Heidi Klum puts fashion aside as TV’s talent judge

Supermodel talks about her talents other than modelling and about judging America’s Got Talent.

LOS ANGELES: German supermodel Heidi Klum, who has strutted from the runway to entrepreneur and reality TV host, will now try her hand as a judge on television competition show, America’s Got Talent.

Klum, 40, nicknamed “The Body” for her statuesque figure, has carved a career beyond modeling, as the host of Lifetime’s fashion series Project Runway and Germany’s Next Top Model.

For America’s Got Talent, the model stepped out of her role as fashion expert for the first time, to sit alongside former Spice Girl Mel B, comedian Howie Mandel and radio host Howard Stern on the judging panel for the show’s eighth season.

Klum, who has her own fashion empire with jewellery, clothing and fragrances, spoke about her transition from a model to entrepreneur and major television player in the United States and Germany.

What is it like to be in your first non-fashion role?

I think [producers] look at me as a judge that has traveled a lot for 20 years. I have climbed from the bottom up through many different maneuvers ... and I think that’s why they wanted me there. I don’t think they want me there for fashion. I look at contestants for their talent and not the way they’re dressed. That’s what I do on Project Runway.

In what kind of role do you see yourself as a judge?

I look at it as a woman, as a mom, someone who has seen a lot of shows. I think about, “Hey, is this an act that is interesting? Is this something that I want to see again? Did that excite me? Would my children love to watch this?”

Do you have any specific criteria you are looking for?

I love people that surprise me, that show me things I haven’t seen before.

What made you interested in doing a show like this?

I never saw myself as a judge on the show because I was judging on my couch at home and that was it. And when they called me I was like, “Oh my gosh, what a fun gig that would be.”

Does it remind you of auditions starting out as a model?

No, not really. When you model, people don’t really care so much of what you have to say. It’s about your look and they look at your face and your body.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10^th, 2013.                                                                                        

Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.