Wearing iconic angel wings, Gigi Hadid opened the 2024 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in her triumphant return on Tuesday night.
Streaming live on Amazon’s Prime Video, the iconic runway show took place at the Victoria’s Secret flagship store in New York City after a six-year hiatus.
The 2024 show also featured the return of Victoria’s Secret veterans Alessandra Ambrosio and Adriana Lima, as well as next-generation icons Taylor Hill and Barbara Palvin.
Cher was the night’s headliner alongside Blackpink alum Lisa and rising star Tyla, marking the show’s first all-female music lineup.
It comes three years after the lingerie brand’s controversial body-positive rebranding in 2021.
The iconic Victoria’s Secret Angels were replaced by ‘ambassadors’ like soccer star Megan Rapinoe and the company fired its former CEO in the wake of falling sales and an explosive revelation that accused the company of misogyny, sexual harassment and intimidation.
Wearing iconic angel wings, Gigi Hadid opened the 2024 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in her triumphant return on Tuesday night.
Streaming live on Amazon’s Prime Video, the iconic runway show took place at the Victoria’s Secret flagship store in New York City after a six-year hiatus.
Lisa kicked off the show with an ultra-sexy performance of her hit Rockstar, where she rode into the venue on a motorcycle while the models got excited backstage.
Surrounded by leather-clad dancers, the singer, 27, showed off her toned tummy in a black vinyl bra shaped like angel wings.
It was designed with chain mail and micro shorts.
Lisa performed elaborate choreography under pink stage lights on the huge catwalk.
Gigi Hadid opened the legendary show, which first aired in 1995, wearing pastel pink wings and a bright pink bodysuit.
The model, 29, strutted her stuff to a fun mashup of Chappell Roan’s hits Femininomenon and Charli XCX’s viral single 360.
Coming out of her six-year retirement, Adriana Lima made her long-awaited return to the runway on Tuesday night.
Gigi Hadid opened the legendary show, which first aired in 1995, wearing pastel pink wings and a bright pink bodysuit.
The model, 29, strutted her stuff to a fun mashup of Chappell Roan’s hits Femininomenon and Charli XCX’s viral single 360.
Walking to Chappell Roan’s Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl, the Brazilian beauty made jaws drop in a bright pink and white plaid bodysuit and pink holographic wings.
Hours before hitting the 2024 runway, models left cameras backstage as stylists and makeup artists transformed them from bare-faced beauties to glamorous vixens.
The iconic ’90s show announced its return in May after a four-year hiatus.
The fashion show was canceled in 2019 after dealing with poor ratings and a host of controversies, and has since made an effort to be more inclusive.
Victoria’s Secret announced the big news with an Instagram post, promising that the 2024 show would “reflect who we are today, plus everything you know and love: the glamour, the runway, the wings, the musical entertainment.”
The popular early aughts shopping mall brand previously returned with a ‘reimagined’ Victoria’s Secret World Tour Prime show in 2023 that wasn’t well received – with people calling the show boring.
Many former fans watching at home called for the return of former Victoria’s Secret Angels like Gisele Bündchen, Heidi Klum, Molly Sims, Tyra Banks, Adriana Lima and more.
That was by no means the brand’s biggest problem, as Victoria’s Secret has faced multiple controversies in recent years.
In 2020, an explosive report in The New York Times claimed that Victoria’s Secret owner Les Wexner was mocking the retail industry’s efforts to champion women of different body types.
The Times interviewed more than 30 executives, employees, contractors and models, and examined court records to find a toxic culture of sexual harassment.
Employees said Wexner mocked the retail industry’s efforts to embrace a variety of body types by allegedly saying, “Nobody goes to a plastic surgeon and says, ‘Make me fat.'”
Wexner was also said to berate employees about their weight, even shaming one employee for getting seconds at a buffet.
After the backlash, the lingerie company changed its name in an effort to appeal to Generation Z and named new brand ambassadors, including soccer player Megan Rapinoe and transgender model Valentina Sampaio.
Ahead of the 2024 show, fans flocked to beg Victoria’s Secret to return to its glamorous roots.
Despite the brand’s assurances that this year’s show would “reflect who we are today, plus everything you know and love,” one woman sparked a social media storm when she tweeted: “The Victoria’s Secret Show is tomorrow and I hope they bring THIS fashion back.” Show off with femininity, glamour, sparkle and girl power! I don’t want to see any of that political awakening.’
Many people agreed and the tweet on X (formerly Twitter) received more than 4,200 retweets.
And girl power! None of that woke me up,” someone else wrote.
However, some criticized her in the comments, with one writing, “Y’all just want the skinny back LMAO,” and others saying, “God I wish I could be this willfully ignorant like that.”
Hours before storming the 2024 runway, models, including Gigi Hadid, allowed cameras backstage as stylists and makeup artists transformed them from makeup-free beauties to glamorous vixens.
Victoria’s Secret veteran Alessandra Ambrosio, who last walked in the show in 2018, was seen backstage in the iconic pink and white robe.
Adriana Lima, who returned to the Victoria’s Secret runway after a six-year retirement, caught up on text messages during her time in the hair and makeup chair.
Plus size model Ashley Graham looked sensational in a strapless black bra as her glam team put the finishing touches on her hair and makeup.
Others claimed that VS hasn’t been the same since Rihanna started Savage x Fenty lingerie and ‘stole the show’ with her own A-list approved runway, which was much more inclusive.
Another reviewer tweeted: ‘Tomorrow is the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show! It was canceled in 2019 for woke reasons, now they’re back. I always loved watching it as it shows what is possible. Nature is healing.’
On Reddit, many fashionistas were more concerned about the idea of the famous VS Angels being replaced by nepo babies and influencers.
“I hope they’re a bunch of nepo babies making noise in their underwear,” declared one Reddit user.
In the same Reddit thread someone wrote: ‘I don’t see the point, to be honest; Their stuff is of much lower quality than before. I hope there aren’t any influencers walking around.”
“Sponsored by Ozempic,” one commenter growled, while another person agreed: “This is what I was thinking.” They waited for the plus size model ‘trend’ to end and the show to return.