Miss Universe says she 'fainted' after hearing Oprah's congratulatory message
Newly crowned Zozibini Tunzi has already made an impact as Miss Universe when her message to young women quickly went viral.
The 26-year-old South African native told "Good Morning America" that she nearly passed out when she heard that Oprah Winfrey responded to her powerful answer on beauty and female empowerment.
"I fainted for a second there because I was like, 'is this Oprah-Oprah?' And they were like, 'yeah it's the real one,'" she said.
Tunzi said she feels "so strongly" about conveying the importance for young women to become leaders.
"It's something that we should be taught as young girls and grow up to be women who really want to insert themselves in spaces of power and not feel shy about wanting to be powerful and a leader," she explained.
She also hoped that her win helps break any misconceptions and stereotypes on what beauty looks like.
"Just by being on that stage and representing women who look like me" was an accomplishment, she said.
"And not just women who look like me, but women who have felt that they've been misrepresented or haven't seen a different kind of beauty," Miss Universe added.
Whether its body size or skin color, Tunzi said she was "hoping to change that narrative and say look, women are multifaceted, we're not all the same and we shouldn't be boxed into one type of beauty."
For the first time in pageant history, all four major titles -- Miss America, Miss USA, Miss Teen USA and now Miss Universe -- all belong to black women.
"It feels fantastic," Tunzi, who is the first black woman to wear the crown since 2011, said. "We come from such a racially divided world and so for us to be moving forward in unity together to say look, these are women that have rarely been celebrated in the past and finally people are starting to see the greatness that is within us -- I'm so happy to be a part of this."
Before she took the top pageant title, Tunzi admitted she once considered a different career path -- in morning television.
"This morning show came through and I wanted to try something new, and I was like maybe I could do it," she said.
But now, the powerhouse pageant winner will use her newfound platform to spread her own message for future generations.
