Gisele Bündchen x Kendall Jenner: Who Deserves The Crown?

It is a well-known fact that Gisele Bündchen is the greatest supermodel of all time, however, with Kendall Jenner's rapid rise to stardom, Gisele’s title began to be questioned. For the people who are still living in the stone age and have no idea of what I am talking about, Gisele Bündchen is a Brazilian supermodel who changed the conceptions of models for her time because of her nose and curves. Kendall Jenner is part of the Kardashian-Jenner clan (if you don't know who they are then there's nothing I can do except tell you to open Instagram) and she began her modeling career a few years ago and was replaced on Gisele’s highest paying model title. The inquiries raised are whether Kendall deserves the title or is a better model than Gisele. Here I bring 3 aspects that are being discussed in the media about these iconic figures in the fashion industry so you’ll have something to talk about in an awkward lunch and share your opinion on this super relevant and life-changing topic.

Let's start with Kendall's background. As being part of the Kardashian-Jenner clan, she grew up with many cameras around her and no such thing as privacy. She obviously did not have a normal childhood, growing up with her every move being watched by millions and partying on the weekends with Hailey Bieber and Bella Hadid. Because of her family's status getting into modeling was no problem, in fact, if she wanted to become an astronaut she could. As soon as she began modeling she was already invited to top-tier shows such as Sherri Hill, Marc Jacobs Givenchy, and Chanel. On the other hand, Gisele's story is a little different. She is one of five daughters and was teased as a kid for having a big nose, being too tall, or too skinny. She was raised in a small town called Horizontina and made occasional trips to São Paulo. On one of these trips, she was at a McDonald's where she was cast by an agent. She then began attending castings. At first, they weren't all too well, telling Gisele her nose was too big, or her body shape wasn't the right and some even said she would never make it in the industry. However, Gisele persisted and found herself living in New York City at the age of 16 to pursue modeling. Alexander McQueen saw her potential and cast her for his 1998 spring-summer show. After that it all became history and her fame skyrocketed.

In Gisele's career, she has been featured in over 140 Vogue covers and countless other magazines. She has worked for leading designers such as Alexander McQueen and Dolce&Gabbana (today leading in controversies, but that's a topic for another article) and landed a 25 million dollar contract with Victoria Secret in 2000, where she was also titled "The most beautiful girl in the world" by Rolling Stones magazine. By 2004 she was nominated the highest-paid model by Forbes until she was debunked by Kendall in 2017. Now in Kendall's career, she worked with amazing designers such as Givenchy, Chanel, Fendi, and Diane von Furstenberg. She has settled contracts with brands such as Estée Lauder, Calvi Klein, and Victoria Secrets.

Being public figures, there is no doubt both models have had their fair share of scandals and been subject to critics in the media.. Kendall Jenner’s notorious scandal was in 2017 for a poorly thought out Pepsi commercial. Pepsi's commercials are known for having the most renowned celebrities in it like Michael Jackson, Cindy Crawford and Shakira which were a huge success, however for Kendall the attention being received from the ad is better described as a disaster. It had a huge repercussion on the media because it appropriated "a nationwide protest movement following police shootings of African Americans" according to NBC News. In the ad, there is a protest going on where she joins and hands a Pepsi to an officer as if this would solve the issue and end the protest. Needless to say, the media went crazy after her. Other controversies Kendall was a part of where using an Afro-American hairstyle in a Vogue photoshoot, endorsing a brand she doesn't use (Proactiv, a skincare brand), booing at a football game, and promoting the Frye festival in 2017. Now, Gisele doesn't have the best history concerning motherhood commentaries. She has referred to pregnant women as garbage disposals in an interview where she said that mothers decide to turn into garbage disposals, but she was mindful of what she ate. Or once, she was accused of endangering her newborn during a trip to Costa Rica in 2013 where she was riding a quad- a notoriously dangerous vehicle and had her 3-month old baby strapped to her in a carrier. The media viewed her as a hypocrite because of her views on children's safety and past controversies.

With that being said, there is no doubt that Gisele deserves the crown. The media forgets Kendall grew up with millions of followers, and Gisele 20 years ago was nothing. In her time there was no social media but due to her hard work (emphasis on her because Kendall has a whole team behind her, the only thing she actually has to do is look pretty for the photos) and talent, she was able to get to the top. Kendall was already halfway there. Both of them have achieved great things in their careers, and it is valid to point out that Kendall has less than 10 years of career, whereas Gisele had 25, but still accomplished outstanding titles and deals. Both also had their fair share of controversies, and it's up to you to decide whether one outweighs the other. But in the end, we can't say Kendall deserves it because she only achieved this as a result of nepotism.