Today Amiyah has over 1.2 million followers on Instagram. But her life wasn’t always as glamorous. She was born and raised in New Orleans. She grew up with the name Arthur, but that name never felt right; she knew that she wasn’t like other boys from a very young age. Sadly, it was hard for her family to understand and accept her, but she has found acceptance in the underground scene in New Orleans.
Her family did come around in the end, and this gave her everything she needed in order to take over the world. In 2018 she won a GLAAD Rising Star Award after portraying the lead role in Fox’s “Star.” Amiyah is indeed a rising, shining star.
Stef Sanjati
Stefanie Luciana Peloza is a YouTube creator that has documented and shared her transition online for millions of people around the world to see. Her unique look is inherited thanks to Waardenburg syndrome, a genetic condition that she was born with. On her channel, she discusses what it's like to live with Waardenburg syndrome.
Sanjati has documented her facial feminization surgery on her channel, showing viewers the good, bad, and ugly sides of getting cosmetic surgeries. She has gotten many procedures done, but she is never ashamed to discuss any of them openly on her channel. And her perseverance has certainly paid off.
Jamie Raines
Jamie is a trans YouTuber from the UK. He has been making youtube videos documenting his transition from the very beginning, including the way his voice has changed while taking testosterone, his top surgery, and more. Today, he is engaged to Shaaba Luton, and the two often share details about different facets of their relationship.
Jamie met Shaaba, who is of Indian descent, before his transition. The two were good friends and started dating after Jamie started his transition. In the end, love conquered all, and with a lot of patience, they managed to find acceptance from Shaaba's family. Jamie likes saying that being trans doesn't hurt anyone but being transphobic hurts many. Smart words.
Jenna Talackova
Jenna was born in Vancouver and began transitioning at age 14. By 19, she had completed her reassignment surgery. In 2012 she applied for the Miss Universe competition, and made it to the top 70 applicants but was denied from participating in the competition because she was born a male.
But Jenna isn't the type of person that would just give up without a fight. She protested the unfair decision and ended up being allowed into the competition. The most impressive part of this story is that Jenna never set out to be an activist or an advocate for trans rights. She just fought for her own rights and ended up changing the world.
Andreja Pejic
It is safe to say that Andreja Pejic was born to be a model, no matter her gender. Andreja was born in Bosnia but had to flee her home country because of a terrible war. Luckily, she landed in Melbourne, Australia, where, at 17, she was discovered. At that time, she had already known there was something different about her gender.
That has actually given her an advantage in the modeling industry because she could model both as a woman and as a man. This made her much more versatile than your average model. In 2013, she decided to commit to what she felt was her gender all along. She had sex reassignment surgery and emerged as a woman.