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This is a list of models who have appeared in music videos of different singers and musical groups. [1]
Models have appeared in music videos since no later than the 1970s; preceding the beginning of the MTV era, in 1981. A pre-MTV example is Jerry Hall's performance in the music video for Bryan Ferry's cover version of "Let's Stick Together", in 1976.
Frequently, models already have well-established names and faces, with significant public awareness, before appearing in music videos. These include Sports Illustrated cover model Christie Brinkley appearing in Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" video, the early 1990s supermodels appearing in George Michael's "Freedom! '90" video, and the various Victoria's Secret models who went on to appear in music videos.
In a few instances, individual models have appeared repeatedly in the music videos of one musical performer. Such a model sometimes becomes a signature collaborator with, or muse of, that one performer. Examples include Christie Brinkley's work with her partner and later husband Billy Joel, Lysette Anthony's work with Bryan Adams during his Reckless era, Tawny Kitaen's work with Whitesnake in the late 1980s, Linda Evangelista's couple of videos with George Michael in the early 1990s, Stephanie Seymour's videos with Guns 'N Roses during their Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II era, and Behati Prinsloo's work with her partner and later husband Adam Levine in various Maroon 5 videos. Vice versa, model ensembles have appeared in the music videos of George Michael's "Freedom! '90" and "Too Funky", Duran Duran's "Girl Panic!" and Fergie's "M.I.L.F. $".
Some models have gone on to perform in their own music videos, or to feature as singers in other performers' music videos. These include Caprice Bourret, Carla Bruni, Cara Delevingne and her sister Poppy, Grace Jones, Karen Elson, Lisa Barbuscia, Miranda Kerr, Naomi Campbell, Sabrina Salerno, Sade and Samantha Fox, among others.
Models have also appeared in musical scenes, which contain complete songs, within feature films. An example is the opening credits of The Secret of My Success , in which Cindy Crawford and Tatjana Patitz make appearances walking to the title song by Night Ranger. A further example is the opening credits of Cool as Ice , which features Naomi Campbell and Bobbie Brown performing for the film's title song alongside Vanilla Ice. In both instances, separate music videos were also produced for the songs. The Night Ranger video for "The Secret of My Success" featured the band and other musicians only. In contrast, Vanilla Ice's "Cool As Ice (Everybody Get Loose)" video featured scenes from the film, which included the models.
The processes of runway and studio modelling have featured, among others, in the music videos of Kraftwerk's "The Model", George Michael's "Father Figure" and "Too Funky", Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy" and Simple Minds' "Real Life" song from the album of the same name.
In at least one instance in a music video, a musical performer has directly emulated the earlier work of a model: One scene in Madonna's "Vogue" music video, from 1990, was an homage to a pose by Madame Bernon; from Horst P. Horst's "Mainbocher Corset" photograph of 1939. [2] [3] [4] Madonna's "Justify My Love" music video was also influenced strongly by the provocative models in the black and white photography of Robert Mapplethorpe and Helmut Newton. [5]
If available, the relevant music video is linked from the table. Dancers, actors and other non-musician performances are not usually included in this list, unless they were recognised as professional models around the time of each music video's creation. Likewise, musicians who have gone on to model, as a secondary career, are not included in the lefthand column.
A supermodel is a highly paid fashion model who has a worldwide reputation and background in haute couture and commercial modeling. The term became popular in the 1990s. Supermodels usually work for prominent fashion designers and clothing brands. They may have multimillion-dollar contracts, endorsements, and campaigns. Supermodels have branded themselves as household names and worldwide recognition is associated with their modeling careers. They have been on the covers of leading fashion magazines. Claudia Schiffer stated in 2007 that, "In order to become a supermodel one must be on all the covers all over the world at the same time so that people can recognise the girls."
Cynthia Ann Crawford is an American model. During the 1980s and 1990s, she was among the most popular supermodels and a ubiquitous presence on magazine covers and runways, as well as fashion campaigns. She subsequently expanded into acting and business ventures.
Tatjana Patitz was a German fashion model. She achieved international prominence in the 1980s and 1990s representing fashion designers on runways and in magazines such as Elle, Harper's Bazaar, and Vogue. She was one of the big five supermodels who appeared in the 1990 music video "Freedom! '90" by George Michael, and she was associated with the editorial, advertising, and fine-art works of photographers Herb Ritts and Peter Lindbergh.
Ashley Graham Ervin is an American model and television presenter. Graham made her debut on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 2016. A year later, she published her first book, A New Model: What Confidence, Beauty, and Power Really Look Like, which contributes to her advocacy in the body positivity and inclusion movement.
Miranda May Kerr is an Australian model. She rose to prominence in 2007 as one of the Victoria's Secret Angels. Kerr was the first Australian Victoria's Secret model and also represented the Australian department store chain David Jones. She has launched her own brand of organic skincare products, KORA Organics, and has written a self-help book.
Karlie Elizabeth Kloss is an American fashion model. She was a Victoria's Secret Angel from 2013 until 2015, when she resigned to study at New York University. By 2019, Kloss had appeared on 40 international Vogue covers.
Jourdan Sherise Dunn is a British model. She was discovered in Hammersmith Primark in 2006 and signed to The Squad Management in London. She began appearing on international runways in early 2007. In February 2008, she was the first black model to walk a Prada runway in over a decade.
Kendall Nicole Jenner is an American model, media personality, and socialite. She rose to fame in the reality television show Keeping Up with the Kardashians, in which she starred for 20 seasons and nearly 15 years from 2007 to 2021. The success of the show led to the creation of multiple spin-off series including Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami (2009), Kourtney and Kim Take New York (2011), Khloé & Lamar (2011), Rob & Chyna (2016) and Life of Kylie (2017). Following the decision to end their reality show, in 2022 she and her family starred in the reality television series The Kardashians on Hulu.
Edith Blanche Campbell is an English model. In 2016, she made her second appearance on the cover of British Vogue. She has been a model for Chanel, Burberry and Hermès and is also an accomplished horse rider.
Joan Smalls Rodriguez is a Puerto Rican model and television personality. In 2011, she became the first Latina model to represent Estée Lauder cosmetics. In 2013, she entered Forbes magazine's "World's Highest-Paid Models" list for the first time, ranking at number eight with over $3 million in earnings, In January 2014, Smalls appeared on the "Return of the Supermodel" cover of American Elle. In 2012, Smalls was ranked the number #1 model in the world by Models.com.
Cara Jocelyn Delevingne is an English model and actress. She signed with Storm Management after leaving school in 2009. Delevingne won Model of the Year at the British Fashion Awards in 2012 and 2014, and has also received three Teen Choice Awards and nominations for a British Independent Film Award and an MTV Movie & TV Award.
Poppy Angela Delevingne is an English socialite, actress and model.
Sebastián Faena is a photographer, singer-songwriter and filmmaker.
Kaia Gerber is an American model and actress. After starring in a series of ad campaigns for fashion brands since debuting at Fashion Week in 2017, Gerber won Model of the Year at the British Fashion Awards in 2018.
Martha Hunt is an American model. She is best known for her work as a Victoria's Secret Angel. She is also a spokesmodel for Free People.
Jelena Noura "Gigi" Hadid is an American fashion model and television personality. In 2016, she was named International Model of the Year by the British Fashion Council. Throughout her career, Hadid has made at least 50 appearances in international Vogue. Models.com ranks her as one of the "New Supers." Since 2017, Hadid has been one of the highest-paid models in the world, earning $20 million.
Hailey Rhode Bieber is an American model, socialite, and businesswoman. She has been featured in major ads for Guess, Ralph Lauren, and Tommy Hilfiger.
Alessia Caracciolo, known professionally as Alessia Cara, is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She began posting covers of songs on YouTube at age 13. After uploading acoustic covers of songs such as "Love Yourself" and "Sweater Weather" online, she signed with EP Entertainment and Def Jam Recordings in 2014 and released her debut single, "Here", the following year. It peaked at number 19 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart and was a sleeper hit in the US, peaking at number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Anok Yai is an American fashion model. She is the first model of South Sudanese descent and the second black supermodel after Naomi Campbell to open a Prada show. She has made several appearances on i-D and international Vogue covers, including American Vogue three times. Models.com ranks her as one of the "New Supers" of this generation, and since 2023, she was chosen by both the industry and fans as "Model of the Year" and USA Top Model 2024.
Savage X Fenty Show is an annual American television special about the fashion show for Rihanna's lingerie brand Savage X Fenty, also featuring music performances. The first, non-televised event took place in Brooklyn during New York Fashion Week in 2018. The first television special premiered on September 20, 2019, Vol. 2 premiered on October 2, 2020, Vol. 3 premiered on September 24, 2021, and Vol. 4 premiered on November 9, 2022, all on Amazon Prime Video. Rihanna is the executive producer and creative director of Savage X Fenty Show.