I was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, a condition that affected how my right leg was growing. Throughout my adolescence I received different treatments—including an amputation—and tried various types of prosthetic legs to compensate for the way my body was growing at any given time.
Marsha Elle: When Jameela Jamil asked me to be the April 2020 Playmate, I couldn’t help crying. Never in a million years did I think I would be a Playmate. The world is becoming more inclusive, and it’s inspiring to know that I can help move the needle.
My faith, my mom and my love for music helped me get through those tough times, but my ultimate saving grace was community. When I turned 16 I began attending an amputee summer camp in Salt Lake City. It was the first time I met anyone with my specific condition. I found people I could intimately relate to. I could ask them stuff like “Hey, how do you clean your prosthetic?”
I was so inspired when I got back to Orlando that I wrote a song called “Unlimbted.” Being at that camp was the beginning of accepting myself, and the song captured that. I realized that being different was a good thing.
“Unlimbted” brought me closer to my passion for music. Growing up I always dreamed of being a pop star. I liked that people couldn’t judge me on what they saw; they could only judge what they heard. Music made me feel I had a voice. It gave me a purpose and allowed me to share my story with the world.
