What Happened to ‘ANTM’s Miss J Alexander? His Health Issues & Life Today

It’s been eight years since America’s Next Top Model‘s final season aired. Throughout the show’s run, J Alexander (who went by Miss J on the show), served as the runway coach to the contestants. He was also a judge on several seasons.

Now, Miss J will be returning to the spotlight in the Netflix documentary Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model. He, Jay Manuel, Tyra Banks, and more will be speaking about their time on the show, revisiting some of the most controversial moments that have gone viral over the years.

Scroll down for updates about what Miss J is up to now and more.

What is Miss J doing now?

Miss J, who’s been dubbed “Queen of the Catwalk,” has not been active on social media in recent years. His last post on Instagram was in January 2024.

In a 2019 interview with Teen Vogue, he revealed that he was teaching fashion students at Savannah College of Art and Design how to walk on the runway.

“I started at SCAD in 2003 when Vogue Editor at Large, André Leon Talley, suggested I come down and train the students to move with a catwalk model spirit and voila, The Miss J Alexander and SCAD marriage bloomed,” he shared.

Miss J did a podcast interview in 2021, but the ANTM doc will be his first major project in the spotlight in years.

What health issues did Miss J Alexander have?

In 2017 Miss J revealed on Facebook that he was absent from social media for five weeks due to dealing with gallstones. He called the experience “painful” and compared the gallstones passing to “giving birth to a pack of hyenas.”

'America's Next Top Model' Alum Claims Tyra Banks Didn't Like Contestants Hugging Her

Gallstones are “hardened deposits of digestive fluid that can form in your gallbladder,” according to Mayo Clinic.

Miss J added, “But I would like to Thank Memorial Hospital in Savannah GA for getting me on the right track as well as Dr. Spiro, Dr. Schyberg, Dr. Conelly, and my nurses Tolandra and Charmaine that week.
And in New York Dr. Robert Glatter, Dr Lee Marcus, and Dr. Dlister, and Nurse Polina as I recover before heading to France for the summer.”

Are Miss J and Tyra Banks still friends?

While the exact status of Miss J’s friendship with Banks today is unclear, they do not appear to have a close relationship anymore. He did not have a total falling out with Banks like ANTM’s creative director, Jay Manuel, did, but there is no evidence of them maintaining a friendship in recent years.

AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL, judges Miss J. Alexander, Tyra Banks, Nigel Barker, Jessica White, 'Petite Ninja Warriors'

Courtesy Everett Collection

In 2020, Manuel told Variety that he and Banks have “no relationship to speak of.” Their falling out came after Manuel left the show following Season 18 in 2012. He said Banks did not have the reaction he expected when he approached her with his decision, which he made so he could focus on other aspects of his career.

“Tyra’s a businesswoman and I thought for sure she’d understand,” Manuel said on the Just the Sip podcast. “I thought I was being very lovely and respectful. She just had two words for me: ‘I’m disappointed.’ And that was it. That was the end of the discussion.”

After that, he and Banks only spoke on-camera, according to Manuel. He did mention that she apologized to him years later, but noted that the friendship “never recovered.”

Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, Monday, February 16, Netflix

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