Below are a few of our favorite dreamy photos of Petras in Los Angeles.

Kim Petras
Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles. Top by PatBO. Swimsuit bottom by Frankies Bikinis x Sydney Sweeney. Earrings by Alexis Bittar. Ring by Sophie Buhai. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated
Kim Petras
Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles. Swimsuit by Heavy Manners. Earrings by Alexis Bittar. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated
Kim Petras
Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles. Swimsuit by Natalia Fedner. Earrings by Alexis Bittar. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated
Kim Petras.
Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles. Swimsuit by Angelys Balek. Earrings by Mondo Mondo. Ring by Loveness Lee. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated
Kim Petras
Kim Petras was photographed by Yu Tsai in Los Angeles. Swimsuit by BANANHOT. Earrings and bracelets by Alexis Bittar. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated
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Cara O’Bleness

CARA O’BLENESS

Cara O’Bleness is a writer and editor on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Prior to joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked as a writer and editor across a number of content verticals, including food, lifestyle, health and wellness, and small business and entrepreneurship. In her free time, O’Bleness loves reading, spending time with her family and making her way through Michigan’s many microbreweries. She is a graduate of Michigan State University’s School of Journalism.

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