"I'm Much More Self-Conscious About the Way I Act Now": An Interview with America's Next Top Model 4's Brandy

We all know that the first four episodes of this season all basically revolved around Brandy's attitude. I didn't mind though. She brought some controversy and drama to the group, she took nice pictures and kept it real. However, the attitude caught up with her, and Tyra let her go.

I had a chance to talk to Brandy, and she came off very articulate. I think the best thing about her is that she realized how she was coming off, and has made a conscientious effort to change that. Brandy gave me the scoop on a number of topics, and just like she did on the show -- she told it how it was.

RealityNewsOnline: Why did you originally audition for the show? Did you send in a tape or go to an open call?

Brandy: Let me tell you, I was a big fan of the show before I applied. I had gone to an open call audition because one of my friends had told me about it, and before I knew it, I was on the show!

RNO: Did you feel there was tension between yourself and some of the other girls right away, or did it not show until you all moved in together?

Brandy: Oh, there was tension with me and some of the other girls from the semifinals. Everyone was there trying to portray a character. When the final 14 girls were chosen though, that's when it really started. I think had we not all lived in the house together, there would have been a lot less tension, since we wouldn't have had to put up with the ways of the other girls.

RNO: Was there a connection with any of the other girls besides Tiffany?

Brandy: The first girl that I actually connected with was Noelle, however, once we moved into the house, we had drifted apart. That was probably because I didn't like the style of the girls that she was hanging out with. I still love her, but at the time, it was hard for us to connect with all the other girls' around.

RNO: Were the judges wrong to associate you with having a bad attitude, or do you think they were right in their perception?

Brandy: No, I wouldn't say that they were wrong to associate me with having a bad attitude. I just didn't know that I was exuding this horrible attitude that they were seeing. I see now, by watching it on TV, that I was serving it out that way, but that wasn't my intention. I realized that people's perceptions of me are much different than the way I see myself, and I'm working on fixing that.

RNO: Had you done any modeling before the show?

Brandy: I had actually never done any modeling in the past, and just jumped right in feet first!

RNO: In your opinion, do you think it's fair that someone that takes sub par pictures is advanced in the competition, while someone that is photogenic is eliminated for her personality?

Brandy: At first, yes, I did think it was a little unfair, but now I look back and figure that what happens -- happens. I thought the competition was based on pictures, but I guess they wanted someone with personality as well. I'm not going to sit here and lie though -- I was pretty upset at first.

RNO: It seemed as though you were very happy with the weave you had when you started the show, but got upset when you weren't going to get a makeover. Was there something we didn't get to see?

Brandy: See, the afro was matted. I said that if it was matted, I wanted to get a whole new look, but if it wasn't, then I wanted to keep it. After all, that's the reason Tyra picked me for the show! Since I've been eliminated, I've actually let my hair grow out, and now I have a mini-version of the afro that I had when I started the show, but this time, it's real!