Kaia Gerber Reveals the Modeling Advice Mom Cindy Crawford Gave Her -- and Weighs In on 'Nepo Baby' Chatter

Crawford's 21-year-old model daughter is sharing the wise words her mom imparted on her.

Mother knows best -- and when it comes to modeling, the saying couldn't be more true of Kaia Gerber's famous mom, Cindy Crawford

As the latest cover star of Elle's February 2023 issue, the 21-year-old model shed light on the wisdom her supermodel mom shared with her about the industry when Kaia was starting out as a teenager. 

"Be on time. Take the time to learn people’s names, and be nice to everyone," Kaia tells the magazine. "If you’re not grateful and happy to be there, there’s someone who would be. Even when I was really tired, or wanted to go home, or felt lonely, I would remind myself how lucky I was."

Plus, Cindy had a regret her daughter could learn from. "Another thing she told me is, 'I wish I had written more down,' because you think you’re going to remember these amazing moments forever, and one day, it’s hard to even know what shoot that was, where it happened, and when," she says. "And so I wrote it down; I journaled."

As the daughter of one of the most iconic runway figures of all time -- plus dad Rande Gerber, Casamigos co-founder and nightlife entrepreneur -- Kaia was mentioned in the "Nepo Baby" piece featured in New York Magazine's December 2022 issue, highlighting an array of celebrity offspring who may have benefited from their parents' status and access in Hollywood. 

What say Kaia? 

"I won’t deny the privilege that I have. Even if it’s just the fact that I have a really great source of information and someone to give me great advice, that alone I feel very fortunate for. My mom always joked, 'If I could call and book a Chanel campaign, it would be for me and not you.' But I also have met amazing people through my mom whom I now get to work with," she says. 

The burgeoning actress, who recently appeared in Babylon and has more projects in the works, adds, "With acting, it’s so different. No artist is going to sacrifice their vision for someone’s kid. That just isn’t how art is made, and what I’m interested in is art. Also, no one wants to work with someone who’s annoying, and not easy to work with, and not kind."

As she concludes, "Yes, nepotism is prevalent, but I think if it actually was what people make it out to be, we’d see even more of it."

RELATED CONTENT: