The last two years have been a roller coaster ride of success for supermodel turned actress Yaya DaCosta. After securing the first runner-up position in America's Next Top Model, where she established herself as a strong, political individual, Yaya went on to land the lead role in Take the Lead, an uplifting true life film about the Ballroom dance teacher, Pierre Dulaine (played by Antonio Banderas), who has given kids from difficult neighbourhoods in New York the opportunity to focus their energies on dancing. The 23-year-old's heart-warming portrayal as LaRhette is already the stand-out performance of 2006, because of her convincing representation of a headstrong young woman caught up in the middle of a difficult family situation, and looking for freedom from her difficulties via dance.

It's a scorching hot day in New York as I wait for Yaya DaCosta on 116th street, Lenox avenue to go for an interview. No one can dismiss this lady as not being multi-faceted. She's just spent the day caring for a young family member, having spent the previous one in acting school, and she's off to help support a slam event tonight (as well as doing this interview). On top of that, she's just finished promotion for her role in Take the Lead, and over the next few weeks she'll be attending further auditions for film roles, and she's not righting-off the possibility of returning to university to undertake a graduate degree. Her dedication to her trade, and her ability to juggle it with her other interests, is admirable.

On first impression, it's evident that Yaya's a model, with her slim and elegant body, but it's not until she takes off her sunglasses that the impact of her beauty takes its full effect. Let's put it this way, when eyes were being handed out, this lady was clearly at the front of queue, and it's this effect among other things that has made her the photographers favourite. But since her acting career's taken off, she doesn't consider herself a model, and now rarely does any photoshoots that aren't related to her film and acting roles.

The 23-year-old was born in Harlem, the home of the Harlem Renaissance and the Harlem bookstore, key movements in breaking down the oppressive American regime, so it might seem inevitable that a young woman from this neighbourhood would emerge with a political conscience and attitude. However, Yaya reveals that this wasn't necessarily the case:

"Unfortunately it's hard in 2006 to see remnants of the Harlem that was. When I was growing up, my particular neighbourhood was one of the most dangerous in NYC. It was considered the drugs central of NYC. Our home was high-up so I didn't worry too much, but you would often hear gun shots at night and then the next day you'd see cardboard boxes with flowers and pictures of the person who had been killed.

"We lived high up because though we lived in NYC, my parents didn't want us to feel like we were stuck in the jungle, and we should have views of the river and New Jersey, and feel like you were part of the world instead of just looking out of the window at another brick building. For my parents, it was about showing the world that was out there.

"Despite this, it was hard to feel like you were growing up in this beautiful, historic neighbourhood because all I knew was, get home at a certain time, and at Halloween, don't go trick-or treating.'"

"If you asked people about the Harlem Renaissance, some will know about it, others won't. A lot of people round here are more concerned about being able to pay rent and the problem of being pushed further up town to the outskirts of the city and into the Bronx. When I was growing up, I never saw white people in Harlem, but now there are a lot of white people around here. My block is made up of about 50% white people. As a result, people who have lived here for years are being pushed out of the area by growing house prices. It's a controversial situation."

Yaya talks about how she got her role in Take the Lead.

"I was sent out on auditions, doing pilots, and some crazy things that hopefully people will never see. One of these auditions was for Take the Lead.

"I got two call backs from the initial audition. The director came down to meet me, and I also met with Pierre Dulaine who the film is based upon. It all happened really quickly, and within one week and a half I was on a plane to Toronto to be a part of the film."

An inspiring experience…

"There were so many great actors on set. Alfre Woodward, who played the Principal in the film, is a fantastic actress and has received a great deal of recognition since she appeared on Desperate Housewives.

"Working with Antonio Banderas was an inspiring experience. When we filmed our first scene together, he could tell I was nervous. I had done this before but not at this level, so there was so much to think about, but Antonio was great and said some encouraging things to me. After he found out I spoke Spanish he would come over and say things to me in the language, which would make me feel more comfortable. He was very down-to-earth, like a peer and would hang out with us.

"I've heard horror stories about people being on set and not getting on, but everyone was so cool. Even after working together for a tedious thirteen hours we would still eat together and then go back and hang out at someone's room in the hotel we all stayed in. Some of the guys would make beats and the girls would dance around to the music. We'd go out at weekends and dance at the clubs and as a result it turned out to be a real bonding experience."

Working with co-star, Rob Brown was cool…

"Though he's had an amazing career for such a young guy, I don't think Rob is in to the whole star thing. He's still in university, and despite having done a few movies he comes across as if 'that's cool but I've got to do my mid-terms now'. When he was on set he was serious about what he was doing, but it was never like he had to be the biggest actor in the world. He's very cool and down to earth about it all."

Dancing can be a great way of breaking down social barriers …

"Dance is easier for everyone to be a part of because it doesn't require you to go out and buy an instrument, because your body is the instrument. Dance is universal, and everyone can relate to it, so even when people think they can't dance and don't have rhythm, when they're free from being conscious of people watching, they transform, which is why in the movie the characters break through the barriers that were originally there for them."

Yaya graced our screens as a hopeful model in Tyra Banks' hit show, America's Next Top Model.

Dacosta initially came to the attention of the American public when she was selected to appear on season three of the Tyra Banks fronted America's Next Top Model. She would go onto prove herself as a strong individual who was keen to speak her mind, but why would an independent young woman with a degree from Brown University want to appear on a show where women are predominantly judged on their beauty.

"I hadn't watched the show much before as I was busy with my studies in college. I watched it a few times and thought it was funny, so in the middle of writing a 30-page paper I decided to fill out the application form, just for a laugh. I used the questions on the application as an opportunity to take study breaks. I submitted the application at the last minute, the deadline was midnight, and then I was called in.

"I guess I did it because my parents used to take us to after school programmes where we were encouraged to dance, play the violin and piano. We always had to bring home A's, so academics came first. But when I came out of college I didn't know what my next job was going to be. There was an opportunity to work for the UN, but my French wasn't that good, so I decided I'd do something fun."

The show wasn't bitchy… it was a blessing…

"In my memory, the experience was quite a pleasant one, but watching it on television messes with your memory because of the way things are edited.

"Looking back, I think it's a blessing that I did it, and was a part of it but it's also blessing that I didn't win.

"Also, before I did it I had never really cared that much about my looks. When I was little, people used to say 'what a cute little girl, you should put her into modelling', but my parents never thought that was a good idea because of how quickly children have to grow up in the modelling industry.

Suddenly looks mattered…

"It was refreshing to care for the first time about how I looked every morning. Before the show, I used to go to college in my pyjamas and would be in the dance studio and all over the place and didn't really spend too much time caring about my looks. Suddenly, everything became about how you look… I would look in the mirror in the morning and know that my survival in the competition depended on how good I shaped up. It was also fun, because I am a girl -girls like to look pretty and dress up."

Transcultural origins

"My family is different. My father's Brazilian and we have West African, Native American, Cherokee and Irish blood. In the USA, most people who've lived in this country for generations are mutts; we're a mixture of a number of different cultures, so why not embrace that fact. Some people come up to me and say 'wow, I've never seen black Japanese before'."

"At college, I studied Africana Studies and International Relations. Africana refers to the Diaspora, so we studied Africans in Brazil, Africans in the US, and Africans in the Caribbean. Because of the family I was brought up in, I was given a real strong sense of ownership about our culture, who I am and where I come from. My family come from so many different places, so it wasn't hard for me to go to Brazil and feel at home. I had grandparents that lived in St Croix, so I could also go down to the Caribbean and feel at home."

"I look forward to going to countries on the Mother continent and hope to feel at home because as long as you shed this big sense of entitlement to everything, that everyone should speak English and cater to me, once you've shed that, or even if you don't have it at all, you're received so well and you can travel and be free."

Embracing natural beauty…

"It is a lot to think about, being self conscious as you go about the world, but one thing that I miss since I became famous is the interaction I had with people. A lot of New Yorkers don't ever talk to strangers, but I used to do it all the time. It was real organic human relations, but I don't do that so much anymore."

I am not the girl in Kanye West's, Gold Digger video…

"I say she's a gold digger but she ain't messing with no broke bleep'- I say 'No, that's not for me.' Thanks Kanye, you do your thing, and I'll do mine! That's just not for me. I don't have anything against music videos, and I'd like to do one that's fun and makes a lot of sense, particularly with an artist like Common. It's just hard these days to do videos because you never know what they'll look like, and I'm not excited about the way women are portrayed. In fact, I'm often disgusted. If there wasn't the need for a scantily clad woman in the background and there was a story line, then I'd be interested."

Yaya's natural look…

"For little black girls the ideal way to look is like Beyonce, Mary J. Blige or Sierra, and it's hard for them because they were born with curly hair. As women, we are masters of transformation. Hair is an art and we do marvellous things with our hair, but sometimes it's nice to see examples of women who embrace how we look naturally. Not everyone has to have long brown straight hair, because that's not natural. And yes it's beautiful and it's feminine, but wearing your hair naturally can be too. I think being in an advert and looking natural can be very beautiful.

"I'm not saying I don't straighten my hair. Sometimes when I go to audition for a film role, I'll straighten my hair, if that's how I think the character would wear it.

"However, when there are so few examples out there of the real you, I'm happy to provide the other side."

"As far as modelling is concerned, what I appreciate about the exposure is because people, particularly older women grandmothers come up to me and say that I remind them of themselves. Whether people are wearing their hair naturally because it's trendy or it means something to them doesn't really matter because the point is that it's the new acceptance of self. It's about loving yourself for who you are, and then going out and exploring other things."

The nudity thing…

"There are some parts that are art, and then those that are borderline exploitive."

"I don't think I'd do a Monsters Ball but I'm not ashamed of the human body. If it makes sense and if it serves a purpose, and it talks about the issue seriously, and that character is naked in that scene, and it's done tastefully, then I'm not going to say no, but I'm usually v.careful."

"Being a woman, when I'm walking down the street, 90% of my interaction is with men. It makes it hard to think about having daughters, when the big boys, not even men, have a bad attitude. It's no longer 'good evening, how are you', it's kind of 'hey sexy, how you doing', and if you don't respond you get told where to go, or to 'suck my d..k'. It's awful and that's the kind of the mentality that's being perpetuated by the videos, that I'm not doing."

Yaya can currently be seen in Take the Lead opposite Antonio Banderas and Rob Brown. The film is on international release.