We recently had the chance to connect with Anaija Head and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Anaija, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
A recent moment that made me feel proud was when I stepped past my fears and posted my first pole fitness video. I share so much of my creativity online through modest fashion and modeling, but I was afraid to post something else that means so much to me. As a hijabi, we receive a lot of criticism for the choices we make, and I have already dealt with comments about my fashion and modeling career, so I struggled with deciding whether I wanted to face criticism for being an aerialist, specifically a pole dancer. In the end, I am proud of myself for posting it, and the response has been much warmer than I expected.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi, my name is Anaija, though some people might know me from social media as @xnaijax, that’s been my username since I first created my Instagram profile.
I’m a model, content creator, and landscape architect whose work bridges creativity, design, and community impact. Alongside my career in architecture, I’m deeply committed to giving back by hosting fundraisers, organizing community events, and helping design and bring neighborhood gardens to life.
I’ve been professionally modeling for the past four years and have worked with major brands including Off White, Nike, Puma, and Apple. Beyond print and commercial work, I’ve also worked as a model coach and I currently am a content creator, always wanting to share my experience and creative vision with others.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
As a child growing up in a Muslim household, I believed that as a Muslim woman, especially one who wears the hijab, I needed to present myself as the perfect child. I felt pressure to uphold stereotypes of what a Muslim girl was supposed to look like, not only well behaved and well mannered, but also quiet and restrained. I believed I had to dim my own light, avoiding creativity, fashion, or speaking out. I thought Muslim women were meant to be unseen and unheard. As I grew older and learned more about myself and the world through lived experience, I realized how important it is to embrace creativity, to have a strong sense of identity, and to speak without fear. I once believed there was only one way to exist as a Muslim woman, but now I know I can be many things. I can dress in many ways and express myself fully without limiting who I am because I wear the hijab. I now understand that modesty and being a hijabi do not have to feel like a rigid command or imposed standard, but can instead be a beautiful and empowering way to represent myself.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
I wouldn’t say I have truly suffered. There are so many people in the world who have experienced deep and undeniable suffering, and I would never want to compare my losses or hardships to theirs. What I have gone through feels more like life experiences than suffering. I have lost meaningful people and things, including my father at a young age, my grandmother who inspired me, and even my sense of safety after being t-boned in a car accident that totaled my car. While these experiences were painful, they taught me important lessons about loss. They showed me that loss is needed to appreciate what we have and what we once had. It is easy to take life for granted until something is taken away. During moments when I thought I was suffering, I looked at the world around me and seeing people endure war, genocide, natural disasters, etc put my own pain into perspective. It made me realize that my losses were not the end of my world. Suffering taught me gratitude, perspective, and resilience in ways success never could. Success can bring comfort and confidence, but it cannot teach you how to endure loss, find meaning in pain, or remain grateful and grounded when life is uncertain.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
I think one of the biggest lies the creative industry tells is how diverse it actually is. I have seen casting calls that claim they are looking for a Muslim woman who wears the hijab, only to then specify a very narrow ethnicity. Rarely are they truly open to Black American Muslim women who wear the hijab. Another major lie is that the secret to success is simply hard work. While hard work is important, many people work tirelessly and put themselves out there every day without seeing the success they were promised. The reality is that luck and access to the right people play a huge role. I think most people are aware of this truth, but we collectively allow that lie to persist.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I feel like I am almost at the point where I am doing what I was born to do and what I once dreamed of. I believe Allah, or God, gives us talents and abilities that we are meant to use and share with the world. If I had only done what I was told, I would have gone straight to college and then into a job immediately after graduation. Instead, I took time off, traveled, and fully committed myself to modeling for a year. When that did not take off the way I hoped, I found work in the field I studied, but I did not stop there. I shared my life on social media, expressed my creativity, and pursued my passions in hopes of inspiring others to do the same, to take risks, to do things that scare them, and to pursue the paths they were often told not to take. I believe that is what I was born for: to share my life experiences and creativity through modeling, fashion, and even landscape design. I feel like there’s so much more I can do, once I have the means, at the end of the day, I still need time and money to solely do what I was born for.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xnaijax?igsh=a251OXkycjh5Mzhs&utm_source=qr
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anaija-head-0623641a5?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
