Donald "Don" Benjamin is an American fashion model, an actor, a musician, an author and a television personality. He competed on Guys & Girls.
Early Life[]
After spending the early years of his life in the south side of Chicago, Don and his mother moved around from Florida to Mississippi to Minneapolis. In 2005, he moved to Los Angeles to start his modeling and music career. He released his first song, "Across the Sky" in 2012.
ANTM[]
Don said in auditions that his three favorite things are money, women and attention, which was concerning to the judges. He was the sixth model called to the final cast. In episode three, he was in the bottom two with Chlea due to his lackluster photo, but saved due to his potential.
He was good friends with Renee and especially Marvin in the house. After winning the MyEveryNeed challenge in episode seven, he chose them to share his prize. In episode eleven, he was scared to go underwater for the first challenge in Bali, due to his anxiety. He and Nina had to take photographs instead, and they got the two lowest scores. He later did the weakest job at the animorphs shoot and was eliminated, devastating Marvin.
He later made a guest appearance on cycle 22 for the swimming pool challenge in episode ten.[1]
Call-Out Order[]
| Don | Episodes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 6th | 2nd | 13th | 4th | 3rd | 5th | 6th | 6th | 2nd | Eliminated | |
Post-Show[]
After the show, Don signed with Wilhelmina Models in Los Angeles. He is currently signed to Modelwerk in Hamburg and The Blossom Agency.[2][3] He was in The Fashionisto, Huge, ZEPHRA, Nylon Guys, Ogespanish Talk Show UK, Krave, Annex, Pure Dope, Black Men, Cosign, Persona, M12, BYC, Confidante, Nicki Jean, Sharp, DLXVRSN, The Blueprint Style, LEFAIR, Period, Vulkan, Nude, iMute, Alpha Male, Avante, Quixotic, and Sense.
He has modeled for Buzzfeed, ForTrayvon.com, Popular Demand, Kamorra Art Centre, Hot Topic, Fortune Cookie Clothing, Elle A. Boutique, Tilly's, Acrylick, Stay Wild, Tilted Sole, Shiekh Shoes, Pink + Dolphin, The Gents Closet, Cat Footwear, Only In America, Death by Zero Clothing, LZZR Jewelry, Forever21 Men, Lace by Tanaya, Blo Jewelry, Lord & Lord Designs, Villains LA, Schuyler 4, The Miracle Brand, Hi-Life Fashion, Wayward, House of Tre Li, Karl Kani, NuTrim Waist, Haus of JR, Roperrope, Bella + Canvas, Guess, Guess Japan, Zero Skin, Rocawear, True Religion, Bloomingdale's Holiday, boohooMAN, Marianna Naturals, The Societe, Illustrated Man Series and JAXXON.[4][5]
Acting & Television[]
Don made his acting debut in an episode of "One Ten" in 2014. He made his cinematic debut in the same year, portraying a character named Nathan in the thriller film "Matthew 18". In 2015, he was cast as Jason in the drama film "Supermodel". He also appeared in an episode of "The Insider" and "Minay TV".[6] He appeared in Ariana Grande's music video "Into You" in 2016.[7] He was in a commercial for Lexus in 2018.[8]
In 2017, he was one of ten contestants on "Scared Famous", a VH1 horror competition where reality stars live in a haunted house. The cast included cycle 3's Eva Marcille, reality TV legend Tiffany "New York" Pollard, Alaska of "RuPaul's Drag Race", and many "Love & Hip Hop" alum. Don ended up as the winner of the show and donated the $100,000 cash prize to Peace Over Violence.[9]
He later was a guest on "Wild 'N Out", and he was a contestant on "Hip Hop Squares" where his opponent was Tyson Beckford.[10]
Other Ventures[]
He released his autobiography, "My Truth" on June 11, 2020.[11][12]
Personal Life[]
In 2016, he started dating Musical.ly star Liane Valenzuela. They broke up in January of 2020 due to rumors of Don's infidelity. They got back together and got married in Hawaii on August of 2021.[13][14][15]
Trivia[]
- Don is the first model to reach the overseas destination and place 8th.
- Don is the second model from the Top Model franchise to win another reality TV competition, following Nyle DiMarco winning "Dancing with the Stars 22". He would be followed by Will Jardell winning "The Amazing Race 32".
- Don is the most followed male model on Instagram, with 1.9 million followers as of 2025.
Gallery[]
Follow Don[]
References[]
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMNHMtYi4Rw
- ↑ https://www.modelwerk.de/page/model-4898/Don_Benjamin.html
- ↑ https://www.theblossomagency.com/don-benjamin
- ↑ https://all-antm.net/thumbnails.php?album=1087&page=1
- ↑ https://all-antm.net/thumbnails.php?album=1088
- ↑ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5819173/
- ↑ https://www.mic.com/articles/144374/model-don-benjamin-reveals-what-it-was-like-being-ariana-grande-s-boy-toy-in-her-new-video
- ↑ https://www.ispot.tv/ad/wF6r/lexus-luxury-suvs-song-by-los-tatunga
- ↑ https://hellobeautiful.com/3279827/don-benjamin-guess-model/
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1623987497680485
- ↑ https://www.amazon.com/My-Truth-Don-Benjamin/dp/1735128805
- ↑ http://www.sheenmagazine.com/don-benjamin-discusses-his-new-book-my-truth/
- ↑ https://bossip.com/2036815/congratulations-don-benjamin-liane-v-say-i-do-with-lovely-hawaii-wedding-ceremony/
- ↑ https://hollywoodmask.com/p/liane-v-wedding-documentary.html
- ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/pictures/celebrity-weddings-of-2021-see-which-stars-tied-the-knot/don-benjamin-and-liane-v/
[]
| ANTM: Guys & Girls Contestants |
|---|
| GUYS: Chris Hernandez • Chris Schellenger • Cory Hindorff • Don Benjamin • Jeremy Rohmer • Marvin Cortes • Mike Scocozza • Phil Sullivan
|