Kyra Thomas is an average 16 year old girl in many ways: she's a junior in high school, likes to play basketball, loves spending time with her family, is looking forward to getting her license and first car, and is looking forward to the future excitedly.
But, in many ways she's simply different. “My dad began performing with the group Zapp in 1985. By the time I was born, the group wasn't just a group—it was a family.” Growing up with Roger Troutman as a pseudo-uncle and Larry Troutman as a stand-in grandfather is the stuff legends are made of. “My mom worked at Troutman Enterprises and I went to work there every day as a baby. I was around that environment all the time.”
Her formative years were shaped by the tragic deaths of Roger and Larry and the unexpected passing of her grandparents. To release, Kyra played basketball. “I knew when I was five I wanted to be a WNBA player. I loved playing ball.” As Kyra got older, though, her love waned. “I started playing AAU ball and I noticed how competitive it was. I'm all for us competing against the other team, but teammates competing against each other? We're supposed to be working together. I just couldn't deal with that. There was no fun.”
Around that time, Kyra was approached about modeling. “Modeling was never something I wanted to do. I'm very shy and quiet and I'd never really been into that kind of stuff.” It took her sister's convincing to get her to even try it. “After I tried it, I loved it. Modeling gave me an outlet. When I model, I'm not shy and I'm not quiet. I'm not scared of being judged. I'm able to just be me.” The entrepreneur in her was born and soon, modeling was just a means to an end. “Modeling put me in contact with a lot of people. I eventually got the opportunity to style one of my shoots and just got addicted. I love styling.” In 2009, Kyra took a hiatus from the grueling demands of modeling to transition into high school, but continued styling.
“I'd been asked to come back to modeling, but I wasn't ready. Modeling is great when you can give it your all, but it's also very time consuming and takes a lot of attention. When I first entered high school, I was doing high school and college courses, styling, my niece and nephew were starting school and it was just too much. This year, I was approached again, and I felt the timing was right. I can definitely give it my all now.”
In November 2011, Kyra signed on to be the Brand Personality for RICH Designs. She will represent the brand in various capacities. “I'm so excited to have the opportunity with RICH; it's been a real blessing.”
Looking forward, the possibilities are endless. Kyra is looking for ample opportunities to grow and share her gifts and talents with the world. She's fielding offers from the alluring world of entertainment, developing her own line and even starting to host events.
