Laith Ashley, the trans model and actor who made a cameo in Taylor Swift's "Lavender Haze" music video, shared his true feelings after getting the chance to work with the pop superstar.
Swift officially dropped the highly-anticipated music video for her hit track, "Lavender Haze," Thursday. It marked the third official video for a song from her "Midnights" album. As of press time, the video already has over 1 million likes and 11 million views.
In the official MV, Ashley plays the role of Swift's love interest. Since the release, he received several invites to hold interviews in which he opened up about his reaction regarding the public's response to his appearance.
"It's so crazy, the passion and the reach that she has because my phone has not stopped buzzing," he said, according to Rolling Stone. "It felt overwhelming but also exciting. I'm really grateful."
Ashley recalled getting a call and receiving an offer to star in Swift's new video in July. The singer's team reportedly reached out to his team, as well, to inform him about their plan to cast him specifically for the role.
Laith Ashley Details Collaboration With Taylor Swift for "Lavender Haze" Music Video
Ashley and his team did not receive further details about the role except the fact that he was reportedly going to play Swift's love interest. He initially thought Swift was working on a re-recorded album, but he - who is also an avid Swiftie - was surprised by the singer's new album.
Although he worked on it before the world heard and saw it, Ashley revealed that he only found out about the other details when it was announced last week. According to the model, Swift wore an ear wig the entire time they were filming to keep her "Midnights" plans a secret.
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He only tried to guess his collaboration based on Swift's "Midnights Mayhem" TikTok videos, which dominated the social media platform before the official album release in October.
Despite not knowing anything about it, Ashley felt included and trusted by Swift throughout the video-making. He recalled seeing her "focused but very kind," leaving everyone impressed by how she knew what exactly she would like everything to look like in the end.
Following the release of the music video, Ashley noted that his inclusion was a huge recognition for him and the LGBT+ community.
"She obviously knows she has such a huge reach and platform," he went on. "So to have someone like me be in a music video with her, she's essentially given me access to a lot of that platform. It means a lot to me and I'm sure to the LGBT community."
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