The revelation that models “do not get paid” confounded many this past Fashion Month when former model Marc Sebastian shared the grim realities of the elusive career on TikTok. In a series of videos, Sebastian brought to light how models often are not paid to walk runways or to be on the covers of magazines, but instead often accrue debt at modeling agencies. All in the hopes of finally getting that big break. Until this big break happens, models are either barely getting by or receive financial support from their families.
Now add in the disparities of being a model of color and/or coming from a family that cannot financially support you, or possibly even depends on you financially, and following your modeling dreams seems like an impossibility.
The entertainment industry has made nepotism babies a hot-button topic over the past year, bringing to light the inequities in accessibility and upward movement. But in the fashion industry, nepotism babies have been a talking point for a while now, particularly in modeling.
Lily-Rose Depp, a model and actress who is the daughter of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis, recently did an interview with Elle where she shares her frustrations with the “nepotism baby” label. “The internet seems to care a lot about that kind of stuff. People are going to have preconceived ideas about you or how you got there, and I can definitely say that nothing is going to get you the part except for being right for the part,” Depp tells Elle. “The internet cares a lot more about who your family is than the people who are casting you in things. Maybe you get your foot in the door, but you still just have your foot in the door. There’s a lot of work that comes after that.” This dismissal of how big of a difference coming from a financially prosperous and industry-acclaimed family makes, left a bad taste in the mouth of many.
Not all nepotism babies get slack for being such. Acknowledging your privilege will definitely set you apart in this discussion, as well as having the talent to back up your position. Two of this generation’s top models, Gigi and Bella Hadid, are nepo babies. But they have the self-awareness most others lack.
Gigi Hadid told Vogue Australia in 2018, “I know I come from privilege, so when I started there was this big guilt of privilege, obviously,” says Hadid. “I’ve always had this big work ethic, because my parents came from nothing and I worked hard to honour them.” Hadid continues, “There are so many girls who come [from] all over the world and work their arses off and send money home to their families like my mother did, and I wanted to stand next to them backstage and for them to look at me and respect me and to know that it’s never about me trying to overshadow or take their place.”
Several models took to their Instagram stories to respond to Lily-Rose Depp’s interview. Vittoria Ceretti – a 24-year-old Italian model with clients such as Chanel, Versace, and Loewe – finished out her address with, “I have many nepo baby friends whom I respect, but I can’t stand listening to you compare yourself to me. I was not born on a sexy pillow with a view. I know it’s not your fault, but please, appreciate and know the place you came from.”
Anok Yai – a 24-year-old South Sudanese refugee who was discovered in 2018 after a picture of her at Howard University’s homecoming went viral – also chimed in on the matter. “I moved to New York with nothing but my college debt and the $30 my older sister had gave me… I remember barely being able to afford living in New York but having to budget out flights, hotels, cars for work; taking out loans so I could buy food, drowning in debt, seeing myself on billboards but having a few dollars to my name.” Yai’s response ends on a stinging note, “But goddamn if you only knew the hell we go through just to be able to stand in the same room that you were born in.”
Assa Myriam Baradji – a French model whose career began at the tender age of 14 – highlighted an experience shared by many models of color. Waiting for hours to hopefully be seen for a casting just for a white nepotism baby to show up and skip the line. “I saw the ‘daughter of’ go with her friend before every of the 30 models who had been waiting in the room for several hours, restless, watching this girl no less or better than them get in and out in 15 minutes, with a fitting even though this was a casting.” Nyagua Ruea confirmed this to be a regular occurrence and astutely pointed out, “Our reality is completely different because I don’t even think there’s any one black model who has ever benefitted from nepotism.”
Reaching the height of any industry is a great feat, but people ask that those at the top be honest about their journey.
If you want to read more reactions to Lily-Rose Depp’s comments, check out this Twitter thread compiled by @ModelsFacts.
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