Ciao, Bella!

Let’s call Bella Harris the anti-Kardashian. Though the high school freshman has a famous last name (dad James Harris, a.k.a Jimmy Jam, is a music producer with acts like Janet Jackson and Usher in his portfolio), she’s more concerned with her next pop quiz than getting involved with the paparazzi.

Instead, Harris works with the team at LA Models to slowly launch her fashion career while staying focused on school. And just like in class, Harris studies the style industry diligently. “I’m obsessed with looking at successful models on Instagram,” she says, “because sometimes, they leave advice for those just starting out.”

We spoke with the 14-year-old after her big Popular shoot with Davis Factor. Spoiler alert: she’s pretty awesome.

Freshman year is when a lot of girls start wearing makeup. What’s your beauty routine like?
Well, I don’t wear a lot of makeup to school. I don’t wear a lot of makeup in general, to be honest. The less the better, so I don’t have clogged pores and break out. So I wash my face with Cetaphil, and I moisturize my face, and that’s really it for school.

What about when you go out? (Wait, are you allowed to go out?)
[Laughing] Yeah, I mean, I can hang out with my friends!  Right now, I’m really into the nude lip. So I have a M.A.C pencil and I love using it on my lips—I fill them in with the pencil instead of lipstick. The color is called “Boldly Bare” and I like to use M.A.C face powder with it.

Your Instagram selfies have curly and straight hair. Which do you prefer?
I love having curly hair! My natural hair is curly, so I usually just wear it that way. And I put leave-in-conditioner and gel in it. And even when my hair’s straight, I like to curl it—like the bigger kind of curl you get with styling tools. I’m really into One Haircare. It works really well for my hair.

Do your friends know you’re starting to model? Is it ok to talk about it at school?
I don’t talk about my work with my friends, or anyone at school really, because I don’t want anyone to be like, “you’re a model, you think you’re so cool, blah blah blah.” Like, what is that supposed to mean?! It’s just easier to not [talk about it]. And with my friends, I mean, they’re my friends so we have better things to talk about!  There’s one girl at my school who models, too, but she’s a junior so we don’t really hang out.

Who’s your favorite model?
I love Cara Delevingne. I love her personality because she’s crazy! I mean, her tattoos and the crazy faces she makes… that’s really bold. I don’t think I would ever do that—definitely no tattoos for me.  Oh, and I like Devon Windsor. I saw her at one of my friend’s birthday parties, but I didn’t go up to her. I just kind of stared. She’s so pretty, and maybe eventually I can be a [Victoria’s Secret] Angel like her. They walk so effortlessly!

And what’s your favorite school subject?
I consider myself really fortunate because I really like school. I really like going to class. My favorite subject is math, but that’s probably just because I’m doing the best in math class!

You grew up in the music industry. Do you have any favorites right now?
Well I listen to a lot of Drake, and I love Rihanna. I was looking up her song lyrics the other day, just to make sure I was getting them right.