General Discussion

[secretlife2000]

@lucyford makes a lot of sense now that you explained it, honestly despite being a celebrity and a model Adriana leads a super simple life...probably cos like you said she doesn’t overstep her work boundaries. Also I never knew they weren’t that close, I thought they were besties at some point...interesting to learn that. I respect that she doesn’t care enough to social climb lol she’s rlly not superficial for someone that works in fashion. Tbh I like Ale’s work but she rubs me off the wrong way sometimes

[Marsnoop]

I'm convinced the only reason Irina has her career nowadays is because of her networking and her constantly schmoozing it with the designers (Donatella, Riccardo), photographers (Mert and Marcus, Luigi and Iango), casting directors (PG del Moro, Samuel Ellis), and popular established models (Joan, Natasha, Candice).  She's not going to work for every brand (Chanel for example) but she has sufficient exposure to be booked repeatedly and to remind the industry that she is present, relevant, and can sell.  

 

Adriana and Alessandra, for that matter, have the same problem when it comes to networking and who they keep their company with.  I don't think they play the social game and despite the best bookers in the world a lot of this industry is superficial and who you have made friendships/connections with.  

[secretlife2000]

@Marsnoop agree with Irina, if you really look at her photos most of her work is (objectively) repetitive and she started doing runway really late. something about Irina is likeable though, I mean even Adriana who is quite distant from the other models seems to vibe with her... I think Adri and Ale are both rlly comfortable esp w all the bank they made as angels, but it’s also unsettling to know that they’re probably more talented than a lot of ppl being booked for big campaigns etc but aren’t getting those jobs cos they aren’t playing the social game. It could also be that they’re more selective now that they’re established and demand higher prices, or choose to spend more time w the kids. Both of them are a lot more fortunate than the lesser known VS angels doe that might be struggling a little due to VS’ decline...I mean just imagine all the new Pink models that have less chances of reaching the global recognition that they have

[lucyford]

Agree. The industry is a social game. That was my biggest worry with Adriana's no agency thing. With no agency, she should be networking much more than ever before but i dont see her making that move. She needs to hire an agent to do it for her. 

[Clauds]

There's two main reasons why IMO, Irina is doing so well: She has had two very high-profile relationships which put her on the map and made her a familiar name and face to pretty much everyone who watches football or movies, so she started getting a lot of commercial gigs and considering she's still getting a lot of jobs, I'm sure she's a great seller. But love her or hate her, people know her face.

 

The second reason and probably more important: she's smarter and has made better career choices such as, indeed, networking a lot. She's also made the right connections and worked with the right people. Adriana and Alessandra both made the mistake of staying with VS for way too long which was a very, very restrictive contract that kept them from working with a lot of people. Irina, on the other hand never had those restrictions and has been jumping from brand to brand for a while and made a lot of connections in the process, Rosie is another example of someone who made the right connections and was smart enough to leave VS at the right time and it paid off. Miranda also left VS in good timing, networked a lot afterwards and right after VS she was doing really well until she decided to change her focus.

 

I adore Adriana, she's been my favorite model for a long, long, long time but she stayed way too long with VS and while it says a lot about her loyalty, I'm afraid being tied to the same team for 20 years was not the greatest career move, especially when you consider that VS has been a sinking ship for a few years now. She should have left in 2014, 2016 at the absolute latest.

[secretlife2000]

@lucyford I think Adri is used to the traditional modeling system, and idk if she realizes just how much it changed...it’s either she gets an agent like you said or makes an effort to put herself out there (both in the industry and online)

[secretlife2000]

@Clauds Irina is really smart. She understands what Ale and Adri don’t (not to the extent that she does), that in this day and age it’s all about marketing. Just by looking at her social media, and who she associates herself w, she’s constantly working on her personal branding. Yes, her come up was slow but she managed her career the right way. Nobody even remembers that for a time she was known mostly for Sports Illustrated. I agree with Rosie, for me she’s one of the OGs that knows how to adapt...it’s crazy that she still has this grab on the youth considering she’s been modeling for so long. Rosie realized what the others didn’t (and what Behati etc should’ve) and that is you just have to give ppl what they want lol literally all she had to do to stay relevant is to wear clothes online that appealed to her target market, she did it and pulled it off. Adri follows her heart...with relationships, the people she works w (make up artists, photographers like Jerome, VS...) and even the circles she spends most of her time in. It’s hard to do what Irina does w values like Adri’s, but to be fair she has the money already unlike Irina that is still trying to financially secure herself I assume. Despite what models like Adri will tell you about authenticity, the industry no longer cares about that...it’s just about who sells, it’s rlly sad tbh 

[secretlife2000]

It’s not even that people don’t want to work with Adri, even with her not so great social media game brands like Miu Miu give her the time of the day. She has to reciprocate...Kegrand and Marc Jacobs for ex obviously stan her I feel that she needs to maintain and grow connections with people like that, my fear is that one day she’ll be forced to retire bcos she can’t keep up w the new system. She earned her queen status w VS tho, and at least she has made history and a lot of money doing that 

[lucyford]

imma just gonna hope her or someone from her team checks on here occasionally because we are just giving constructive criticism that would help her tremendously if she worked on those things

[secretlife2000]

@lucyford hahaha I’m always so tempted to just email her team the constructive criticism you guys have been pitching on here 

[lucyford]

@secretlife2000 well she has her new business email on her account that i recall. I say, feel free to do it on behalf of all of us lol

[secretlife2000]

just wanted to add, but another smart angel is Romee...it was really smart of her to make a YouTube channel which she doesn’t even edit herself I think. from what I’ve seen, it’s just a lot of day in my life vids and routines but she did a good job of keeping her audience interested

[lucyford]

honestly tho, i dont think it's just about who is smart and who isn't. maybe adriana is aware of these things other models do, but she isnt the type to kiss up like irina. and isnt the type to want to be more of an influencer/model  like romee doing youtube or tiktok and holding photo shoots for ig.

[secretlife2000]

@lucyford you make a good point 

[Marsnoop]

1 hour ago, Clauds said:

There's two main reasons why IMO, Irina is doing so well: She has had two very high-profile relationships which put her on the map and made her a familiar name and face to pretty much everyone who watches football or movies, so she started getting a lot of commercial gigs and considering she's still getting a lot of jobs, I'm sure she's a great seller. But love her or hate her, people know her face.

 

The second reason and probably more important: she's smarter and has made better career choices such as, indeed, networking a lot. She's also made the right connections and worked with the right people. Adriana and Alessandra both made the mistake of staying with VS for way too long which was a very, very restrictive contract that kept them from working with a lot of people. Irina, on the other hand never had those restrictions and has been jumping from brand to brand for a while and made a lot of connections in the process, Rosie is another example of someone who made the right connections and was smart enough to leave VS at the right time and it paid off. Miranda also left VS in good timing, networked a lot afterwards and right after VS she was doing really well until she decided to change her focus.

 

I adore Adriana, she's been my favorite model for a long, long, long time but she stayed way too long with VS and while it says a lot about her loyalty, I'm afraid being tied to the same team for 20 years was not the greatest career move, especially when you consider that VS has been a sinking ship for a few years now. She should have left in 2014, 2016 at the absolute latest.

 

The boyfriend thing is undeniable.  I hate to say "she is where she is because of who she dated" but those high profile relationships certainly paved the way for her to get noticed.  Same thing happened with Gisele and Leo, and I see the same thing happening with Kaia and Jacob Elordi.  Adriana had brief flings with Lenny K and that Prince from that tiny microstate, but nothing otherwise.  And Ale has never seemed interested in dating anyone famous.  

 

Now to the latter point, I really struggle with Adriana's and Ale's decision to stay with VS as long as they did.  I am mostly inclined to side with you and believe that they overstayed their welcome and should have left earlier, probably right after they got the dual fantasy bras.  That would have been a perfect goodbye.  However, the only real work they did after that was walking in the show, and it brought the brand and themselves attention.  To me what was more damaging are the early years they spent dedicated to the brand.  2003-2006 I know for a fact Alessandra was shooting with VS every single day except holidays.  She barely had any work outside of that. The restrictive contract is one of the reasons Isabeli never accepted her angel contract.  But if it weren't for VS, would Ale and Adriana be as large as they are today?  I don't know, and I suppose we'll never know.  Miranda and Rosie were smart enough  to jump ship, but they really don't even model these days.  And even if it might be rare, Ale and Adriana are still booking covers and editorials.  

 

I think it's important to compare them to their contemporaries, and especially the Brazilian ones.  Out of the the Brazilian "wave" there are only 5 top models that are still relevant today:

 

-Gisele

-Isabeli

-Raquel

-Adriana

-Alessandra

 

Caroline Trentini came later, but I would add her too to the list.  The other Brazilians of their generation have moved on: Ana BB, Caroline Ribeiro, Fernanda T, Fabiane N, Mariana W, Ana Claudia Michels, Raica, Leticia B, Michelle Alves, etc.  And even among the non-Brazilians, let's take Karolina Kurkova.  She was a much bigger model than Adriana and Ale combined, and yet right now she's not doing any better.  We have Mariacarla Boscono who's still working at an iconic pace, but she doesn't have 10% of the same recognition as Adriana/Ale.  On the more commercial side we had Marisa Miller, who doesn't do anything anymore.  The fact is that short of becoming a TV actress/personality, Adriana and Ale have held onto the job of "model" for a really long time.  

 

The truth is this industry sucks, and it's really hard to navigate.  I'm happy Adriana and Ale are still around and have proven their longevity.  I used to remember the comments about how they were commercial, GQ/men's magazine, swimsuit pinups and nothing else.  And I think the past 2 decades they've proven their versatility and the fact that they are indeed good iconic models in their own right.  I think if there's one thing I regret is how when they were huge with VS, everyone in the fashion community looked down on VS.  The HF community thought being commercial was the worst thing in the world.  That's why Heidi never had much of a fashion resume.  But look at the world now with the Hadids and Kendall, it's a completely different ballgame.  Candice had less of a fashion pedigree than Adriana/Ale before she joined VS, but the VS allowed her to transition to fashion.  Same with Miranda (even though she decided to just be an organic billionaire housewife). 

 

I get upset sometimes that Adriana and Ale don't have the same fashion impact nowadays than let's say Candice/Irina but they are also 6-8 years older than them, about to be 40.  Their lives are in different places, and they may never get the big 4 Vogue covers that we all want, but booking those just doesn't mean what it used to.  Even the photoshoots these days are all so blah, they have no budget, there's no glamour, no fantasy.  Everything looks the same because there's no money to invest in the sets/hair/makeup and all the things needed to produce iconic images anymore.  It's all about that IG influencer lifestyle, and everything is becoming democratized and beautiful gorgeous girls aren't in Vogue.  Nowadays, people want to see themselves in Vogue and so I think it's a lot harder to sell a cover star like Adriana or Ale who don't have much going on aside from being gorgeous.  Ale I noticed has decided to branch out into ocean sustainability and go the Gisele Earth mother route, but again, you need to give these magazines something to promote (an upcoming album, book, YouTube channel, whatever) and I think Ale and Adriana are pretty happy being hot millionaires.  At this point I kinda wish they would buy their covers, God knows the magazines need the money!  Anyways, just my two cents, end of rant.  Thank you for reading.  

[Souled-Out]

2 hours ago, lucyford said:

honestly tho, i dont think it's just about who is smart and who isn't. maybe adriana is aware of these things other models do, but she isnt the type to kiss up like irina. and isnt the type to want to be more of an influencer/model  like romee doing youtube or tiktok and holding photo shoots for ig.

 

I agree with this. I don't care what Irina does, at the end of the day she clearly needed those relationships. Not only because it changed her career but I am not impressed by her actual work. She is far from the best model. She had to rely on everything BUT talent and what not to get where she is. She will never be comparable in my eyes. And to me she is still a model who just books. She hasn't gone all out to break records and make history with her work like Adriana or Gisele or Tyra. These are models who have REAL bragging rights because of how they sell or what they managed to achieve with their work. Irina's career isn't like that, she just gets an opportunity any model who tries HARD ENOUGH will also get. But sometimes she blows those chances because she isn't that talented.   I also agree with @Marsnoop another thing is they aren't even the same ages. Irina eventually will come to a point where her work slows down too, and honestly will she be known as iconic as Adriana for her actual work, I don't see that yet.  She would be just another top model who has her successful run. Plenty of models have had those and will have those. but not plenty of models have down what Adriana managed when she was around the ages of Irina and Candice, especially Candice. She has been booking more but Adriana still has her beat in terms of over all career. I would be surprised if she surpasses her because Candice seems more like an Adriana than Irina, she doesn't kiss up nor does she get involved in high profile relationships.

[lucyford]

@Souled-Out Yea I think Irina in general is known more because of those relationships than her actual work. Yes she gets a lot of work these days but that doesn’t get you the same kind of exposure as dating A listers. And I think Adriana would rather be recognized for her work rather than having been the long time girlfriend/ baby mama of so and so. 

 

Also, Adriana’s work only slowed down when covid hit. She was working a lot more than she had in a long time the year before. 

[Sophie20]

I think they are incomparable... Adriana is a real supermodel and from other generation, she is from Gisele's era, golden era hahaha... Maybe this is why she isn't good on social medias or doesn't care about it.

 

And just page six added that part of her wanted to sell her house, and she responded haha these journal lies a lot

[secretlife2000]

@Marsnoop All your points were so accurate!! I honestly share the same opinion that VS was super instrumental to Adri and Ale’s name recognition, like the fact that they were regulars on morning shows etc and events rlly gave them exposure. Another thing would be that their style of walking and charisma stood out most in VS (esp Adri), although they clearly do well in HF when given the opportunity. I also agree with the whole relatability thing which they both lack (not just physically but they don’t release music and the like). Hahah I never thought about it that way but you’re absolutely right, they can just buy the covers themselves and might even be doing these magazines a favor!! That could also be why they’re not exactly hurting for jobs, they know their worth and don’t have to do every single opportunity if it doesn’t pay well. 
 

Adri also has the icon factor, she’s not someone you forget. Even when the Natalia Vodianovas of the industry and baby face era models came along sometime in the 2000s, I’d say she has a more lasting impression than them. Even people that don’t follow her online or have not seen a VS show will probably know her name. She’s a classic

[secretlife2000]

 
Love adri’s look and personality here! I’d say she gives Cindy’s daughter a run for her money