Pitching Jack Harlow's Teen Vogue Cover Story with Tess Garcia

“I am hoping that by sticking with what I feel is right for me, eventually that'll resonate with the right people and maybe be on the right side of history.”

Photo by @Karyastreetstyle

H: What's something that you've been thinking about a lot recently?

It's kind of heavy, so apologies to take your soft question and spin it into something that's kind of intense but in my neighborhood, well New York City in general, just had an influx of 17,000 plus migrants from Central and South America, and there are a few shelters that were put up in my neighborhood within walking distance of my apartment. That's actually where I'm headed after this, to do some work. It's been in the back of my mind because on one hand I see that the city is putting people up in shelters and it's nice to know that they are putting in work for asylum seekers but on the other, I keep having these questions come up in the back of my mind, like, what happens next for these people? And I truly don't have an answer. And I'm not sure, frankly, that the city does either.

H: Will you talk a little bit about how you started writing for publications?

I had been pitching senselessly in college to editor-in-chiefs, really aimlessly, not knowing how freelance writing worked. I was just pitching to a lot of my favorite magazines and websites, and hoping that maybe someday someone would answer something. Probably about 50 pitches in to the same Editor-in-Chief at Teen Vogue, I got an answer from their Fashion Editor who I guess the Editor-in-Chief had passed my idea onto and she said, “We love it. What's your rate?” And in my head I was like, “Shit, how did she get this pitch from the Editor-in-Chief and what is my rate? How much should people charge?” And luckily, I worked an internship where I met a freelance journalist. I was able to get in touch with her and ask her for this style of story, the amount of words I was expected to write, the work I was gonna put in, and as my first freelance byline, what would make sense to charge. They ended up commissioning it and it went well. Then slowly but surely I had more pitches accepted by them.

G: I gotta ask the million-dollar question. Was the Jack Harlow article a pitch or did they reach out to you?

It was a pitch. Before any of the pitching, I reached out to his publicist and was like, “I think more women's publications need to be writing about Jack Harlow.” I felt at the time, and it feels obvious now, that he has women to think for his success, particularly Black women, for really validating his position in hip hop. Without them, who knows if he would've been legitimized in the way that he has. He said “Yeah, we're down. A Teen Vogue cover would be great.” So after talking to his publicist, I essentially pitched a story to another magazine and they said no. Then I pitched to Teen Vogue and they said “This can't be a cover, but it could be a feature.” It didn’t happen until a Senior Talent Recruiter was like “Jack Harlow would be a great cover,” and they were like, “This girl just pitched it and we told her it might not work.” They locked it down in January but weren’t even able to assign it to me until April.

H: What is your favorite piece that you've written?

I think it might be the Jack Harlow piece. I hate to say it. Like that is the most meaningful compliment to say that you could tell I was trying to handle the story with care because I understand why people would be skeptical. And I was like, I can't write this article without contextualizing my place as a white woman interviewing a white man who exists in a Black space. Like that needs to be locked and loaded because that is gonna shape the entire article and that is not the kind of thing you wanna find out at the end of an article because it informs everything about what you're about to read.

I also felt an obligation to the Teen Vogue reader and frankly, to the people who amplified him in his career, being Black women the way that they have. It is not my place to say whether this man belongs in hip hop. That is not a decision I can make, nor should I ever try. It is my place to walk you through who he is and how he feels about the things that we were all thinking.

G: Has doing these interviews with these celebrities changed your perception of celebrities or media in general?

Yeah, I would say it has. What it has changed it to? I'm not quite sure. I think in general, exposure to something makes you less taken aback by it when you are in a room with somebody. And I think it affirms the fact that I could never do that, nor would I ever want to.

H: This is a fan question. What is it like producing, Going Mental?

It’s hectic, but great in the sense that everybody's wearing a million hats. Eileen values who she works with so deeply, so it's great.

H: What is something that you think people need to hear right now?

I think people need to hear from their own communities. Watch local news, read local newspapers, listen to local radio, follow local mutual aid groups and listen to the people in your community. Listen to any way you can get in touch with what's happening on the ground right in front of you.

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🎧 Listen to Tess’ full interview on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

💻 Read more of Tess’ work here.