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Staz Lindes Is More Than Just a Pretty Face

Born into the worlds of both music and modeling, Staz Lindes’ life is that of fate working its magic with a balance of punk-meets-pretty. At 24, she’s been named makeup ambassador for heavyweight brand YSL Beauty, bringing a cool breath of fresh air to an otherwise regal brand that exudes elegance above all else.

Born Nastassia Lindes to former Dire Straits guitarist Hal Lindes and model Mary Lovett, Lindes’ Instagram feed offers but a small view into her muse-of-the-moment modeling career and her work as frontwoman in the garage punk band The Paranoyds. Her entry into the modelling world began at a bowling alley, where she was first discovered at the age of tkkk. “I was really young and didn’t know how to trust something like a modeling agency,” she shares. “I didn’t really feel comfortable or ready until a few years after that.” Thanks to her signature Cali-meets-Parisian-rocker-chick look, Lindes was destined to work with fashion royalty, walking the runways for designer brands such as Saint Laurent, Moschino, and Dior.

Though her discernibly pillowy lips catch second-glances, it’s her sense of humour and eclectic style that Lindes catalogues as her most admirable qualities. “I’d like to think I’m good at making people laugh, or maybe I’m wearing something so tacky and colourful that it makes someone’s mood better,” she says. While the term tacky is often synonymous with kitschy in today’s fashion landscape, her self-described style of “big kid” works with both her on and off-stage style. It also works to her playful, anything-but-curated social media presence.

Cautiously using the overused term “It Girl,” the London-born, California-raised model is one who is as passionate about equality and human rights as she is about music, and embodies a coolness and social awareness that most people never quite achieve. Lindes has notably posted on her Instagram feed, both before the last U.S. election and plenty since, standing up against many social and environmental injustices, from the Dakota Access Pipeline to Trump’s travel ban and women’s rights.

Her work ethic and understanding of the modeling industry also speaks volumes: “I admire the crazy hard work the models put in. Everyone puts in their time for the industry and a lot of people get treated like trash,” reveals Lindes. “But the way a model without a strong name gets treated is crazy, and they’re typically still in high school. You have to be so strong and determined,” she continues about the cold, hard industry truths.

When it comes to her beauty and style philosophy, a colourful world where nothing is off-limits is where Lindes resides. “You’ll never see me in all black or something plain,” she says. For her, YSL is a natural fit, and not solely because her love of makeup. “YSL embodies the strong woman who has self-expression and confidence,” she says. “I’d like to think I relate to her.”

This affinity for creative expression, something instilled and supported by both her parents from a very young age, spreads to her on-stage style as well. “I hardly ever go bare for the stage—I like using makeup as an extension and exaggeration of the music,” says Lindes. While it’s inconceivable that she could be doing anything else, her aspirations are not limited to her current vocations. “I love being a part of production or anything creative, and I could see myself working at a music venue, record shop, or vintage store; If I could get a job where I have to find vintage clothes and furniture, I think I’d be really good at it and it would be so satisfying,” she says. “I think life’s roles are endless.”

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