Freja Beha Erichsen (who often goes by just Freja Beha) was born on October 18, 1987, in Roskilde, Denmark. Freja says she always had plans to be on the stage, however, as a youngster she thought it would be as a rockstar rather than as a supermodel. Her musical aspirations ceased in her early teens when Freja realized she couldn't carry a tune. "I shouldn't even sing in the bath," she confesses.
 
Freja was educated at Frederiksberg Gymnasium and was discovered on the streets of her native Denmark by a modeling agent passing by in a taxi. "When I was 15, I did a little modeling as a summer job. I didn't think it would become anything serious, but the little jobs led to bigger jobs and two years later I was walking down the catwalk for Prada."
 
Her world debut as a model came in 2005 at the Fall Milan and Paris shows where she walked for Prada, Louis Vuitton, and Miu Miu, opening for the latter. She proved to be a natural. Since then, Freja has appeared in ad campaigns for brands such as Balenciaga, Jil Sander, Gucci, Hugo Boss, H&M, CK by Calvin Klein, Hermès, Chanel, and Chloé; in editorials for Vogue Italia, British Vogue, Interview; and on the covers of Chinese Vogue, Vogue Nippon, V Magazine, W, Harper's Bazaar, Eurowoman, and Numéro. In addition to her print work, Freja has also opened runway shows for many fashion designers including Christian Lacroix, Zac Posen, and Balenciaga. At the Sonia Rykiel Fall '07 show, she famously high-fived Coco Rocha while walking down the runway.
 
Freja shot Chanel's Fall 2009 campaign with Karl Lagerfeld alongside Heidi Mount. The shoot was in Vermont, where Lagerfeld says, "It was very cold, the sky was blue, and the light was stunning. And the people are so nice." The backdrops for the shoot included a big wooden barn. "I've never seen such a beautiful barn in my life," he enthused.
 
Although she earns a living modeling high-end designer clothes, Freja discloses that her personal taste is considerably simpler. "Give me a tank top and some jeans and I'm very satisfied," she says. "High heels are for working."
 
One of the things that sets Freja apart from the rest is her fondness for tattoos. She currently has 13 in total, and got her first one at 16 completely spontaneously: a graphic design low down on her stomach. Freja had passed by a tattoo parlor late one night, and simply decided right then and there to get something done.
 
Her tattoos include a star under her arm, a gun on the inside of her upper left arm, three circles on her wrist, and various bits of writing, including two phrases: "This world tonight is mine," which comes from a PJ Harvey song ("my version of carpe diem"), and "This too shall pass" ("obviously I was going through some stuff when I had that done"). She also has the word float ("as in float through life, don't sink") on the side of her neck. "I just like getting them done," Freja explains. "I like the whole process, especially coming up with something you want, which never takes me long. Like the revolver. That's not a heavy symbol for me. I like guns and I think the design is pretty, and once I have an idea, I have to go there. I'm definitely hooked on getting tattoos."
 
When asked what the designers think about her tattoos, "Nobody has minded so far, I don't think," she says, "but then they weren't in obvious places at the beginning. They were easily covered. Still, I did make a deal with my agent about a year ago: She said I could get as many tattoos as I wanted as long as I didn't cut my hair." However, now she has distinctly visible tattoos and a short, boyish crop! "I just felt like it," she says of her hair, "and so I cut it myself. I don't think it affected work either way."
 
Besides modeling, Freja also enjoys music and writing lyrics in her spare time. "I really like women who can express themselves through music," she says.