A South American Wayu Indian from the Venezuelan border, Velasquez spent the first four years of her life in Paris, when her father worked for UNESCO. After Paris, the family relocated to Mexico for a few years and then returned to Venezuela. Her parents were both trained as teachers, so she and her five siblings received an excellent education.

At 17, Velasquez was discovered by a modeling agent visiting from Italy. She soon landed in Milan, where she began modeling. Soon, her work was sending her to Spain, Japan and France and she was making enough money to help her mother back home. After working for all the top designers in Europe, Velasquez became one of New York's only Hispanic supermodels. In 1997, she stopped modeling to study acting in Los Angeles and New York.

Now fluent in English, French and Italian as well as her native Spanish, Velasquez has appeared in films including Le Jaguar, Eruption, Beowulf, No Vacancy, Facade, Committed, Turn It Up and San Bernardo, and will next be seen in the television movie Fidel.