Tracey Norman

Tracey "Africa" Norman, Tracey Africa, is an American fashion model and the first African-American trans woman to achieve prominence in the industry. Originally from Newark, New Jersey, Norman has appeared in Essence, Vogue Italia, and Harper's Bazaar India. In 2015, New York published a cover story on her life and career.

Early life Tracey Norman was born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1952. She identified as a woman from a young age, later stating, "I always felt inside, since far back as I can remember, that I was female." As a child, she studied the women in her life, including teachers and female family members, to learn feminine traits. She was a shy, quiet child and the first person in her family to graduate high school.

In 2016, Norman and Geena Rocero became the first openly transgender models to appear on the cover of Harper's Bazaar. That year, she also appeared in a Lexus commercial and the film Lady Seven Sings, and was interviewed by The Times of London and Marie Claire South Africa.

On the day of her high school graduation, Norman came out to her mother, who embraced her. Her mother said she had always known.

In a 2021 interview, Norman said she does not identify as transgender, but simply as a woman: "I've always identified as being a woman. It was New York mag and the London Times and Marie Claire that put the word trans and attached it to my name."

In popular culture A storyline in the television series Pose was inspired by Norman's rejection by Playboy and The Oprah Winfrey Show. Laverne Cox paid tribute to Norman, alongside Tina Turner and Beyoncé, in the October 2016 issue of Cosmopolitan.