Playboy model Lindsey Pelas explains why she made a 'nearly naked' calendar
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Lindsey Pelas is looking to heat up 2018 in a huge way.
The sizzling Southern belle, who launched her successful modeling career by posing for Playboy, has been keeping busy doing what she does best — striking a pose for cameras.
This year, Pelas has launched a new calendar titled “Nearly Naked” which leaves very little to the imagination. However, Pelas insisted she’s out to promote body positivity.
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Fox News spoke with Pelas about her Instagram fame, how she copes with critics and the private messages she says she gets from A-listers.
Fox News: How were you discovered?
Lindsey Pelas: I had moved to Los Angeles and I had been there for about a week. Somebody invited me to the annual Playboy Halloween party, which was the coolest thing ever… I saw Hugh Hefner coming down the stairs for pictures, but he went back inside. He didn’t really attend the party too much. This was only a few years ago, so he may have been pretty sick.
When I posed in 2014, it was kind of the first modeling opportunity I had. So I took it. But it seems so long ago [now] that I can’t really relate to that experience. Playboy has changed so much with their own identity.
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Fox News: What was life like for you growing up in Louisiana?
Pelas: Life in Louisiana was a lot different. My parents were divorced so I moved around a lot. I was kind of a Louisiana mutt, so I lived in the city and I lived in the country while I was growing up. You would attend a bonfire for a good time. Maybe the movies if you were feeling crazy and wanted to drive 20 minutes. But it was a lot simpler.
And when I graduated... [from LSU], I was a bartender. There wasn’t anyone I wanted to date. I wasn’t inspired. I was just so bored. I had to move. I love Louisiana with all of my heart, but for a young 20-something, I had to go live a little. And growing up, my friends would always tell me I didn’t belong in Louisiana. So for me, I was really happy and comfortable living in LA. I love the city, its people and its craziness.
Fox News: How important has it been for you to promote body positivity?
Pelas: I’ve always been pretty open with my own body beyond just fitness by feeling comfortable in my own skin… I get a lot of messages, emails and comments, especially from busty women... I don’t get it!... It’s so crazy how we’ve been programmed to cover up.
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Fox News: Some critics may say you’re not promoting body positivity, you’re promoting something completely different.
Pelas: A lot of people have their minds made up about you before you do anything. The way to go about it is to completely not care…
Fox News: You have a massive following on social media. But how do you handle degrading comments?
Pelas: The good thing is that most of my followers are really, really positive... So that’s a good thing. But I’ve always been active online so I’ve been picked on online long before Instagram was an option.
I was picked on in college. I worked in Hooters so people would talk about me on websites. So I’m just so used to it and I’ve never found the value of nasty comments… I know as a happy person, the last thing I want to do is let someone make me feel terrible...
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Fox News: You've said you have A-listers messaging you on Instagram.
Pelas: It’s honestly so cool! Especially when I first moved here. My favorites were some boy band members. Like major boy band members when I was a child. I had these guy’s faces up on the wall. I was memorizing their dances for their concerts. I had all of their albums. And one boy band member actually approached me in person at a party. He told me, "Oh my God Lindsey, I’m such a huge fan. I follow you on Snapchat." I told him, "... I would have killed for you." I think it’s super flattering.
Fox News: When was the last time you received a message from a celebrity?
Pelas: Pretty recently! And sadly I can’t say who it is because it would be such a big mess.
Fox News: What would it take for one of these stars to impress you?
Pelas: I think when it comes to relationships, most things are owned to timing. We always have these amazing ideas about how we will fall in love and what a person has to be. But I think it all comes down to timing and being at the right place at the right moment. I really don’t need anyone to be rich or famous or talented. But that’s a plus!
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Fox News: What was the most outrageous thing you’ve had to do for a good photo?
Pelas: I traveled to the south of Wales and I got to shoot in this castle. A real castle in England, and I guess I didn’t even know castles were real. But I was in this actual castle, a crazy medieval stunning place. I posed [with] all the original antiques and paintings. I was modeling on a rug with faces of foxes stitched together. It was super disgusting and disturbing.
Fox News: Tell us about your calendar for 2018.
Pelas: I had a calendar last year. It was my first one ever and I shot it in Louisiana. It was everything Louisiana. I dedicated it to growing up in the South. And so for this year, I wanted to top it and it needed to be more badass. The theme is nearly naked… It’s a lot about the body, but it’s also edgy and cool… My calendar last year was very sweet. This one is different.