With September issues coming out in all directions, I thought it would be great to pay tribute to the first African American supermodel Beverly Johnson. The New York Times named Johnson one of the 20th century's most influential people in fashion.

Beverly made history when she rose to fame as the first black model to appear on the cover of American Vogue in August 1974. A year later, she became the first black woman to appear on the cover of the French edition of Elle.

Johnson would go on to appear on more than 500 magazine covers, including her groundbreaking Vogue cover in August 1974. Johnson's appearance on the cover changed the beauty ideal in fashion, and by 1975, every major American fashion designer began using African American models.

W Magazine recently featured Iman, Naomi Campbell, and Rihanna in a September 2014 styled by Edward Enninful. The trio came together for a story celebrating fashion brand Balmain's 28-year-old creative director, Olivier Rousteing.

The spread is a major step for fashion magazines, it is nice to think that Beverly's work 30 years ago paved the way to make spreads like this a reality today. #progress

Kosi