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Gigi Gorgeous answers questions on stage at the Trans Day of Visibility celebration in San Francisco, March 31, 2017 by Pax Ahimsa Gethen – Wikimedia Commons

Unveiling the Inspirational Stories: 10 Most Famous Trans Women

While it took the world a considerable time for the world to understand and accept transgender people, now they have been embraced as part of society. Every human being has a story, and these Trans women are no different, they each have a tale of how they got to where they are now. 

We have seen these trans women take up space in different industries from acting, the music industry, modelling, athletics, and influencing. In this article, we highlight 10 of the most famous Trans women and unveil their stories.

1. Caitlyn Jenner

Caitlyn Jenner Web Summit 2017 by Stephen McCarthy –

Caitlyn Jenner is an American media personality and retired Olympic gold medal-winning decathlete. Jenner publicly came out as a trans woman in April 2015, announcing her new name in July of that year. From 2015 to 2016, she starred in the reality television series I Am Cait, which focused on her gender transition. 

At the time of her coming out, Jenner had been called the most famous trans woman in the world. Jenner is a transgender rights activist, although her views on transgender issues have been criticized by many other trans and LGBTQ+ activists.

2. Laverne Cox

Cox at the 2014 GLAAD Media Awards by Greg Hernandez –

Laverne Cox is an American actress and LGBT advocate. She rose to prominence with her role as Sophia Burset on the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black, becoming the first transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category, and the first to be nominated for an Emmy Award since composer Angela Morley in 1990.

Cox has been noted by her LGBT peers, and many others, for being a trailblazer for the transgender community, and has won numerous awards for her activist approach in spreading awareness. Her impact and prominence in the media has led to a growing conversation about transgender culture, specifically transgender women, and how being transgender intersects with one’s race.  Read more interesting facts about Laverne Cox. 

3. Andreja Pejic

Andreja Pejic is an Australian model and actress. Since coming out as a trans woman in 2013, she has become one of the most recognizable transgender models in the world. Pejić became the first openly transgender model profiled by Vogue, in its May 2015 issue, and also became the first-ever trans woman to sign a cosmetics contract.

In late 2013, Pejić underwent sex reassignment surgery. In September 2014, Pejić announced plans on the Kickstarter crowdfunding platform to create a film about her reassignment surgery and life as a woman. 

4. Janet Mock

Janet Mock Head Shot by Juston Smith –

Janet Mock is an American writer, television host, director, producer and transgender rights activist. Her debut book, the memoir Redefining Realness, became a New York Times bestseller. She is a contributing editor for Marie Claire and a former staff editor of People magazine’s website. In 2012, Mock started a Twitter hashtag to empower transgender women, called #GirlsLikeUs, which received attention from several queer-media sites.

Assigned male at birth, Mock began her transition as a freshwoman in high school and funded her medical transition by earning money as a sex worker in her teens. The sex worker experience, although it brings deep sadness, was her means of survival as a trans person of colour. In April 2015, Oprah Winfrey invited Mock to be a guest on Super Soul Sunday for a segment titled, “Becoming Your Most Authentic Self” where she discussed proudly and unapologetically claiming her identity. Mock also identifies as having Klinefelter Syndrome. Read more on the condition and 10 Famous People with Klinefelter Syndrome. 

5. Amiyah Scott

Amiyah Scott is an American actress, model, author, and dancer. Scott underwent a partial male-to-female transition, and at 17, she fully transitioned. At this time, she moved out of her parent’s house and explored entrepreneurship opportunities. Since young adulthood, she has been a well-respected member of the LGBT ball community. Scott was the first transgender woman to be cast in the Real Housewives franchise.

Scott became an internet celebrity when videos of her performing as part of ballrooms were uploaded to YouTube. She then became Insta-famous following the posting of a before-and-after photo which contrasted her young self, styled as male, and her current self, the self-actualized female. In addition to acting, Scott is a motivational speaker and activist with the goal of giving a voice to transgender women.

6. Carmen Carrera

Life Ball 2014: Carmen Carrera and David LaChapelle on the red carpet by Manfred Werner –

Carmen Carrera is an American reality television personality, model, burlesque performer, and actress, known for appearing on the third season of the Logo reality television series RuPaul’s Drag Race, as well as its spin-off series RuPaul’s Drag U. Carrera is a transgender woman and a transgender rights activist.

Carrera had publicly identified as a gay man, and continued to present as such during the filming of the third season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, but began her gender transition when she concluded filming.

7. Trace Lysette

Trace Lysette is an American actress and recording artist whose most notable roles include Shea in the television series Transparent and Tracey in the feature film Hustlers. She was also featured in the Netflix documentary Disclosure as herself. 

Lysette’s role in Hustlers is one of the first times a trans actor has starred in a major US movie alongside A-list celebrities and is arguably the first time that an out trans actor has starred in a feature film by a major studio where the character was not specifically defined as trans in the film.

8. Isis King

Isis King –

Isis King is an American model, actress, and fashion designer. Most widely known for her role on both the eleventh cycle and the seventeenth cycle of the reality television show America’s Next Top Model, she was the first trans woman to compete on the show and became one of the most visible transgender people on television.

In 2007, King appeared in an MSNBC special titled Born in the Wrong Body, which documented the lives of transgender teens from across the United States. King began hormone replacement therapy in the summer of 2007, as part of her transitioning process. She had gender reassignment surgery in 2009, which she stated on America’s Next Top Model: All-Stars.

9. Geena Rocero

Geena Rocero is a Filipino-born American model, TED speaker, and transgender advocate based in New York City. Rocero is the founder of Gender Proud, a media production company that tells stories of the transgender community worldwide to elevate justice and equality. 

Rocero has spoken about transgender rights at the United Nations Headquarters, the World Economic Forum, and the White House. Rocero and her production company have produced and presented “Beautiful as I want to Be”, which talks about transgender youth. Another film is called” Willing and Able”, which talks about transgender employment and athletes. 

10. Gigi Gorgeous

Gigi Gorgeous answers questions on stage at the Trans Day of Visibility celebration in San Francisco, March 31, 2017 by Pax Ahimsa Gethen –

Gigi Gorgeous is a Canadian YouTuber, socialite, actress, and model. Her videos achieved popularity and established an online following. Following a brief hiatus, she gained media attention after coming out as a transgender woman in 2013 and began going by Gigi Gorgeous.

During 2014, Lazzarato personally documented her gender transition through social media profiles, notably through videos revolving around cosmetic procedures, which obtained viral status. In 2016, an incident involving Lazzarato being deported from Dubai due to her status as a transgender woman resulted in widespread media coverage. In 2019, she authored the book He Said, She Said: Lessons, Stories, and Mistakes From My Transgender Journey. 

Read more on 20 Most Famous Transgender People.