A Real model and a Role model......Zendaya Coleman

Last week, TIME released their 30 Most Influential Teens of 2015 list and among those who made the list were Kylie Jenner, Jaden Smith and Zendaya Coleman

In an extended interview today with TIME, Zendaya reveals many things her fans hardly know about her, her family, her role as a Disney star, who her heroes are, what really inspires her, and more.

On the biggest influence in her life, she said:

I’ve always looked up to people like Michael Jackson and Beyoncé. I’ve loved Michael Jackson since the minute I was born. He’s probably the most talented person ever. He was able to create such an amazing career and be probably the biggest star we’ve ever had. But also, never did he cuss in his songs. He always had a positive way of doing what he did. He had such a love for the art of music and tried to make people feel better through that.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized my true models are my parents. My mom is like a sheroe. My dad is so strong. I look up to my big sister and realize the influence she’s had on me and making me a better person. Having such a big, grounded family, I realized as you get older how important that is.

On being treated as a role model, she said:

I think I pretty much knew what I signed up for. But I wasn’t forced to do anything. It’s a gift, it’s a blessing, to be that person for a lot of people. It’s not going to be easy, I fully accept that responsibility. Another thing is, people are like, “Do you feel like you’re a role model for a lot of people?” And in the words of Tupac Shakur, I don’t feel like a role model because I’m not playing a role. I’m not pretending to be someone that I’m not in the hopes that people will like me. I’m a real model. I keep it real, I do what Zendaya does, I do what Zendaya feels right doing. If you pretend to be a role, one day that role is going to break. You’re going to want to be yourself, and people are going to be really disappointed finding out you’re not who you’ve been living your life to be. Just keep it real and be yourself—that’s what people gravitate towards. That’s why people like me or spend time looking at my Instagram. It’s because I really just like to keep it 100 percent.On how she feels about being in the position to influence young minds, she said:

I don’t think people understand the power of social media or our phones. I am really proud of the fact that I’m able to use people knowing my name and knowing who I am for good things, whether it’s a simple tweet or a paragraph about how something made me feel. There’s going to be one girl or one boy that is going to scroll past that, and it’s going to affect them in some type of way. If that helps them in a positive way through whatever they’re dealing with, then I did my job. With this platform, I’m able to work on so much charity, I’ve been able to do so many cool projects and get people donating through their phone. I think that’s really cool, using myself to promote things other than myself.

On being famous for always speaking up about body issues and unfair beauty standards, she said:

It’s a beautiful thing. It’s another role I was blessed with, I guess you could say. Now I’ve become a spokesperson for people and accepting yourself and loving yourself. Everyone has their insecurities. Even myself, as confident as I am, there are things I’m insecure about, things I worry about. But I constantly remind myself there’s a little boy or girl or grown woman out there that needs someone to look to. I feel like I can be that person. I try my best to make myself stronger and learn more about myself and not just talk the talk but walk the walk. It’s easier said than done. It’s easy for me to write a paragraph about body image and how we should all love ourselves. I don’t think that happens overnight. I don’t expect anybody to go home and feel better about themselves just because they read my tweet. I don’t think me just writing it will change someone’s life completely, but I definitely think it can spark a change or a be a piece to somebody’s puzzle.

..there’s always going to be people who are like, “You’re being dramatic! You’re doing it for attention!” Those aren’t the people that I’m worried about, and those are clearly not the people that needed to read my tweets. The people who needed to read my paragraph or see what I’m saying, those are the people that come up to me and say, “I really appreciate what you wrote.” I just had a dad come up to me a couple days ago and go, “My daughter is just hitting 13, she’s in middle school, she’s really self-conscious about her body and her seeing that really helped.” Those are the people it’s meant for. If you don’t understand or don’t get it, then that wasn’t for you. Maybe another day when I write something else, that will help you, but that wasn’t meant for you at that time.

You can read up the rest of the interview here.

Images: Just Jared