SI Swimsuit 2023: Letter From the Editor

A letter from MJ Day on the SI Swimsuit 2023 Issue

I am often asked what the “theme” is of the issue. There is no theme— rather, there is a vision, a sentiment, a hope that women can live in a world where they feel no limitations, internally or externally.

But the absence of a theme is not to say that the women in these pages don’t share certain common traits. They’re constantly evolving.

Take Martha Stewart. Never in her life has she let her circumstances dictate her outcome. She’s changed with the times—always one step ahead, it seems—to build a wide-reaching business empire. At 81, one of the few things she hadn’t done was appear on the cover of the Swimsuit Issue. Until now. 

Or Megan Fox, who humbly accepts her stunning beauty while simultaneously seeking to be seen and appreciated as the woman of intellect and internal complexities that she is.

Or Kim Petras. The Grammy-winning pop star, a beacon of inspiration for the LGBTQ+ com- munity, has blazed her own path to superstardom, but it has been anything but a straight line.

Or Brooks Nader, whose heart and hustle have not only landed her on the cover but have also positioned the 26-year-old for success in the business sphere.

When it comes to recent life changes, however, our four cover models have nothing on Nicole Williams English, who announced she was expecting on our runway in July, nailed her shoot in Dominica while seven months pregnant (right), then stepped back in front of the lens with 6-week-old India Moon.

And then there’s Livvy Dunne. The 20-year-old LSU gymnast has found a way to balance athletics with brand-building, making millions of dollars thanks to new rules that allow college athletes to capitalize on their name, image and likeness. Of course, there were plenty of people quick to criticize her for . . . what, exactly? Capitalizing on her own blood, sweat and tears? Through the noise, Dunne has remained defiant, refusing to be told she could do only one thing.

Which brings us to another trait the women here share. Another LSU athlete, Angel Reese, was chastised for taunting an opponent during the NCAA women’s basketball final. Instead of backing down, she went on the offensive, pointing out that men and white women athletes do the same thing and don’t get called out for it. During a press conference she described herself with a word that gets used a lot in the SI Swimsuit universe: unapologetic. It was like she was speaking to me, and I knew we had to have her in this issue, where she would join a group of women who, unabashedly, are who they are—not who they were yesterday and not who they will be tomorrow.