--- title: Ashley Graham Talks Pretty Big Deal Podcast in Interview description: Model Ashley Graham opens up about the new season of her podcast, 'Pretty Big Deal,' the fashion industry, and what's next. canonical: https://time.com/5751632/ashley-graham-podcast-interview/ author: Cady Lang article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-12-19T19:17:54.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:01:09.328Z og:title: 'I Own the Narrative.' How Ashley Graham Is Using Her Podcast to Put Herself on the Line og:description: The model opens up about why she's always stayed true to who she is og:url: https://time.com/5751632/ashley-graham-podcast-interview/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt657bc648e294b8d4/698a07b1db29871c92264ab1/Ashley-Graham-podcast-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2000 og:image:height: 1125 og:image:alt: 2019 Harper's Bazaar ICONS og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'I Own the Narrative.' How Ashley Graham Is Using Her Podcast to Put Herself on the Line twitter:description: The model opens up about why she's always stayed true to who she is twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt657bc648e294b8d4/698a07b1db29871c92264ab1/Ashley-Graham-podcast-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'I Own the Narrative.' How Ashley Graham Is Using Her Podcast to Put Herself on the Line > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. It combines original reporting and analysis with the best of TIME, spanning politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=7cd1f808-7174-445d-b3c2-8c5d2ef71577&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Daily | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Richard Hall, Editor | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The informed consumer. A scaled audience of readers who turn to TIME to stay informed and make sense of the world, with meaningful reach across education and research, nonprofits and civic life, media and communications, government and public institutions, and business and professional services. ### TIME The Brief: key statements * The Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * The Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=7cd1f808-7174-445d-b3c2-8c5d2ef71577&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/subscribe?i=7cd1f808-7174-445d-b3c2-8c5d2ef71577&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's daily news newsletter? The Brief is TIME's daily newsletter, edited by Richard Hall. It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically.  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Dec 19, 2019 7:17 PM UTC  NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 06: Ashley Graham attends the 2019 Harper's Bazaar ICONS on September 06, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/WireImage) NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 06: Ashley Graham attends the 2019 Harper's Bazaar ICONS on September 06, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/WireImage) WireImage—2019 WireImage  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Dec 19, 2019 7:17 PM UTC It feels like [Ashley Graham](https://time.com/4890516/ashley-graham-on-white-privilege/)‘s influence is ubiquitous right now. The 32-year-old [TIME 100 2017 honoree](https://time.com/collection/2017-time-100/4736242/ashley-graham/), model and body activist’s confidence seems to be apparent in all that she touches. There she is, gazing winsomely at you from the [January 2020 cover of _Vogue_](https://www.vogue.com/article/ashley-graham-cover-january-2020), as she cradles her pregnant belly in a gold Oscar de la Renta caftan. You’ve probably seen her visage on billboards or commercials for Revlon, for whom she is an ambassador, or you might have caught her web series _Fearless with Ashley Graham_ with Ellen DeGeneres, where she cheers on guests each season to take chances to live life on their terms. However, Graham’s upbeat personality might be the most dynamically felt with her [podcast](https://time.com/5587542/podcasting-industry-money/), _Pretty Big Deal._ Now in its second season and expanding to be a weekly podcast, it gives her audience the chance to listen in on frank conversations with Graham’s powerhouse guest list, which has included the likes of Kim Kardashian West (who was the podcast’s very first guest,) [Gayle King](https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people-2019/5567840/gayle-king/), [Serena Williams](https://time.com/5368858/serena-williams-comeback/), and Gabrielle Union. For Graham, starting a podcast was a way to bring the radical inclusivity that she advocates for in her fashion work, like [refusing to have her photos retouched](https://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/a20126168/ashley-graham-unretouched-swimsuit-campaign-2018/) and [creating clothing for all body types](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ashley-graham-new-clothing-line-pretty-little-thing%5Fn%5F5ba93152e4b069d5f9d56c72), to a broader audience. “I started the podcast because I’ve always been interested in learning other people’s backgrounds and cultures and point of views since I was a child,” she tells TIME. “It was really important for me to have my story told and have a platform and I just want other people’s stories to be told as well.” The podcast format proved to be an excellent fit for Graham’s unfiltered and exuberant presence, giving the podcast the feel of an intimate chat with a friend. Guests often discuss the inner workings of their lives, whether it’s the deluge of feelings that come when clothes don’t fit or the challenges of figuring out how to breastfeed for the first time. This element was something that was extremely important for Graham, who is adamant about being authentically herself without compromise, whether she’s working on a fashion shoot or doing an interview for _Pretty Big Deal._ “It’s important to me to show up to the job the way I am as a person; I don’t have a persona, I don’t change who I am and I want people to feel comfortable,” she said. “ I’m doing the interviewing. I’m not even a trained journalist, I’m just a girl who is about the people. I ask the questions that you at home want to know, I ask the questions that are to the point.” On her podcast, Graham offers her guests is the chance to be able to connect with someone who, despite being a public figure, is still determined to live life without artifice or pretense. Graham’s had her fair share of being interviewed, which informs the way that she wanted to talk to her guests, ensuring that it was comfortable and sans judgment. “I put myself on the line, I talk about felling insecure about my body and my ups and downs with food and men, family, it runs the gamut and I think that people know when they’re coming down and sitting on my couch, it’s about truth and honesty,” she said. Podcasting has also given Graham more space and the freedom to empower people to use their agency and tap into their own confidence, which has always been at the center of her work, even from when she began working as a model over two decades ago. “I think modeling gave me a platform in general and I think now more than ever, models have the opportunity to talk about things that are important to them, social issues,” she said. “We have a platform now where we should be using it to change people’s lives, to give information to people in whatever capacity that is for you. With this podcast, I have full control. I own the narrative, and I think that there’s something incredibly liberating about that. When it comes to fashion, I’m literally giving up my body and face to a company or to a magazine, who could edit me and in _Pretty Big Deal_, I’m unedited.” And even though Graham will be expecting her first child, a son, in January, she wants her listeners to know that the podcast will still be going happening while she’s on maternity leave and that she’s always on the lookout for new guests, many of whom she sources directly from her fans. “I ask my fans, ‘Who do you want me to talk to? Who’s interesting to you?’ And they’ve given me a great roster,” she said. “Some of them I’m still trying to get, like Will Smith and The Rock — holla at ya girl! And Michelle Obama and Oprah! I ask my fans who they want me to talk to. The people who I’m talking to, I’m genuinely excited about and interested in, they’re game changers.” With her work in fashion and now her podcast, it sounds like Graham is changing the game herself, by opening the conversation up. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5751632/ashley-graham-podcast-interview/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5751632/ashley-graham-podcast-interview/"},"headline":"'I Own the Narrative.' How Ashley Graham Is Using Her Podcast to Put Herself on the Line","datePublished":"2019-12-19T19:17:54.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:01:09.328Z","description":"The model opens up about the fashion industry and why she's always stayed true to who she is","url":"https://time.com/5751632/ashley-graham-podcast-interview/","keywords":["Newsfeed","fashion","celebrity","onetime","clickmonsters"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt657bc648e294b8d4/698a07b1db29871c92264ab1/Ashley-Graham-podcast-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Cady Lang","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/cady-lang/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt657bc648e294b8d4/698a07b1db29871c92264ab1/Ashley-Graham-podcast-interview.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"2019 Harper's Bazaar ICONS","caption":"2019 Harper's Bazaar ICONS","creditText":"WireImage—2019 WireImage","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5751632/ashley-graham-podcast-interview/","name":"'I Own the Narrative.' How Ashley Graham Is Using Her Podcast to Put Herself on the Line"}}]}] ```