COVER SHOOT CONFIDENTIAL
This month, our cover celebrates a reinvigorated USA and is special for a variety of reasons…
Ryan Daharsh by Jade Young.
Firstly, our model is Ryan Daharsh, who previously appeared on the cover of DNA #114, (11 years ago in July, 2009) with fellow model, Rob Decato, shot by Kevin McDermott. “I was 27,” recalls Ryan. “Around that time I was also on the cover of Blue. Lewis Peyton took some very flattering images that really helped my career. I was also contracted with American Eagle at the time – an awesome company to work with, always shooting at really fun locations.”
Since then, Ryan’s grown up, married and started a family. “Yeah, in 2010 I moved back to Nebraska. I wanted to take a break from the jet-set lifestyle and get back to the outdoors and being around family. My goal was to start a family. It took a few years but my wife and I now have three kids.”
Ryan will also be featured in an up-coming Netflix documentary series, yet to be named, looking at the fashion industry of the ’90s and 2000s. “It deals with the company Abercrombie and Fitch,” says Ryan. “I shot numerous campaigns for them on top of other campaigns over my career, so I’ve been interviewed about my experiences for the documentary.”
He may now be a dad, but his is no “dad bod”. Ryan laughs, “Well, thank you. When I was younger it seemed like all I did was train. These days I don’t train nearly as much, I train a lot smarter. I know how to get the most out of my body with the least amount of time and energy.”
Also significant this issue is that the photography is by Jade Young, an AsianAmerican woman based in New York. Regular DNA readers will already know and love her work, but the backstory in the months leading up to the shoot are shocking.
Because of COVID-19, Jade began experiencing racism at a level she had not previously encountered. “I had random people spit at me, tell me to go back to China, and call me ch*nk,” she reveals. These incidents occurred in cosmopolitan New York, where the “melting pot” of cultures is what New York is famous for.
“I wasn’t that surprised because Donald Trump had been fanning the flames of antiAsian sentiment,” says Jade. “With his ‘China virus’ talk he angered and divided people. He missed an opportunity to bring the world closer together in fighting a global pandemic.
“When you hear him blame Asians 24/7, it doesn’t surprise me that people were brainwashed to hate. The level of vitriol was something I haven’t experienced before. The President has the loudest voice and sets the tone for the rest of the country.”
Things worsened when Jade was physically assaulted. “It was the first time someone had actually hit me,” she says. “He walked past me then punched me in the back of the head.”
The assault is currently being investigated by police, but has left Jade, as a woman of colour, feeling less safe in her own neighbourhood.
“This past year has been the most unsafe I’ve ever felt. In New York there’s been a confluence of poverty-based street crime and brutality against peaceful citizens protesting for racial equality.”
Jade believes, however, that America will be able to move past the legacy of “Trumpism”. “America is a country full of amazing people. The talented, industrious, compassionate and passionate people are what make America resilient,” she says.
Ryan agrees that it’s, “the people who will bring back the good times! I don’t think there’s any other way but to be optimistic,” he says.
“I’m very optimistic that the Biden–Harris White House can use their voice and experience to promote peace and equality,” says Jade. “My wish is for them to make America an example and a beacon of hope for the world.”
Is Ryan surprised, at 38, to be on the cover again? “I’m as surprised as you are,” he laughs. “When I left modelling, it was to be for good. I never saw myself on a cover again, let alone DNA. I’m super-stoked. Thankyou so much! It’s very cool”
As is being older, he says. “What I like most about being my age is the honesty; the ability to be honest with people and myself whether anyone likes it or not. I’m just me.”
This month, DNA celebrates the best of what the USA can be: inclusive, progressive, openminded and diverse. The all-American jock, on the cover of a gay magazine, shot by a woman of colour.
Welcome to 2021.
The all-American jock, on the cover of a gay magazine, shot by a woman of colour.