Grace Vaccaro, Staff Writer
On October 18th, the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show took place. The show originally took a six-year hiatus before returning in 2024. The show returned with a promise to highlight women’s empowerment. Celebrities and influencers walk the runway alongside established models. The brand has also worked to diversify body size and include transgender models.
The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show first debuted in 1995, reaching its peak viewership in 2001, with over 12 million active viewers. The brand sells lingerie, but its shows are almost a theatrical performance. Models wore over-the-top Swarovski outfits and huge angel wings. The Fashion Show became a cultural phenomenon.
This year’s show was divided into five sections, four for each season and a halftime show to highlight Victoria’s Secret’s sub-brand Pink.
Bella Hadid opened the show, stepping out in a spring-inspired look. She wore angel wings adorned with flowers. Bella Hadid made her debut for the brand in 2016. Her return to the stage was met with applause and cheers. Hadid has stated that coming back to the show allowed her to “reclaim her confidence and feel supported in a setting where she once felt unempowered.”
Adriana Lima closed the show — one of the most notable and longest-working Angels. For the winter section of the show, she wore silver-white wings resembling icicles. Lima modeled for the brand from when she was 18, in 1999, until 2018, when she retired.
Other former Victoria’s Secret Angels made their return, including: Candice Swanepoel, Gigi Hadid, Barbara Palvin, Jasmine Tookes and Alessandra Ambrosio.
Athletes were also seen on the runway again, something that was started last year. This year, soccer player Trinity Rodman and daughter of Kobe Bryant, Natalia Bryant, made their debut.
This year, the brand released a six-episode series on YouTube titled “Angel Among Us.” The show’s mission was to find Victoria’s Secret’s next angel. They searched through over ten thousand young women before selecting a final ten. The winner would receive a contract with IMG Models and a runway debut in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. The winner was announced at the show, as she made her debut walk: Solange Omon. Solange is a student from Maine, originally from Cameroon. The other finalists, Andreína Martínez Fournier and Tatyana Tinsley, also walked the show.
The show included musical acts from some of the most popular musical artists. In the past, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, and Justin Bieber all performed. This year, Megan Thee Stallion, Megan Moroney, Katseye, and Tate McRae took the stage. Moroney opened the show, singing her popular country songs while wearing fluffy pink wings.
For the first time in eight years, the brand brought back its famous Fantasy Bra. These are usually made with luxury stones, making them worth more than a million dollars. This year, Kylie Jenner had the honor of wearing the Fantasy Bra that was worth $50 million. This is the most expensive Fantasy Bra in the history of the show.
The livestream this year hit a peak of 3.64 million viewers, and an estimated 60 million viewers total across streaming platforms. With a 33% increase from last year, it seems like Victoria’s Secret is on the rise to become what it once was again.
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