Julez Smith was the star of Fashion Week Fall ’24 with his runway debut for LUAR. He took social media by storm with his good looks, powerful walk and cool confidence, which are indeed family traits.
“It came pretty naturally,” Smith told Vogue in a recent interview. “Growing up, my grandma was doing costumes for my auntie and my mom, and I think my mom is one of the best-dressed people in the world. I just wanted to be fly and keep up with them—but I wanted to be on the modeling side.”
As the only child of Solange Knowles and nephew to Beyoncé, Smith has been in the spotlight for all of his life. While being part of such a famous family could have catapulted him to success, Smith chose to break into the industry the old-fashioned way. He shared that he’s worked in the fashion industry for years as an “intern,” but his quest to model “never really worked out.”
After working with LUAR for a couple of months, he was asked to walk the runway.
“A week before the show, they were just like, ‘Come to the casting.’ So I went to the casting and I got it,” he said.
Smith spoke about his Southern upbringing, keeping him humble and fed well. He also enjoyed playing basketball, which was a major part of his life.
“I always wanted to play for the school that had the best team. I was really a hooper — I thought I was going to the NBA,” he said.
Although he works in high fashion and wore designer pieces from Wales Bronner, Gucci, Marni and LUAR during the Vogue shoot, Smith admitted that his personal style is more relaxed.
“I wear mostly streetwear and lots of baggy stuff, but I’m starting to get into high fashion — the Dries Van Noten, the Prada tees, the Loewe jackets,” the 19-year-old said. “I like to be comfy but still fly. I rock sweats probably five days out of the week.”
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He also endorsed his aunt’s (aka Queen Bey) new haircare line, Cécred: “My grandma tested it out on my hair before it came out. It’s really good.”
Smith’s grandmother, Tina Knowles, was one of his biggest fans after he made his first walk down the runway.
In one post, she wrote, “My handsome grandson Julez walked in fashion week at the @luar show and killed it!”
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Although this was Smith’s first tour down the runway, he revealed that the relentless work ethic his Aunt Bey is revered for runs through the family.
“Nobody coached me—I just spent a lot of time walking on the street like I was on a runway, and walking around my house,” he said. “And my mom and my grandma were pretty consistent; they were like, ‘Practice, practice, practice.’ I also watched a lot of runway videos on YouTube and saw how the models were so locked in. That’s how I learned.”
