Joan Smalls Rodríguez is popular a Puerto Rican model. Born in Hatillo, Puerto Rico, found an interest in modeling as a teenager through local competitions. Eventually, she officially began her modeling career after graduating with a psychology degree from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico in New York City.

In 2007, Smalls began doing commercial modeling jobs with brands Nordstrom, Liz Claiborne, and Sass & Bide under Elite Model Management. Two years later, she moved to IMG Models and began working on runway shows, gaining attention from  Riccardo Tisci’s Spring/Summer haute couture show in January 2010.

Since then, Smalls has collaborated with top fashion designers from across the globe, including Prada, Gucci, Tom Ford, Chanel, Marc Jacobs,  Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Jean Paul Gaultier, Balmain, Fendi, Dior, DSquared, Valentino, and many more. Additionally, she has appeared in popular editorials including Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, i-D, W Magazine, GQ, Dazed & Confused, Elle, Interview, V, Magazine, and Glamour.

Outside of fashion, Smalls has appeared in television shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race, Lip Sync Battle, and in music videos for popular artists like Ricky Martin, ASAP Rocky, Beyoncé, Kanye West, Juanes, and more.