Black Nouveau

Our first runner up is Miss Madison pick this race seed.

Willow New is your new Miss Wisconsin.

This past June, Willow New was crowned Miss Wisconsin, making history as her first black woman to do so.

She began competing in pageantss at the age of 14.

The recent Carthage College graduate competed for the title alongside 29 other contestants from across the state and was recognized as a top vocalist in the competition.

In September, the 22-year-old will compete at the Miss America pageant in Orlando, Florida, and Wisconsin will be cheering her on.

Willow, welcome to Black Novo.

Thank you so much for having me.

Thank you for coming.

So, I know art is very important to you.

Can you talk about how art helped you in the competition?

Yes.

So, my arts background gave me the confidence I needed to be able to express myself on stage.

And my community service initiative, the art of belonging, strives to bring the arts access to people across our communities, marginalized groups, including elderly populations, the developmentally disabled, and then our youth.

So, being the first black woman to win it all, uh, have you ever faced racism competing in pageantss?

And if so, how have you dealt with it?

Absolutely.

And this is in all facets of my life.

I've grown up in predominantly settings that didn't always represent me.

And so, it's been an honor to be able to not only be the first person that looks like me in these places, but of course, growing through this just by challenging myself on a daily basis, understanding who I am, and then having that support system that supports me every single day and being confident in my own background.

That's awesome.

So, let's talk a little bit about you.

You have beautiful hair, natural hair.

Thank you.

Um, have you ever been felt like you've been forced to change in order to try to fit in competing in such a white dominated field?

Yes.

So, growing up, I always thought I had to straighten my own hair just to be beautiful or just to match what I thought a Miss America would look like.

And it wasn't until one summer when I realized my hair is beautiful.

I really became confident in the way that it's shaped and the way that it looks and the products that worked for me.

And so going on the Miss Wisconsin stage and then being able to earn that title wearing my own natural crown gave me this new found sense of purpose because all of the feedback has been so lovely and I've encouraged other people to wear their natural hair as well.

You've been competing for a long time since the age of 14.

How did you get involved in pageantry so early?

I was so excited because I was able to attend the Miss Racine pageant and my first title ever was Miss Rian's teen and so the local director at the time Deb Moral introduced me to everything that the organization was about from the scholarship to the sisterhood to the networking skills and I continued to come back because I knew there was no representation of what looked like me on that stage and I wanted to be that because I have earned so much from this organization.

What kind of advice would you give to a young lady looking up to you and say I want to do that too.

What would you tell her?

Be yourself when you're doing it.

Don't be ashamed of every sing any part of yourself.

Every single part of you is beautiful.

And I think it's so important and special when we have women bring their unique experiences to the stage.

So whether you're someone who likes the arts, whether you like STEM, whether you're a person who likes sports, we need to see all walks of life.

So what's next for you?

How do you prepare for the Miss America pageant?

So I'm so excited because Miss America's coming up really fast.

It's preparing for my talent, of course, working on my interview skills and then continuing to make those connections within the Wisconsin community.

I've been traveling all over the state so far, meeting so many different people, going to fairs, going to festivals, and then advocating for my community service initiative.

Let's talk about your community service initiative.

What is that?

So, it's the art of belonging, and it was formerly known as expression without exclusion, but I wanted to focus on how people can feel a sense of belonging from the arts.

I remember being 11 years old and then growing up in community theater and feeling such great emotion from the words and the music and musicals.

And I wanted to share that feeling with the entire state and hopefully the entire nation.

And so I'm sharing that online through working with the Wisconsin Arts Board and then also just by sharing my own experiences within the arts.

What kind of support system do you have?

I imagine you have to have a big one to do something like this.

Talk about what that looks like and feels like.

So my family is amazing.

My mom and my dad have been so supportive of my journey.

There have been times when I haven't won pageantss or haven't done well and so they have been along with me every step of the way.

And then also the local directors.

Each competition on the local level has two state d two set of directors and they usually provide the girls with wardrobe advice um hair and makeup advice and then also just building a personal brand is something that my directors in the race scene organization have worked with me on and so I'm so grateful to have that mentorship.

That's that's very interesting too.

Coming from race scene, have you have you ever seen anything like this before?

Like, you know, I know competition comes in all shapes and forms, but what is it like to represent racing in the state of Wisconsin?

It's amazing, especially after competing so many times.

I've represented Kenosha and then also Great Lakes and to be able to have this full circle moment as my own hometown title is so wonderful.

The city of Rine has been uplifting and I think I now get the chance to bring more girls into the organization.

Before the state competition, I walked into Case High School and talked to the girls personally and said, "We offer scholarships."

and they didn't even know there was a misreine.

And so bringing more girls into the organization is what I plan to continue to do.

Who do you admire in in this industry?

Oh my goodness.

Vanessa Williams, of course, the first black Miss America.

And then so many other young women who have competed, the ones who've competed before me.

They may not have won the Miss Wisconsin title, but they got first runner up in top five.

And then of course the local directors, the state board.

There are so many people who have done such amazing things within the community, and I hope to reflect them and then add my own little spice to what I have to offer the crown.

Let's talk about mental health quickly.

Is that something that you have to deal with as well?

If so, how do you deal with um making sure you your mental health stays strong?

I had the wonderful opportunity of being very vulnerable with the judges about my experience with obsessivempulsive disorder and anxiety.

And then of course being a front-facing person, it's hard to struggle with anxiety or mental health at all and be able to be in front of people every day and serve the community.

And so I think therapy is so so important.

Not just being vulnerable with someone else that I can trust, but then people in the community to share that it's okay to struggle, but as long as you're consistent and show up every day for yourself and for the world, you can make greatness out of it.

But you know how you're a great singer, I understand.

What song did you do uh for the competition and I'm telling you from Dream Girls and I love that song so much.

It's so fun to sing.

Okay, awesome.

So tell us how we could see the competition uh Miss America competition.

It'll be live streamed.

So September 2nd through the 7th will be in Orlando, Florida.

There will be a talent night and then also two prelim nights and the final competition.

Well, we wish you the best.

Thank you so much.

Going to do so well.

Thank you.

I appreciate it.

Thank you.

[Music]