Chanel Iman Returns to SI Swimsuit in Upcoming 60th Anniversary Issue

The model posed in Belize for the 2024 magazine, a decade after her debut with the brand.

Chanel Iman was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Supermodel Chanel Iman will make her return to the SI Swimsuit franchise next week in the brand’s 60th anniversary edition, 10 years after her breathtaking and unforgettable debut in the the 2014 Swimsuit Issue. 

A lot has changed in the model’s life since that photo shoot with Derek Kettela in Madagascar, but her passion for increasing diversity and representation in the modeling industry and her desire to have a lasting, positive impact on the world remain.

The 33-year-old describes herself as a “mother, wife, business mogul, Sports Illustrated [Swimsuit] model, believer, and so much more.” Over the past year, she has celebrated multiple major milestones, including tying the knot (on a yacht in the Caribbean Sea) with now-husband Davon Godchaux, and also welcoming her first baby with the NFL defensive tackle.

Iman’s newborn daughter, Capri, who was named after the Italian city where Iman and the 29-year-old New England Patriots player got engaged, has two older sisters, Cassie and Cali. For the anniversary edition, the former Victoria’s Secret Angel traveled to Belize and reunited with Kettela for what was a truly legendary moment.

After all, like she jokes herself, “What’s a legendary issue without Chanel Iman?”

Chanel Iman was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. Swimsuit by Sports Illustrated™ Swimwear. Necklace by Monies. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

SI Swimsuit’s legacy

“When I think about Sports Illustrated Swim, I think about timeless, classic, effortless photos of beautiful women that inspire,” Iman explains. “Sports Illustrated [Swimsuit] is one of the reasons why I wanted to be a model. I’ve had some pretty incredible shoots and travels [with the brand]. I’ve been to Madagascar, Zanzibar and I’ve shot in Utah as well. And every photo shoot has been completely different. Some of the most beautiful photos that I’ve ever shot in my life have been captured with SI Swim.”

As for nerves, she’s a pro who has never heard of them—especially when working with a team that feels like family. Iman admits that she felt a little rusty at the start of her photo shoot, but by look No. 3, she found her confidence and got her groove back.

“You forget as a mom, like, ‘Damn. You got it girl,’” Iman says. “Everyone in the crew makes you feel so incredible and so beautiful. I just had a baby four months ago and here I am working as a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model. I always feel the energy. It is a special energy.”

Chanel Iman was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. Swimsuit by Sports Illustrated™ Swimwear. Necklace by Monies. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Being a mom of three

Iman shares her two older girls with ex-husband Sterling Shepard. She and Godchaux welcomed 7-month-old Capri last September.

“My little girls are my life. They are my world. This is why I continue to do what I do,” she says. “I do it for them.”

According to Iman, Cali, 5, loves arts and crafts, while Cassie, 4, is a fashionista and Capri is a happy baby just starting to explore the world. Iman says all her girls are so special and different from each other, but they do all share a natural gift for posing. They “get it from their mama,” she adds with a laugh. 

Iman hopes her daughters find true passion in whatever they pursue—whether it’s modeling or something entirely different. She is teaching them that beauty comes from within and constantly reminds them of their worth and potential.

“I let them know that they are loved, they are worthy and they’re capable of doing anything in the world,” she says.

Chanel Iman was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. Swimsuit by Sports Illustrated™ Swimwear. Necklace by Monies. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Championing diversity in the industry

Iman reflects on the changes she’s seen in the industry since she began, noting how the talent on runways and in magazines has evolved since then.

“When I first started, I was so skinny, and I never want to be that tiny again, but I feel like everybody was the same size,” she says of the old norm. Iman adds that as a woman of color, she faced additional challenges breaking into the industry.

“[Back then] it was very challenging for me as an African American woman to be offered some of the opportunities that I’m being offered now,” she admits, noting that there has thankfully been progress on that front. “I had a really, really hard time in the beginning. I cried so many nights because I didn’t have the same opportunity as some of the other girls. Being so young I couldn’t understand why … I knew why, but it was wrong—it was because I was different.”

Despite those tough moments, Iman never tried to conform. “It’s cool to be different,” she says. “I love the fact that I was unique and that I had to work that much harder to make it because it means so much more to me now, because I did make it. And I’m still here. And I’m not going anywhere.”

Iman adds that she has seen real progress in the industry, in terms of size, ethnicity and even age diversity, but there’s still more room to grow. She does her best to be a role model for her daughters. She also hopes other young women and models early in their careers can look up to her and know that her path wasn’t linear. It involved a lot of hard work, lots of “nos” and plenty of tears.

“I’m still working, but I’m so grateful to be in the position that I am in, to actually have a voice,” she shares.

Chanel Iman was photographed by Derek Kettela in Belize. Swimsuit by Sports Illustrated™ Swimwear. Necklace by Monies. / Derek Kettela/Sports Illustrated

Loving where she’s at right now

Iman is (literally) in the honeymoon phase of this new chapter of life. She’s focusing on modeling gigs when she feels called to them, but is really soaking in the time as a new mom again while watching her toddlers turn into young girls. 

She’s also interested in interior decorating and is busy filling her new house with tasteful but comfortable furniture and art.

“I’ve been working on my and my husband’s new home in Miami and just making it a nice, warm, cozy place for our family,” she shares. “I enjoy that. It’s a passion. I love putting art pieces together, furniture together, the rooms together.”

Iman is really loving getting older—which seems like a hot take, especially when you work in the modeling industry. 

“I love, people would hate this, aging. I like where life is taking me,” she shares. “It’s really nice.  I’m in a good place.”

Her 30s have been a time of self-love, reflection and motherhood, but also a time of feeling like she finally knows who she is and who she wants to be. “Everything passes,” she shares as her most valuable advice for people in their early 20s. 

“I’ve been on roller coasters in my life and I love my 30s so much because I know myself so much better than when I was in my 20s,” she shares. “Life is a roller coaster and when you learn to accept that you’re gonna go on this ride you’ll be O.K. There’s always light at the end of the tunnel.”