Tyra Banks has transitioned from modeling to building a massive empire and positioning herself as the heir apparent to Oprah Winfrey. She was the first African-American to grace the cover of the SI swimsuit issue, and that cover might just be the most iconic in the history of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. That’s good enough for us when it comes to our top spot, although the number one slot certainly could have gone to any number of the women that made up this list!
