Los Angeles, California native Gigi Hadid is one of today's reigning models-turned-"social media queens" where she boasts over 35 million Instagram followers. Perhaps most significantly, Steven Meisel photographed Hadid for the 2015 September issue of W magazine (her first mainstream American magazine cover), the 2015 Pirelli Calendar, and the cover of Vogue Italia. She has graced the covers of Vogue’s “Big Four” titles (American, British, French and Italian) as well as countless international editions of the venerable title. In early 2017, Gigi also appeared in a grayscale image shot by Inez and Vinoodh on the inaugural issue of Vogue Arabia donning a jewel-encrusted veil – a nod to her Palestinian roots.
Hadid received her big break courtesy of a Bruce Weber-lensed cover image for CR Fashion Book and a Tom Ford advertising campaign. She also starred in promotions for Versace, Stuart Weitzman, and Max Mara, as well as Balmain alongside her younger sister, Bella Hadid. The eldest Hadid sister also walked in her first-ever Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, and co-starred in two widely popular music videos: Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood" and Zayn Malik’s “Pillowtalk,” his debut single as a solo artist. Hadid, an accomplished volleyball player and equestrian, was first discovered by Guess co-founder, Paul Marciano, at age two. She appeared in several advertising campaigns for the denim conglomerate, including Baby Guess and Guess Kids, and eventually became the face of Guess Jeans’ signature label in 2012.
Within her first year of modeling as a young adult, Hadid had the great fortune of sitting for such luminaries as Mert & Marcus, Patrick Demarchelier, Mario Sorrenti, Craig McDean and Ellen Von Unwerth. During the recent prêt-à-porter collections seasons, Hadid appeared on the runways of Marc Jacobs, Dolce and Gabbana, Giles, Sonia Rykiel, and Chanel, among others.
Vogue magazine captured Hadid for the relaunch of its website in an homage to Anna Wintour's first cover for the publication, which sparked significant media attention. Gilles Bensimon photographed Hadid for the cover of the Daily Front Row print edition, and Sebastian Faena captured her for a special Icons feature in the September issue of Harper's Bazaar alongside industry veterans Lauren Hutton, Stephanie Seymour, Joan Smalls, and Lady Gaga. Faena also photographed Hadid for a boudoir-inspired portfolio in Vanity Fair.
The budding supermodel has also taken strides to become a fashion force to be reckoned with. In addition to top model, Hadid boasts both director and designer on her résumé. She directed the music video for the 2015 summer hit "Cake by the Ocean" by DNCE. In 2016, Hadid debuted her first collaborative collection with Tommy Hilfiger for the autumn/winter season. She showed her second collection the following year in LA and the brand announced two more forthcoming collections. Most recently, she designed an exclusive collection with Vogue Eyewear that features 90s-inspired styles.
In addition to her active social media presence, Hadid recently completed a year of undergraduate studies in forensic psychology.