For the second year in a row, Gigi Hadid is walking in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, and while the locale might have changed from New York to Paris, Hadid’s outlook remains as bright as ever. “I put a lot of effort into just being positive this year—taking the pressure off myself and remembering to have a really good time,” she says backstage at the VS show today, sitting in a hairstylist’s chair and wearing the brand’s signature pink robe. “That’s been really cool for me, because it’s been a way to take every second in and enjoy it.”
Hadid’s friend Kendall Jenner and her younger sister, Bella Hadid, are both in town for the show, and all three have been spotted having fun in the city—sometimes in coordinating outfits. Naturally, having both her BFF and sister around is a major plus, beyond the obvious twinning fashion ops. “It helps to be able to help someone else, because you get to remind yourself of your own tips,” says Hadid. “When the show is about to start, I’ll probably be really nervous, but in rehearsal I was just excited and felt really, really good.”
When it comes time for her to step out on the runway and exude VS bombshell vibes, Hadid draws on her own self-affirming mantras to combat preshow jitters. “I think that if you walk out there and have a lot of appreciation and love for yourself, then that comes through on camera,” she says. “I think that’s why this group of girls is chosen—they’re effortlessly confident and effortlessly beautiful. You have to kind of remind yourself of that, that you’re in the show for a reason.”
And given the barrage of negative body-shaming energy Hadid has had to navigate in the past, she’s more eager than ever to underscore a positive message. “Everyone’s different—you have to know your body, listen to your body, and understand that,” she says. “I’m still learning about my body; everyone’s body is going to change. You can be one way one year and another way the next. The important thing is to accept yourself and keep learning about yourself.”
