St. Louis has no shortage of standout talent — but Nikki Serenity is in a lane all her own. Bold, camera-ready, and effortlessly editorial, Nikki brings a fearless presence that turns every frame into a statement — like the striking rooftop moment captured here, where high-fashion attitude meets unmistakable poise.

And here at Iconique, we recognize excellence on sight: Nikki Serenity is the winner of the Iconique Magazine Image Award 2025 for Model of the Year.

Now, it’s time to go beyond the highlights and into the heart of her journey. From navigating national media moments to building a brand that resonates far beyond St. Louis, Nikki’s story is layered with purpose, persistence, and power.

Up next: our exclusive Iconique Magazine interview with Nikki Serenity.

1. For our Iconique Magazine readers meeting you for the first time—who is Nikki Serenity in your own words, beyond the resume?

I’m Nikki Serenity, a model, influencer, actress, brand ambassador, and freelance gig worker of all types. What I do for work is a huge part of my life so this is a good thing to start with. I have built up many accomplishments over the past 10 years of my career, including being on Dr. Phil, being published in the daily mail twice, having my own episode of a Snapchat show, working with celebrities like Nelly, being published in over 100 magazines, including almost 15 covers, short films and movies, billboards, music album covers, various awards, and so much more. Outside of work I’m a loving and honest friend. I’m a Christian more importantly than anything else. I’m a crazy cat lady. I’m obsessed with music and can talk your ear off about it all day. I’m an emo kid at heart because it was never a phase. I’m a lover of things fun and exciting so I will go on the craziest roller coaster any day. I love comedy and fit humor in anywhere I can, even in the middle of an argument with my boyfriend to break the tension. You can make me die laughing if you can make a really good SpongeBob or Impractical Jokers reference. I’m a hustler who’s always working and finding more work even though I’m already working all the time I have big dreams and goals that I intend to achieve. I’m a woman who came from terrible circumstances and worked her way out of a deep, dark hole to finally become happy and successful. 

2. Your Dr. Phil appearance (“A Beautiful Rebellion”) introduced you to a wider audience. What did that moment teach you about yourself—and about visibility?

Being on Dr. Phil showed me that big things can happen even for a small town girl. It reminded me to be grateful for the amazing opportunities I have. One night I was expressing to my friend how cool it was that I got to be on Dr. Phil. The next day I found out I was going to work with Nelly. This reminded me to be grateful for the things I get to do, because you’ll only be rewarded with more. I also remember making a particular TikTok video and I was wondering why I was even wasting time on it. I was thinking that nothing would even come out of posting this video. Dr. Phil’s producers ended up finding me on TikTok and I think it might have been that video that they saw. Now I’m so thankful I posted that. It reminded me to follow what I should do instead of what I feel like doing.

3. You’ve been featured in the Daily Mail UK twice and covered by major outlets. How has mainstream press changed the way people approach you professionally?

I think it makes people take me more seriously. Every industry I have worked in I started out not being taken seriously at all. For modeling I was told I wasn’t photogenic enough. Someone asked one of the first photographers I worked with why he works with me. She didn’t see it yet, but he told her that he sees potential in me. It also took me a while to be taken seriously as an influencer but more recently I have achieved that. They give me good bragging rights and they are great résumé builders. I need to be able to stand out amongst all the other people who do what I do. It gives me credibility. It shows people that I’ve done big things so I’m not just talking. It shocks people which I love to do also.

4. You’ve been published in 103+ magazines and landed 14 covers—what do you think separates a “nice shoot” from a true cover-worthy moment?

Typically, it takes a great photographer and a great model. I’ve worked hard to get to where I am and I work with amazing people. I know there are also some things that are out of our control like how they need to fit everything on the cover so they will also pick a photo that fits that. I know that myself and the people I work with have what it takes to achieve these covers and more!

5. What was your very first “I’m really doing this” moment in modeling or entertainment—and what happened that day?

I actually got my first paid shoot pretty early on. Some people say that when you get paid, you are officially a model. It made me really excited to be able to consider myself a paid model. Also getting the really cool achievements like Dr. Phil and the daily mail were really surreal and legitimized my career even more. I was so excited and felt like I finally made it and my hard work paid off even though there’s so much more to do.

6. You’ve done 30+ music videos. What’s the biggest misconception people have about music-video work?

Sometimes they think models are just a pretty accessory for music videos or Twerking for a rapper. I’ve gotten to do some really cool music videos and even be a lead actress in some of them. Music and music videos are a great place for creativity so there’s such an endless sea of things I could do in music videos. One that stands out is “Let You Go” by The Wild & Free, which one of my best friends used to sing in. I got to be one of the lead actresses in the music video and I was the bully friend pushing her around. It wasn’t my personality, but it was so fun to get to act and I became good friends with her after that.

7. You’ve walked 16 fashion shows—what’s your personal runway mindset right before you step out?

Confidence is key for sure. Confidence has been such a huge part of modeling for me because I used to be so insecure. It’s also good to know the vibe of the show so I know what kind of walk to do. It’s also important to practice your walk.

8. You’ve appeared on billboards and cover art (album + mixtape). What did it feel like seeing your image in public at that scale?

It was so cool to see my photo on a billboard in Saint Charles, Missouri, and other cities around the United States. One of my dreams in my career has always been to be on a billboard so that checked off a box on my entertainment bucket list. I also always wanted to be on music album covers so when I was put on an album cover and then a mixtape cover, both of which I was paid for, those just checked off more bucket list items! I have these achievements on my resume forever. 

9. You’re also an actress—how do you mentally switch between “model Nikki” and “actor Nikki” on set?

It truly depends on the theme of the project. Model Nikki is usually fierce and confident. Actress Nikki could be sad, mad, crazy, or whatever the script calls for. You really have to put yourself in the shoes of someone who is in the situation you are playing. One time I had to be upset and cry so I thought about my cat dying. It helped bring on the real tears. 

10. Talk about your starring role in Zombie Resurrection—what drew you to that role, and what was the most challenging scene to film?

This was a project that Photographer and Videographer Brad Prime wrote, directed, filmed, and edited all by himself. I’ve been working with him since New Year’s Eve of 2016 and everything we’ve done has been amazing so I knew it would be a great project. I trust him fully in his artistic visions so I was excited to be a part of it our good friend, Michael Beran, owner of Wildlife Command Center starred in it with me, so I got to hang out with friends while filming. Brad trained me to act like a zombie so I got to expand my acting skills. It was probably the most proud piece of acting I’ve ever done. It scared people, made people cry, and made them feel all kinds of emotions. I’m so happy with how the film turned out and I’m really excited for the public to see it.

11. Zombie Resurrection has hit film festivals and won awards—what does it mean to you to be part of a project with that kind of impact?

It’s really nice to have your hard work recognized by other people. We can get very caught up in our own perceptions that it’s hard to see things from other people‘s point of view. It was just confirmation that our work was truly solid and we didn’t just think that because we created it. I won an award as best supporting actress, and the film won so many different awards that it was hard to keep track of all of them. This was just another great thing to add to my résumé.

12. You won a modeling competition reality TV show (Season 6), then hosted Season 7, and returned in Season 8. What changed in your mindset from competitor to host?

I had actually auditioned for season 5 and didn’t make it. I didn’t let that stop me even though I was disappointed at the time. I knew I was going to keep auditioning until I made it. So then I auditioned for season 6 and made it on the show. I was growing so much in my modeling from being a newbie to a professional during season 6. I was pushing myself to the limits, going broke shopping for wardrobe and accessories for the different stages in the competition, getting professionally trained on little to no sleep even after spraining my ankle. We were filming sometimes 12 or more hours a day. It was a lot, but it was so worth it. I ended up winning season 6 even though people thought one of the other 2 finalists was going to win. It reminded me that I really am a professional and hard work and investing pays off. Winning a modeling competition reality show is a huge bragging right and piece for my resume, and then becoming the host just made that even better. Now I got to be on the other side of the competition and encourage and help the other girls who were working for what I had also achieved. It felt really good to be able to be a leader, even though I never thought of myself as the leader type. My dream has always been to help people.

13. You’ve worked with artists like Nelly, Murphy Lee, Kyjuan, Jay E, Devon Alexander, and more—what have you learned about professionalism from working around major names?

I’ve learned that celebrities are just like us “regular people”. Some of them were some of the most chill and down to earth people I think sometimes celebrities just want to be treated like normal people. Some of them not as much, as some have big egos. I have a lot of great things to say about these people that I got to work with. I’m excited to see who the next celebrity will be who I get to work with 

14. You’ve won St. Louis Magazine A-List (2024 & 2025) as a social media influencer. What’s your strategy: consistency, creativity, community—or something else?

Voting every day, trading votes, posting and asking people to vote for me every day, etc. Consistency is definitely key. I was so consistent with it because I was so determined to win and I did. I even did these things when I didn’t feel like it. That’s the thing. A lot of people will skip doing something because they don’t feel like it sometimes it’s understandable, but you really have to break that habit if you want to get far if I followed what I felt we wouldn’t be talking about most of these things that I’ve discussed in this questionnaire.

15. You also won STL Awards 2024 Female Model of the Year—what did that award represent to you personally at that point in your career?

I know a lot of people were competing in this contest so there was some serious competition. I knew it would take a lot of consistency and hard work to win, but I managed to do it. I even remember being sick and only having half my voice at the award ceremony, but I pushed through and went because I wanted to get that plaque.

 16. You were nominated for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Headliner (2024) and won in 2025. What do you think your audience connects to most—your story, your energy, your work ethic, or your message?

I think a lot of people see how hard I work and they respect the hustle. A lot of people point out to me that I work really hard and it’s really refreshing to hear people recognize it. Some people also know my story about overcoming depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, self harm, emotional abuse, homelessness across the country at 17, etc. and then becoming a successful creator with all of these accomplishments. The people who know me and have worked with me also know I’m a kind and genuine person. I have such a pet peeve for anything fake. They can see that I’m not stuck up or full of myself and I will be kind to anyone.

18. You had an episode on Snapchat’s “The Positivity Fix.” What does “positivity” mean to you when life is real and pressure is high?

The context of positivity in this instance is body positivity. Just like my episode of Dr. Phil and my two Daily Mail publications, it was also about my body hair. They wanted to know all about my journey with body hair, especially armpit hair. It’s important to keep a level of positivity even when life is real and pressure is high because, just like I was reminded by a video I watched today, this too shall pass. We were never promised an easy life, but we can make the best of the hard times I’ve been through a lot of crazy and terrible things and I use those to help people and show where I came from to where I am now to show people what they can also do.

19. What’s the next level you’re actively building toward right now—bigger film roles, national runway, brand deals, producing, hosting…what’s the vision?

Yes, I want all of these things. I want bigger and better of what I’ve already done and more. I also want to do more in music. I actually want to sing more than anything. I’m not that great yet but seeing how much I’ve already accomplished and pushed through, I know I can do this too.

20. For aspiring models and creators watching you from St. Louis and beyond—what’s the most honest advice you can give about winning, staying booked, and staying grounded?

Work hard. Don’t give up. Don’t get discouraged. People will tell you no. You will lose things. You will have to put in a crazy amount of blood, sweat, and tears that will go unnoticed by most people. Don’t let these things stop you. If I can come from what I did and get here then you can too. It’s worth the fight and the hard work. The things I’ve achieved can never be taken from me. I want to see you all achieve your dreams too! Best blessings to all of you!