If you were a teenager between the years of 2003 – 2015 and were anything like us, chances are you watched America’s Next Top Model. And, regardless if you wanted to be a model or not (though Cycle 13 gave all petite girls hope when only women 5’7″ and under were cast in contradiction of the industry’s height standard) you still committed everything Tyra Banks said to memory. You practised your smize – that’s smiling with your eyes – in the mirror, and paced up and down your bedroom repeatedly to master a model-worthy strut.
Because as every top model knows, nothing is more important than a model’s walk. Just ask OG super Naomi Campbell. Despite famously falling during Vivienne Westwood’s 1993 show wearing a pair of 12-inch towering platforms, her attitude-filled stride is said to have inspired Beyoncé’s walk in the Crazy in Love music video 10 years later. No wonder she’s still a regular on the runways, most recently walking during the spring summer 2024 season at Alexander McQueen.
So, how do the pros do it? According to Kaia Gerber, she actually took lessons to learn how to walk in heels.
Appearing on the newly-launched series In The Know, Kaia can be seen being interviewed by animated puppet, Lauren Caspian. The fictional radio host asks how she learned to walk in heels with the daughter of Cindy Crawford replying, “I actually took lessons, and that is a true story.”
The interview continues with the cartoon asking if Kaia can remember what the key lesson was with Kaia revealing in her answer, “Yes. Don’t sway your hips.”
Lauren Caspian hilariously responds, “Well, that’s impossible for me, because I have a naturally sassy pelvis.”
“So do I,” Kaia adds. “And it proved to be an issue.”
Having become a regular on the catwalks for the likes of Valentino, Celine and Isabel Marant, it certainly seems like those lessons came in handy for getting Kaia’s hips and unruly pelvis in line (literally). The confession is also a reminder that Kendall Jenner once had walking lessons, too. Keeping Up In The Kardashian fans may remember the episode Kim Kardashian took her younger sister to a model coach ahead of her big break in the industry.
But, proving there is no *one* perfect walk, Amelia Gray commented on the funny clip, “Wait all I do is sway my hips what is going on.” The up-and-comer dominated Paris Fashion Week’s Haute Couture shows where she walked during Chanel, Alaia and Simone Rocha for Jean Paul Gaultier. And, having just posed in an underboob-baring bikini for the cover of Perfect, following in Bella Hadid’s footsteps, it’s safe to say we’re likely to see a lot more of Amelia.
If you need us in the meantime, we’ll be practising our own model walk and attempting to answer this important question: to sway or not to sway?
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