ABOUT THE BOOK
While most kids my age were sitting in English class waiting for the bell to ring, I was thrown into the deep end of the fashion and modeling pool. From sixteen to eighteen years old, I was circling the globe and doing things I had never before imagined. I broke the rules and shattered expectations of what a normal male model could do. I wanted to write this book to connect more with my friends and fans, to share experiences, and to pass on a few things I have learned along the way. I hope that it will help and inspire others to be more confident and follow their dreams.
I have to admit, I was caught a little off guard when I turned to see about 80 girls running full speed straight at me. I was suddenly swarmed by cute French girls grabbing me, touching me, and hugging me. I looked over to my mom, who had been pushed out of the way. She was wide eyed and amazed at what was happening. The rush was crazy. I was shocked. I wasn’t sure what to do. Girl after girl was pushing her way to get close to me, asking me questions, and touching me all over. It was awkward, crazy, fun, uncomfortable, and exciting all at the same time. It was completely overwhelming. I tried my best to answer questions and understand what they were saying, but it was just plain wild.
IT WAS AWKWARD, CRAZY, FUN, UNCOMFORTABLE, AND EXCITING ALL AT THE SAME TIME
One girl, who looked a little worried, finally got my attention and asked if I could help calm her friend down. I walked over to where she was sitting on some steps near the group. She was breathing hard and crying, so I bent down and asked if she was ok. We talked for a minute, and I tried to make her feel better. We took a couple pictures and I gave her a hug. When I let go from the hug, she completely passed out right in front of me! Wow, I didn’t know what to think or do about that.
I didn’t know at the time, but the police were on their way over to see what was going on. I couldn’t understand what the police were saying, but they definitely wanted to kick us out of the park. As the number of girls increased, we walked over to the street. It started to get a little crazier with the traffic being held up and everyone wondering what was going on.
Just a couple hours earlier, I had been doing an interview in a small café with The Business of Fashion magazine. At one point in the meeting, the interviewer asked me about my ‘meet ups’. They are something I love doing. Sometimes they are planned with a couple days’ notice, or sometimes they are planned that same day. I’ll tell fans where I will be at a certain time so I can meet them. I love meeting new fans and friends, especially in foreign countries or places I have never been before. I never want people to feel like I am untouchable or unapproachable. I love my fans!
I was telling The Business of Fashion journalist about the meet ups when he suddenly said, ‘Hey, why don’t you try to do one right now? We can see you in action and take some pictures.’ I thought that might be a pretty cool idea, but I really didn’t think it would work because there was hardly any time to let people know. So I said, ‘Sure, let’s try it and see what happens.’ I did a quick post on Instagram saying that I was going to be at the Jardin des Tuileries in about an hour. Honestly, I didn’t think anyone would show up. Little did I know!
When we finally left the park and went on the street, it started to feel like everything was getting out of hand. More and more people were making their way over to the crowd. The guys from the magazine realized it was getting too crazy, so they got us in the car and we took off. We all looked back, glanced at each other, and just shook our heads in disbelief.
So here I was, barely 16 years old, just a punk kid, hardly any experience in life, traveling the world, meeting legendary people in the arts and fashion world, and making, ohhhh let’s just say, a little more money than your average 16-year-old bagging groceries. I couldn’t help but think … What is going on? How did I get here? How did this happen to me?! Well, let’s go back a few years to the beginning.
Before I go there, though, I need to say that everything I have going on in my career is an enormous blessing. I am very grateful and so lucky to have all these opportunities. I’m probably even more fortunate than I realize. I never want to come across as arrogant or cocky. I like to be confident, but there is a major difference to being confident and arrogant. I hope always to be worthy and deserving of these great things that are happening to me.
I HOPE ALWAYS TO BE WORTHY AND DESERVING OF THESE GREAT THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING TO ME
I was born on June 4, 1998, in Salt Lake City, Utah. My parents wanted to be surprised, so they decided on two names, one for a girl and one for a boy. Somehow, the name Lucky made its way on the running list. When my parents asked friends and family what they thought of the name Lucky, most people didn’t think they were serious. Some thought it would be a great name for a dog or horse. But, now, no one can imagine anything else. And the name Blue just sounded cool. So that was it.
When I was around two years old, my family moved to California. My dad got a job opportunity out there, so we moved to Orange County. That’s where I was introduced to the beach. And I’ve loved it ever since. I have so many great memories of going to the beach with my family. Most of the time we would go to T-Street beach in San Clemente. My favorite thing to do was stand on my boogie board near the water as the waves crashed on the shore. The waves would lift my board up and I’d do my best not to fall off. I loved to watch the surfers and copy what they were doing.
MY FAVORITE THING TO DO WAS STAND ON MY BOOGIE BOARD NEAR THE WATER AS THE WAVES CRASHED ON THE SHORE
T-Street was great because of the low tides. You could walk out pretty far and it stayed really shallow. My sisters and I also made countless sand castles. I really loved to play with my sisters in the sand. According to my mom, I cried whenever it was time to go home.
ACCORDING TO MY MOM, I CRIED WHENEVER IT WAS TIME TO GO HOME
A couple years later, my family packed up and moved again. My dad decided to start a business that he could run from home. In order to save money, we moved to Polson, Montana, to my grandparents’ lake house on Flathead Lake. This was where my family had gone on vacation every year since before I was born. Flathead Lake is practically in my blood! It’s the most incredible place to stay for the summer – so many fun things to do.
But this time it was different. We now lived in Montana all year. Spring, summer and fall were perfect, and the winter was very cold and long. But I loved living there. It was so beautiful and peaceful. We were about 10 miles from the nearest town, so we were pretty much by ourselves out in the woods. I remember things like helping my dad chop firewood and stacking it on the porch, sledding in the snow, and finding our Christmas tree in the woods. Looking back, one of the best things that living in Montana gave me was quality time with my family. My sisters were my best friends. I did everything with them. I loved them so much, and I knew they loved me. Yeah, in some ways we have normal sibling relationships and fight once in a while, but our bond and love for each other is very strong. And it will be forever. I will always remember that very special time on Flathead Lake.
After a couple years in Montana, the next phase was back to Utah, elementary school, new friends, and drumsticks …
MY SISTERS WERE MY BEST FRIENDS. I DID EVERYTHING WITH THEM
I guess life was pretty much normal for me as a kid in Spanish Fork, Utah. I did the usual stuff like elementary school, birthday parties, and playing with friends. I am a Mormon, so there was always some kind of youth activity going on, along with going to church every week. People at church have always been very nice and kind to me. It’s been great to grow up in the Mormon community. I know there are many misconceptions out there about Mormons, but basically we are Christians and we try to follow the example of Jesus in our lives. Mormons like to help other people. I have felt a lot of happiness in my life by helping and serving others, without expecting something in return. It’s a great way to live.
You can definitely say I was a typical boy growing up. I loved firecrackers, ball sports, slingshots, knives, guns, and all the usual boy stuff. I was always involved in playing some kind of sport when we were living in Utah. I took part in basketball, football, wrestling, soccer, and athletics. Football was probably my favorite. I was always receiver or safety. I can run like the wind. There was also a pretty good wrestling community in Spanish Fork and I started wrestling when I was around eight years old. There was some kind of tournament every week, and most of the kids in my weight class had already been doing it for a while, so I got my butt kicked a lot the first year. But I kept working hard, and eventually started winning most of my matches.
I actually learned a lot of good things about life through wrestling. I learned how to fight to win, and I learned how to handle things when they don’t go your way. With wrestling, it’s only you on the mat. There are no other teammates and you can’t hide behind someone else. You either make it happen, or you don’t. I learned that it’s ok to be mean and tough and ‘all business’ during a match but, after it’s over, you can be best friends with your opponent. I also learned good sportsmanship. It’s not always easy to shake hands when you lose. But, win or lose, you always go shake the hand of your opponent and his coaches. No matter what, it’s important to recognize someone else’s success and give them credit. I think this attitude has actually helped me in my career today. At the end of every modeling shoot or job, I do my best to walk around and shake everyone’s hand and thank all the crew members.
MRS TIFFANY TAYLOR It’s weird, but I actually remember the first time I saw Lucky. I was coaching an after-school track club and he and his sister, Pyper, had just joined. We were running laps and the two of them flew past – Lucky is a very fast runner. They both had long blond hair and looked like California surfer kids. You could tell they were best friends and that they had a wonderful bond. You also could tell they were confident and secure. They didn’t look exactly like the rest of the kids and yet no one questioned it. Instead, I felt that more people were drawn to them. They were accepting and friendly to everyone.
Two years after this, I had Lucky in my class. He was a great kid. His look had changed a little – it wasn’t California surfer anymore, it was more 1950s. He’d cut his hair and wore it slicked back, and he usually wore a leather jacket and rolled-up jeans. He beat to his own drum, literally and figuratively. Figuratively, his look was different, but he wore it with confidence and was very secure in himself. He had lots of friends and was very funny. In a literal sense, Lucky was ALWAYS drumming. He would use his fingers or pencils and drum on desks, chairs, or anything he could find. I quickly realized that he focused best when he was drumming. Once we were in the computer lab taking the end of year test. I could tell he was concentrating hard and, of course, he was drumming on the table. I knew if I asked him to stop it would break his concentration, but I also knew his drumming was disruptive to those around him. I quietly went over and asked him to walk to my co-worker’s room to borrow one of her stress balls. When he returned, I had him squeeze the stress ball while he took the test so he could concentrate but still have some rhythm. It worked great!
The best part of my life is my family. When I was born, Starlie, the eldest, was only four years old. So, all four of us kids are very close in age. My sisters are so supportive of me, and everyone helps me stay grounded. I can’t really imagine life without them. We all love each other very much. Sure, no family is perfect, including mine, but I think my family is great. Not only are we a typical family who do normal things together, but with all the modeling, music, acting and everything we do, we’re also a family business. We travel the world together, work together, play music together, and grow together. When I have my own family one day, I hope everyone will be just as close as we are.
WHEN I HAVE MY OWN FAMILY ONE DAY, I HOPE EVERYONE WILL BE JUST AS CLOSE AS WE ARE