When you see Bella Hadid on the runway, you’d be crazy to assume she feels anxious about wearing the fierce clothes she’s modeling. Yet, in a recent interview at this year’s Vogue Fashion Festival, Ms. Hadid revealed her fears and insecurities backstage when modeling lingerie. That is until she met Rihanna and participated in the first Savage x Fenty show in 2018.
“For me, that was the first time on a runway that I felt really sexy. When I first did Fenty, I was doing other lingerie shows and I never felt powerful on a runway, like, in my underwear,” Hadid said.
Before her Savage x Fenty debut, she performed the role of a Victoria’s Secret Angel at the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. Unfortunately, the brand is suffering from many PR disasters lately, from problems with inclusivity to it’s executive team’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein and previous comments about trans and plus-sized women have no place on their runway.
Needless to say, Rihanna’s show is world’s away from the PR nightmare plaguing Victoria’s Secret brand. Hadid joined fellow models of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds. The message was body acceptance and pride in themselves. Rihanna stresses the importance of inclusivity and pride in every body. In a 2018 Vogue interview, she stated, “Women should be wearing lingerie for their damn selves. I want people to wear Savage x Fenty and think, ‘I’m a bad bitch.’”
The message resonated with Bella Hadid, who mentioned her struggles with mental health. Her depression was getting the best of her, but she met a new wave of confidence thanks to the empowering show and brand Rihanna put together.
“Showing people what I support, the things that I love in my life that I’m passionate about, is something that’s very important to me, so I hope that in the future I can show that more. For a while I just shut it off, but I’m back.”
