After declining $17m in deals, poet Amanda Gorman is now face of beauty brand Estée Lauder

Amanda Gorman has signed a historic deal with Estée Lauder to become the beauty brand’s newest ambassador. Gorman, 23, who is America’s first-ever National Youth Poet Laureate, said she signed the deal with the beauty brand to bring change.

The three-year partnership deal with Gorman is said to represent the first integrated deal by Estée Lauder and The Estée Lauder Companies to celebrate the next generation of leaders. As part of the deal, she will represent Estée Lauder as the first Global Changemaker and also appear in the company’s brand campaigns debuting in Spring 2021.

“I am so proud to announce my partnership with one of the most iconic beauty brands in the world @esteelauder to bring a new voice to beauty as their first-ever Global Changemaker,” Gordon shared on Instagram. “I will also work with @esteelaudercompanies to inspire change, beginning with founding WRITING CHANGE, a new philanthropic initiative of The Estée Lauder Companies.”

The deal will also see Estée Lauder companies contribute over $3 million to support literacy initiatives through Writing Change, which is designed to “advance literacy as a pathway to equality, access, and social change.”

Gorman shot to fame after her historic poem, ‘The Hill We Climb’, at President Joe Biden’s inauguration in January. Several brands have lined up to associate with her but the poet has remained true to her principle and working with brands that align with her principle.

Gorman became the first-ever poet to grace the cover of the high fashion magazine, Vogue, for its May issue. In an interview with the magazine, she revealed that she turned down $17 million in offers because she would not compromise herself for the “expectations of some companies.”

“I didn’t really look at the details,” she said of one massive offer from a brand, “because if you see something and it says a million dollars, you’re going to rationalize why that makes sense. I have to be conscious of taking commissions that speak to me,” she said.

Gorman and her twin called Gabrielle, who is an activist, were born prematurely and raised together with their other sibling by their single mother Joan Wicks, who was a teacher.

Gorman’s biggest role model is her mother. “My mother worked so hard while raising three kids to get her doctorate and master’s degrees in Education. She inspires me every day to seek higher education not only for myself but for the other students around me.”

Her mother is very proud of all that her daughter has been able to accomplish regardless of the challenges.

“Every child has a gift, it just has to be discovered,” she said. “Where there’s a deficit, there’s a place where the child makes it up.”