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Leyna Bloom Announces Her SI Swimsuit 2023 Return With Majestic Video From Dominica Photo Shoot

The model made history in 2021 as the first transgender woman to be featured on the magazine’s cover.

Ananya Panchal

Leyna Bloom.

Leyna Bloom.

Leyna Bloom is officially back for the 2023 SI Swimsuit’s Issue. The model made her historic debut in 2021, when she landed the cover as the magazine’s first transgender woman to do so. She was photographed by Yu Tsai in Tampa, Fla.

Bloom shared a breathtaking video from her photo shoot in Dominica earlier this year. She donned a metallic plunging one-piece and accessorized with a chunky silver choker necklace. She waded in a majestic clear blue-green pool of water surrounded by rocks, set against a magnificent view of greenery and mountains.

The video was accompanied by the sounds of Harry Belafonte’s “Banana Boat (Day-O).”

“Daylight come, and me wan’ go home,” the 33-year-old captioned the post she shared with her 631,000 followers with lyrics from the song. “@SI_Swimsuit Round 3 Dominica 🇩🇲So happy I got to fill this entire energy✨.”

Bloom was photographed by Yu Tsai in Belize last year, and will return to the magazine for the third consecutive time this May.

“This is a huge opportunity, really on another level,” she said at the time of her cover girl moment in 2021. “Because I know it’s not just for me. It’s for all my communities—the Black girls, the Asian girls, the LGBTQ+ community—this is my moment, and I’m so proud of myself for that. But it’s also our moment, and we’re going to take it and keep stepping into our power.”

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Ananya Panchal
ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit, where she covers fashion, beauty, pop culture and the internet’s favorite personalities and trends. She joined the brand in 2022 after roles at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. Panchal loves to write about fashion in all its forms—from standout runway moments and evolving street style to the best accessories to elevate each season’s wardrobe (she rarely goes anywhere without a stack of jewelry and a coffee in hand). A self-proclaimed beauty fanatic, she’s always on the hunt for must-have products and loves breaking down viral trends. Her favorite series at the moment is spotlighting female founders and the stories behind the brands they’ve built—especially those shaping the future of fashion, wellness and tech. She is based between New York City and San Francisco and, when she’s not writing, can be found rewatching One Tree Hill, playing sudoku, trying new restaurants or ranking her favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and journalism with a minor in criminal justice from Boston University.

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