I never considered myself a confident plus-size girl when I was younger, and it wasnโt until I was older that I realized that you could be deemed more than โpretty for a big girl.โ I learned that beautiful lesson in college when I met one of the people I would later look up to, Brandi โDuchiiโ Mallory.
Positive, plus-size role models were scarce growing up. Like every other big girl in America, I was stuck finding inspiration from fictional characters whose stories often didnโt reflect the woman I wanted to be โ fierce, confident, and bold.
See, college in the South changed EVERYTHING for me. Why? Because the big girls were POPPINโ! Clark Atlanta University (CAU) had beautiful, plus-size women on its campus like Brandi, who werenโt afraid of their curves and flaunted them proudly. She later became my pageant mother for the โBold, Beautiful, & Chic Societyโ pageant and helped mold me into the confident woman I am today.ย
โShe loved everyone, and so many people loved her.โ
Accepting that one of my college role models is no longer here has been hard to swallow. Losing someone you looked up to is never an easy experience. And despite understanding how short our time on Earth is, a new loss is just another brutal reminder that life is temporary.ย
There arenโt enough words to fully describe how much she meant to her loved ones and the CAU family. But I hope my words are enough for those who didnโt know her to understand how much she impacted those around her and the legacy she left behind.
#LongLiveDuchii
Brandiโs impact extended far beyond her immediate circle. She was a former contestant of the hit TV show โExtreme Weight Loss,โ a makeup artist, plus-positive advocate, and fitness enthusiast. She touched the lives of celebrities, plus size models, young women she mentored, and countless others who found solace in her message of self-love. Brandiโs bright personality and positivity rubbed off on everyone she interacted with.ย
Two Peas in A Pod
After hearing the news, one of the first people I instantly thought of was Brandiโs best friend and brother, CJ Washington. The two had known each other for 25 years and were a huge part of each otherโs lives.ย
โBrandi lived by pretty much inspiring. She was a very inspirational person, and she wanted to see body positivity for plus size women, which was something I loved about her,โ explained the entrepreneur.ย โWhen Brandi walked into a room, she commanded the room as a plus-size woman. She was [also] very big on being a โtransformational enthusiast.โ [She] helped transform minds, bodies, and souls, whether it was through makeup, fitness, or any other types of ways. It was just what she embodied.โ
Washington described his best friend as the โepitome of love and light.โย โShe loved everyone, and so many people loved her,โ he explained.ย
Witnessing CJ Washingtonโs strength over the last month is indescribable. Not only did he take time to meet with everyone who attended, but he also ensured everyone celebrated Brandi the best way CAU could during her candlelight service.ย
โSeeing all the love sheโs received, whether it was her homegoing service or the candlelight vigil we held in Atlanta, Dallas, and Los Angeles, shows how much of an impact my best friend made on others,โ Washington shared. โBrandi shined her light, and people felt it. They saw it.โ

โShe broke so many stereotypes about women with curves through mentoring young women, competing in pageants, and being an ambassador in fitness for plus size women. So, her legacy is tremendous,โ he added.
Washington plans to keep Brandiโs legacy going so one day, everyone will know what the โBrandi Mallory Experienceโ is.
Brandi Malloryโs Impact on The Bold, Beautiful, & Chic Society
While attending CAU, Mallory was a member of multiple organizations, including Gamma Sigma Sigma National Service Sorority, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and the first attendant of CAUโs Royal Court 2010-2011, to name a few. But the organization where she changed lives, mine included, was the Bold, Beautiful, & Chic Societyโa place representing the full-figured women on campus.
Brandi Mallory was a part of the first-ever โBold, Beautiful, & Chicโ (BBC) pageant. Her pageant sister and best friend, Keia Walker, later became my pageant mother. The two spent countless hours working tirelessly for the organization. They were also inseparable on campus and contributed to my first gray hair in college. The girls that get it get it!
โWe served on the first court of the Bold, Beautiful, & Chic Society. Brandi was the first attendant, โMiss Full Figured,โ and I was the second attendant, โMiss Double XL.โ It was the first court of the organization back in January 2009,โ Walker recalled.ย

โEven in the beginning, she embraced me immediately. She took me under her wing when we started the pageant. We could relate to each other because we were the same size; we were the two โplus plusโ girls in the pageant. So, we immediately clicked [and] she always took care of me. And although we were competition, we always worked together. So, it never felt like a competition with her. It was always me and her against the world,โ Walker admitted.ย They treated and loved each other like sisters.ย
Walker continued, โAfter the pageant, I worked with her throughout BBC. I served as President, and she served as Vice President, and we worked closely together over the years, being over the organization and coordinating the pageant. Even after [Brandiโs] graduation, Brandi was always active in the organization,โ she added.ย
She commended her sisterโs hard work and daringness always to be the greatest.ย โBrandi would use the quote: โIf you reach for the stars, you might get to the top of a tree, but at least you got off the ground,'โ Walker revealed.ย
โI feel like no matter what Brandi did, she always reached for the stars. She always reached to do the greatest thing she possibly could. Just like when she was running for Miss CAU, she knew there was one previous plus size contestant who had run, and she was the second attendant. But Brandi wanted to get the queen title. That was her goal,โ Walker added. โSo, she reached for the stars. She always strived for greatnessโฆin herself and others.โ
Watching Brandi run for Miss CAU that year was an experience many on campus would not forget, especially the younger plus size students. Brandi went on to win First Attendant.
Brandiโs impact on Walker was her โgo-getterโ mentality and reaching for greatness. She always wanted people to know you could have fears and still achieve greatness.ย
โBrandi had her moments of doubt and fear. She would have her moment and then say, โOK, let me pull it together.โ But I think because people always saw the awesomeness and greatness that she did, sometimes, they forgot she was still human. They were few and far between, but she had her moments; I think anyone can relate to that,โ she said.ย
Brandi would use the quote: โIf you reach for the stars, you might get to the top of a tree, but at least you got off the ground!โ
Keia Walker
Keeping Brandi Malloryโs Legacy Alive
Walker plans to keep Brandiโs legacy alive by getting BBC (the organization) up and running again and restarting the BBC pageant, which shuttered during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the current ladies are renaming the pageant in Brandiโs honor.ย
Brandi Mallory wasnโt just a friend but a mentor who shaped peopleโs perspectives on beauty. She taught us that beauty wasnโt confined to a particular size or shape. In her bold, unapologetic demeanor, Brandi shattered the myth that plus size people couldnโt be โsexyโ or โbeautiful.โ
As we mourn the loss of Brandi, let us remember the vibrant, fearless woman she was and carry forward the lessons she imparted. Brandiโs legacy lives through her family and friends. Whether it was the plus size girl from a small military base, her childhood best friend, or a fellow peer turned pageant sister turned family, she taught everyone invaluable lessons.
She reminded us that this world continually needs a reminder to embrace diversity and celebrate everybody. May we all strive to embody the unapologetic confidence and resilience that she so effortlessly embodied.
If youโd like to honor Brandiโs memory, her Delta Sigma Theta line sisters are hosting a challenge in her honor.