Who is Olandria and why she is “bigger than the program”

Inside Olandria Carthen’s rise from ‘Love Island’ fan-favorite to purpose-driven powerhouse is redefining what reality TV fame can look like.

“Love Island USA” Season 7 had social media abuzz this summer. Beyond the drama, messy love triangles, and familiar displays of ignorance, one islander has continued to stand out long after the season wrapped: Olandria Carthen.

Whether you know her as one half of “Nicolandria,” Ola, the Bama Barbie, or simply the stunning dark-skinned woman who stole the show, chances are you’ve seen Carthen somewhere on your timeline. As one of only two Black women in the original cast of this season of “Love Island USA,” audiences– especially Black women– were immediately drawn to her grace, warmth, and effortless Southern charm.

“When I was on that show, I knew I was representing more than just myself,” Carthen reflected on a recent appearance on the Go, Off Sis podcast. “I’m representing Black women as a whole. So, going on there and knowing my self-worth, my value, and self-acceptance truly helped me navigate this space. Knowing I have so much support from my community, or just from all women, means the world to me.”

On top of being a fan favorite, the 27-year-old Decatur, Alabama native is a proud graduate of Tuskegee University, where she earned her degree in logistics, materials, and supply chain management in 2022. Now, she’s using her growing platform to highlight the power of education and the lifelong impact of her HBCU experience.

Carthen described her time on campus in a livestream with HBCUBuzz saying:

“Literally the best five years of my life, literally. And a lot of people will ask, like, ‘Well, why would you choose to go to an HBCU?’ I’m like, ‘I have the rest of my life to be a minority.’ I wanted to see how it felt to be the majority when I walk around and wake up and everybody looks like me.” 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olandria (@x_olandria)

Carthen often credits Tuskegee for shaping her confidence and ability to remain calm under pressure. That foundation has carried her through not just the highs of her reality TV fame, but also the lows, from obsessive fandoms to subtle microaggressions and outright racism from both online users and some of her former castmates. When asked by ExtraTV how she maintains her composure amid so much social media noise, Carthen said her restraint comes from experience.

“Honestly, even when I was younger, I always had way more to lose than people that I was kind of [getting] into it with. I had scholarships. I had awards, and I have all these things. So, I couldn’t really act out the way I wanted to because I had way more to lose than [they did],” she reflected. “So, it kind of started at an early age. Honestly, I’m so grateful for it because now it makes it way easier to be poised in those moments that I really want to say something.”

That level of poise is rare, and it’s part of what makes Carthen’s post-Love Island journey so distinct. Rather than rushing into content creation or daily influencer routines, she took her time, choosing intention over impulse. Overwhelmed by the initial flood of attention, she opted for a slower, more strategic path forward.

“I think I took a different route. I didn’t really delve into the whole content-creating aspect. Not saying that it’s bad, but like I’m just that’s just not me,” she said. “I kind of wanted to be a little different, do more speaking engagements, talk about uplifting education, HBCUs, breaking out into the fashion industry, like trying to find different lanes. I didn’t want to be stuck in one box.”

That mindset has paid off. From partnerships with brands like Microsoft, NYX Cosmetics, Aveeno, Vaseline, and Sweetgreen to her New York Fashion Week runway debut with Sergio Hudson, Carthen is steadily carving her own lane, one defined by grace, intention, and authenticity.

Her journey is proof that you don’t have to conform to shine. As her star continues to rise, Olandria Carthen stands as a living example of why she is, in fact, “bigger than the program.”