André Leon Talley is a true icon. He’s worked with everyone from Andy Warhol to Diana Vreeland, Anna Wintour to Karl Lagerfeld — his inner circle is the who’s who of the fashion world. Truthfully, a lot of what we are wearing today is because of the decisions André has made in the fashion industry. We first met early on in my career at a Vogue shoot with Cindy Crawford. I was so excited to have this fashion editor, journalist, and icon on my podcast, Long Story Short. Listen to the full episode here.

On discovering Vogue...

I discovered Vogue in the public library. I was 9 or 10. I was just attracted to the pages, the visuals, the beauty, the women, and the covers of Vogue. What struck me was it was a world I had not known. Going to public school, I would come home and look at these fabulous magazines. That was my escape. I loved Vogue and I loved the pictures more than anything. I loved the captions, the way they were photographed. I learned early on that there was a person who did Vogue, her name was Diana Vreeland. She was the editor in the 60s. I learned she was a stronger personality, and I knew who she really was before I was even a teenager.

On working with Andy Warhol…

I was a receptionist for $50 a week. Andy was a great, great boss. He looked at the world like a child. I loved him because he accepted everyone. Everyone was fabulous, everyone was great. He was always positive. He always included everyone. You could be a drag queen or you could be Basquiat. You could be Princess Caroline of Monaco or you could be Grace Jones. You were a part of the Warhol world.

On today’s fashion industry…

I think it’s in flux. I think there is a changing of the guard. I don’t know where it’s going. I don’t follow fashion the way I used to, I follow my friends. I think fashion will always rise up from the ashes, like a stallion. There is always going to be excitement in fashion.