You might recognize Emira D’Spain from her GRWM-style beauty videos, or you might know that she was Victoria’s Secret’s first-ever black trans model. On TikTok, she shares different aspects of her trans identity with her more than a million followers, and ahead of Trans Day of Visibility on March 31, she spoke to PS about her own journey, gender euphoria, and Moreover. Read it all, in his own words, below.
When did I first feel gender euphoria? My parents are so accepting of me, so for me it’s really the time when I always have the most gender euphoria. Just being with my family. And knowing that it’s not an experience that many LGBTQ children and adults have, it’s something that I become more and more grateful for as I meet more people in the community. This is something that is very close to my heart.
Lady Gaga isn’t queer, but she’s someone I’ve always looked up to because she had such an impact on my coming of age. In middle school, when Gaga was first topping the charts — back in the days of “Born This Way” and all those songs — she made me feel so empowered that I could be myself. and live my truth.
“[L]Life happens the way it’s supposed to.
These days, I have come to be known not only as trans; a lot of my audience doesn’t even know I’m trans. I feel like every time I talk about it, it’s almost like, “Oh, whoa, I didn’t know that about him.” I think it’s still very interesting. I think most trans creators make it part of their content, and it’s something I talk about from time to time. I think it’s cool for me to do that, because people who don’t know that about me now have a different perspective on me. But right now, it’s really inspiring to see other queer creators having so much success: people living their lives and building their careers.
My own message for other young trans people is that everything will work out, things will get better. If you’re having trouble getting people to accept you, accepting yourself, living in your truth, everything really does work out in the end. Sure, it’s hard to remember in the moment, but over time, life unfolds the way it’s supposed to. Just give yourself grace and give yourself time.
— As told to Lena Felton