From Corporate America to the Catwalk: Josh Cummings’ Remarkable Modeling Journey”
Sometimes when success calls and the stars align, you know it’s meant to be. That’s what has happened for Josh Cummings. It’s only been a year and a half since moving to Los Angeles from Detroit, and he’s already having a whirlwind of a modeling career. What’s funny is that 6-7 years ago when his sister moved out to California, he would give her crap for moving out Detroit, complaining about the cost of living and would tell her that he would never move out there.
For years, Josh’s bread and butter has been working in Corporate America as a project manager where he facilitates, coordinates, budgets plans, and operates communications between different departments within the company he works for. His main goal there is to ensure everything is running smoothly and that their contractors and architects are meeting the expectations of the company owners. As he visited his sister in California over the years his mind began to change. Josh said he realized that, “the quality of life is a lot nicer in regards to the people you’re able to meet, opportunities that are out there, and the places he would see every time he visited.
One day, a project manager position opened up in Los Angeles so he applied, was offered the job, and made the move. “It’s like I was meant to come out here,” Josh says. Only in March of this year did Josh start pursuing a career in modeling and the opportunities have been endless. Some of the designers he’s worked with are Cross Colours – a 90s designer that once worked with Tupac and Will Smith, He walked in NYFW Fall ‘23 for Nyla Courture who he says is “cool and down to earth” and Faya Athletics on Runway 7 who is “an awesome lady to work with”. Another great producer and designer he admires and has worked with is Winny. Josh has been featured in three music videos including Mary Diamonds and Coi Leray.
We wanted to know where he gets his work ethic, drive, and inspiration from, and it’s his family. “I look up to my mother and father, and also a few of my aunts and uncles who do real estate. One uncle is an electrician and another is in finance, and they’ve done everything to help me. When I bought my first house in 2020, the whole family came together to remodel the entire hous and help me put the house together. They taught me everything; my uncles helped me learn how to lay floors, how to do lights, and install an oven. He learned a lot and his whole family helping him like this really inspired him. Some of Josh’s outside inspirations include Will Smith, Fabolous, Pharrell Williams, Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky, J. Cole, and Drake.
What keeps Josh motivated is the opportunity of 1) being able to model in other places and overseas and 2) being able to mdel for bigger brands like Louis Vuitton, Nike, and up and coming designers. His goal is to do more print work with bigger designers and use it as a secondary hustle. He’s also going to start investing in more real estate because his overall goal is to become more financially stable. “Real estate is a good investment,” he says. “It appreciates over time and I can use this to leverage my modeling career.”
He has some advice for people striving for their dreams. Josh says, “Fail fast! Go out there and chase your dreams, do what you love and what you want to do. If it doesn’t work out it’s okay, not everything is meant for you. Fail fast so you can learn from your mistakes. Understand you’ll get there if you keep putting in the work.” He emphasized, “Also, don’t compare yourself because everyone has their own journey. You don’t see the behind-the-scenes of how people get famous and what it’s like. If you’re networking and making the connections you’re supposed to, it will be there. It’s all about divine timing and manifestation.”
Josh left us with a final thought, “Don’t wait on anyone. Often people don’t do things because someone else won’t do it with them. Do it on your own! You’ll be a lot happier too.”