YOU NEVER FORGET YOUR FIRST CRUSH / TYSON BECKFORD

“From time to time, I get obsessed”

Photographed in New York by Ricardo Gomes
Styling by Marcus Allen Lighting & Tech by Courtney Harvier Style Assistant Izaake Zuckerman Grooming by Valissa Yoe Produced by Curt Weber Production Assistant Paolo Raymundo

KING OF HEARTS: A CONVERSATION WITH TYSON BECKFORD

From the moment he stepped onto the scene, Tyson Beckford commanded attention, defining an era of male supermodels with his striking looks and undeniable presence. But beyond the iconic billboards and fashion campaigns, there’s a thoughtful, grounded individual with a rich heritage and a powerful philosophy on what it truly means to be a “king.” We caught up with the living legend to discuss everything from his Jamaican upbringing and protective spirit to unexpected career turns and his take on true royalty.

CRUSHfanzine: Dude, how are you? My algorithm is flooded with all your stuff on TikTok and Instagram.

Tyson Beckford: Oh my God. [laughs]

CF: Can I just say, I hope you don’t hear this 40 times a day, but Tyson, you’re a nice guy, but you are also Tyson fucking Beckford. For dark-skinned little Black boys, it’s like talking to Michael Jordan. This is crazy.

TB: Wow. I’ve never heard such a great compliment. Oh my God, I appreciate that. “It’s like talking to Jordan.” That’s crazy.

CF: Certain people, no matter what, have this mark that they leave on your brain. You’re one of them. Grace Jones was the same thing. Have you, as two fellow Jamaicans, been in contact with each other?

TB: I haven’t seen Grace in a minute, but every time I’m in the oddest places, I run into her.

CF: Do you speak Patois?

TB: Yes, I speak Patois very well. My dad and my brother still live in Jamaica. My mom and my stepdad are both Jamaican. Then I have a whole crew of Jamaican friends here in Miami.

CF: Did you know that New York has Juici Patty now!

TB: Yes, I saw that! Yo, that made the front page in the Jamaican publications, all the newspapers in Jamaica. We were like, “Jamaican blowing up! We are on Juici Patty!” [laughs]

CF: Kings Court is about to start. Tell me, what does it mean to be the king to you?

TB: I think what it means to be a king is not like what people think. I think what it means to be a king is to be able to help people, to be able to bring smiles, bring happiness to people, be able to bring people out of poverty, be able to make people into successful human beings, making them want to be motivated by your success. That, to me, is the epitome of a king. I don’t feel like it’s one who’s ruling and conquering. All good kings don’t punish their people. Mandela was king. Haile Selassie, he was a king. Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Obama, Michael Jordan, Mike Tyson. Those kinds of guys give me king vibes.

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CF: Was that kind of understanding, that it’s about love and generosity, always part of your personality, or did that happen a little bit with age?

TB: Always, because I think growing up in a West Indian household, we’re not shown love like what you see here in America. When I see how my son’s mom is caring and loving with my son, I wouldn’t say I’m jealous, but yes, I’m jealous. I miss that. I didn’t get that. I got tough love growing up. If I fell and hurt myself, my mother would say, “Get up.” She would clean me up, of course, but push me back out into the world and be like, “Oh, it’s just a cut. You’ll be alright.”

CF: I understand that. My partner is Jamaican, so I see the difference. He’s from Saint Thomas, Jamaica.

TB: I know Saint Thomas very well.

CF: With fostering the next generation king, what instructions do you give your son?

TB: The first thing we taught him was manners. Saying, “good morning,” “good evening,” and “how are you?” We open the door for women. It’s always the mentality of “do everything you must to protect the queen.” Walking down the street, even though my son was a little kid, I taught him to put his mother on the inside and him on the outside. To this day, he knows all those things. Right now, he, his mom, and his grandmother are driving across America, and I’m just keeping updates. I’m rifle-ready if I have to jump on a plane to meet them somewhere if somebody messes with my people.

CF: I totally understand that, because I’m very close to my parents, and they’re not getting younger.

TB: Yes, I know, and it’s scary. No one ever wants to imagine a day when they’re not there. I think about that often myself.

CF: That’s what I think one will miss, the self- sacrifice of your parents.

TB: Yes. I was talking to my son yesterday, and I started sharing things with him, like how afraid his mom and I were when we found out she was pregnant. This was the height of my career. I’m 27, working for Ralph Lauren in 1997, and things are going well. She says she’s pregnant, and I’m like, “What?” I told him, “I was so scared because we weren’t prepared. I acted like I wasn’t scared, so she wasn’t scared, but I was scared too.” I never revealed that to her. I said to him, “I should have spent more time with her during the pregnancy so she didn’t feel so alone because I was constantly on the road working.” I was thinking like a Jamaican: “Yo, I got to go get this Pampers money. I need to be able to provide.”

CF: But you also have to give yourself some space for your own growth. It’s always easy to be a “Monday morning quarterback” and discuss the past. But we always do what we are capable of at the time.

This is an odd jump, but you mentioned this during our shoot. Can you tell me just briefly about your first crush?

TB: Yes. My first crush was this girl in third grade, Susan V. She looked Latino, Mediterranean, had these hazel green eyes, a bob haircut with different streaks of colors in it. I didn’t know her nationality, but I just knew she was beautiful, and she was kind to me. Valentine’s Day came by, and I bought her this big, huge candy cane. I gave it to her. Her reaction alone was just priceless. She was just nice to me. I didn’t know what attraction was, obviously, in second grade. I didn’t know what sexuality was, but I just knew that I liked this girl.

CF: Do you remember what that person smelled like?

TB: I remember what she smelled like. She smelled amazing. She always dressed really cool. I just knew that, man, whatever it is, I just want to be around her. Whenever we had to get in line and go to lunch or anywhere, I just tried to be close to her. It was just everything: the smell, the hair, the clothes, the attitude, and her kindness.

CF: What does obsession mean to you?

TB: Obsession, to me, is when you feel like you need something. You feel like you need to be close to something that you love, but in a healthy way. I’ve often heard women say to me, “Oh my God, I’m so obsessed with you.” They mean it in the kindest way. I’ve never taken it in like, “Oh my God, I got to go get a restraining order.”

CF: You’ve never had a stalker?

TB: Oh, I’ve got stalkers now.

CF: If you were behind closed doors, how would you describe Tyson on the inside? The unfamous, not on the billboard, who’s that guy?

TB: That guy is funny. He’s a comedian. He talks to himself sometimes. He makes himself laugh. I don’t take myself too seriously. I poke fun at myself every day. I say to myself, “If the world really knew, would they still think I’m like this heartthrob? Would I still be on these Harper’s BAZAAR’s 50 most beautiful men’s list or People Magazine’s most beautiful men’s list?” Because I’m goofy. I’m a bit clumsy sometimes in my own house. I’ve fallen over just laughing at myself, and I’ve tripped and hurt myself and been like, “You’re such a klutz. If the world only knew how clumsy you are sometimes.” I’m constantly trying to improve myself, trying to do better with myself.

CF: If your life had a soundtrack, what song would be on it?

TB: Evelyn “Champagne” King, anything by her. James Brown. Bob Marley, Natural Mystic, The Weeknd, Maxwell, Marvin Gaye. Future, Jay-Z, Biggie, Skillibeng, and Masicka. All these artists would definitely be on my life soundtrack because it’s always something. Definitely the queen herself, Sade. Probably, I would have to say when I think of a song, it’d be Sade, “No Ordinary Love.” That would probably be my theme song.

CF: Romantic.

TB: Yes. As I get older, I’ve become more of a romantic now than ever before.

CF: Is there a favorite Madonna song?

TB: “Like a Virgin” Because when I got into the industry, I was definitely a virgin to just the industry itself, and not knowing what was to come. I met Madonna a few times. The Met Gala that just passed, I hung out with her and her new boyfriend, the Jamaican guy. You and he actually look alike. He’s a really nice guy. I hope to see them stay together because I can see how happy he makes her. She’s like a giddy schoolgirl.

CF: You mentioned being a bodyguard before. You were a bodyguard for Talib Kweli and John Forté?

TB: Yes. I was their bodyguard for about a good year or so because I met them out one night in Manhattan. They were so timid—they weren’t like street guys, but they weren’t punks either. See, I was a street guy, and I could spot dudes who were up to no good. I started protecting them like a big brother. Then they were like, “Yo, you should be our bodyguard.” I was like, “Okay, I’ll do that.”

CF: This is before Ralph Lauren, before all that?

TB: This is before Ralph Lauren. This is before I got on because I had taken some security classes, of course. I was also training for Golden Gloves. My mom put me in martial arts when I was young. I always had great fighting skills. I had UFC skills before I knew what UFC was because, trust me, as a pretty boy, I used to get into skirmishes and fight and straight-out brawls all the time.

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CF: Were you considered a “pretty boy?” I didn’t realize that you had that perception from others.

TB: Yes, I was thug life before Thug Life. I was that kid who was with the white tank top, Timberlands, and baggy jeans. MC Lyte had a song called “Ruffneck.” I was the epitome of that. When I was discovered, I was very muscular because I was trying to become a walk-on for the University of Miami football squad. Then, my knees just weren’t having it, so I had to walk away from that. It was tough because it was my dream. Then I just said, “Okay, well, maybe I should try boxing,” because I have this muscular build. That was it, man. I was that tough Jamaican kid because, in high school, they used to call me the Jamaican Streak because I was so fast, and I used to hit so hard.

CF: You have a protective spirit, obviously.

TB: Oh, I definitely do. I think that comes from my ancestry as a Maroons tribe member. We know wrong from right. Even now, in this era of what we’re going through with this current administration, I want to protect the immigrants. The objective of stepping on United States soil, whether you’re from here or not, is that you have rights. You have a right to go to trial. You have a right to defend yourself. You have a right to speak up for yourself. In contrast, this administration is not allowing that. To me, that’s not right.

CF: Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I loved being on the street with you while shooting. Dude, a lady said, “My ovaries are being cooked.” It was a beautiful moment. I loved it.

TB: It really was. That’s why I used to love shooting on the street in New York because you get these tough truck drivers who would ride by and be like, “Yo, Tyson, you the motherfucking man. Yo, I love you, bro.” You’d be like, “That’s why I love New York.”

CF: Do you have a secret crush?

TB: Well, I have a secret crush. I don’t want to say her name. She’s in the entertainment business. She’s doing quite well. From time to time, I get obsessed and go on her page. [laughs]

CF: If there’s a little note you would write, like you’re in high school, what would you say?

TB: I would write the old-school note: “Would you go out with me, yes or no?”