TALENT: Peyton Gantt pursues a modeling career along with school and dancing.
By Andrea Alvarado, Staff Writer
While most teens keep busy during their high school years with academics, athletics and other extracurricular activities, Peyton Gantt (11) takes on an entirely unique plate. From managing a full modeling career to dancing with Poly’s Varsity Song team, this Poly junior seems to do it all.
Gantt’s earliest talent, dancing, evolved from the early age of three. “I loved all the fast costume changes and putting on makeup for my performances at competitions,” she gushed. Since then, she has had to cut back on dancing as it interferes with her rising modeling career. “I was willing to do it in order to follow my dreams,” she said.
In her seventh grade year, Gantt started to take a serious interest in modeling. She traveled to New York in order to pursue a modeling career and ended up starring in her very first national commercial. During this time, she also modeled for an ad for GSUSA that was featured in an issue of Oprah Magazine. Gantt recalls her career taking flight in her first year of high school when she signed with her current modeling agency, Rage Talent. She went back to New York the summer before her sophomore year where she modeled and acted for the agency for three months. Gantt has modeled for a multitude of ads and magazines and even walked in LA Fashion Week. Gantt also does fit modeling; she models apparel for different clothing companies to make sure that their attire fits correctly before it is released to the public.
Having to balance academics, modeling, acting and dancing for Poly’s Varsity Song team comes as a great challenge to Gantt. This is especially true, since “being a member of the song team takes a lot of dedication. It takes time away from homework, friends and social activities for practice. It takes a lot of hard work and time and it amazes me how Peyton does it all,” Alex Callanan (11) said. Occasionally, she has to make the journey to school from LA, where she visits weekly for modeling jobs and auditions. “It has always been difficult and still is. But it is a price I am willing to pay to do what I want to do,” Gantt explained.
Most recently, Gantt appeared on the October/November issue for Justine Magazine as the cover girl. In her cover shoot, she had the opportunity to model clothes for Jessica Simpson among other designers for the magazine. “It was such a great experience that I will never forget,” she said. Gantt sees modeling as a valuable career, and plans to keep pursuing it. “I learned that not everyone is going to want to hire you, but not giving up is what is going to eventually lead to success. Learning to stay true to yourself and following the right path will always lead you to the right place,” she said.