Coco Rocha on Kendall Jenner’s mean girl ordeal: ‘It gets a little catty backstage’

Coco Rocha

In September, we discussed a story about Kendall Jenner getting mean-girled by other models at NYFW. Several girls reportedly used Kendall’s drinks as makeshift ashtrays as they gathered backstage at the Marc Jacobs and Diane von Furstenberg shows. If the story was true, the models were pretty harsh in their behavior.

Canadian supermodel Coco Rocha recently sat down for an interview with HuffPo Live. Coco also reveals how her Jehovah’s Witness faith impacts her workload because she doesn’t do super risque shoots. She also talked about Kendall’s ordeal with catty models and offered some advice. Coco sounds very supportive of Kendall’s position in the industry:

Coco’s initial reaction to the Kendall story: “It is bad for the industry, and if that all did happen, that’s really frustrating to hear. You have to remember that during the shows, it is all very young girls. It’s like high school. We breathe and eat and sleep together for two months, so it gets to a point where you’re just overwhelmed, frustrated and tired, and I’ve had my own stories where yeah, it gets a little catty backstage.”

Coco’s advice for Kendall: “When [backstage cattiness] does happen, step back, breathe a minute, get out of the room — whatever you need to do. Because in the end, people are watching you under such a fine microscope. People are are going to watch whatever you do, so if you want the job, if you want to be respected in the industry, remember that even though you’re a young girl, you have to act a little older and a little wiser.”

Coco on her faith’s impact on her career: “I’m sure there are some jobs I’m not doing, because of what I stand for, but that’s totally okay. Hopefully people that respect them would also then respect me and my choices. It would be a boring industry if I was the muse of every designer and every photographer.”

Her advice to all models: “I tell young models — religious or not — whatever it is that you would like to stand up for or believe in, make sure that you just have a voice. Use it.”

[From HuffPo]

I always wonder what it’s like backstage at fashion shows. The experience sounds like a nightmare because everyone’s jockeying for makeup and hair, and the whole industry revolves around looks. Each model competes with her peers and friends for jobs. It doesn’t seem difficult to walk a runway, but backstage? Gotta be rough. At least Kendall has a fan in Coco Rocha. That’s worth a lot to a fledgling model.

Kendall Jenner

Photos courtesy of WENN

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22 Responses to “Coco Rocha on Kendall Jenner’s mean girl ordeal: ‘It gets a little catty backstage’”

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  1. Mia V. says:

    If KenDull survived her family, she can survive backstage.

  2. Buckwild says:

    Doesn’t really sound like she’s a fan to me, just that she’s commenting on something Kendall has brought up – backstage bullying. Sounds like general advice.

  3. INeedANap says:

    Coco Rocha always seemed so intelligent and diplomatic. I hope she has a long career after modeling!

    And I won’t discuss PMK’s offspring, because I known that’s what she wants lol.

  4. Erinn says:

    Like or hate Kendall, but if that actually did happen, that’s absolutely not acceptable. Nobody deserves to be treated that way, regardless of what your family has for a claim to fame.

    • Bob Loblaw says:

      Maybe this is harsh, but NYFW is no picnic and only a dimwit would think it a pleasant place to work. If you aspire to be a model, you need to get a thick skin and get over it.

      • Denise says:

        I’ve got to agree. If you let it get to you, modelling is going to be a miserable career. I’ve shot a few shows backstage at LFW and I haven’t witnessed anything, the girls are too busy with two to five hair and makeup people on their heads, but I guess all it takes is one bitchy comment while you’re waiting with others to get dressed or lined up to walk. Most tend not to speak to each other while the odd few are friendly. They’ve got their phones, they look tired and most are in their own worlds. It looks awfully boring to me to be honest, the glamorous part lasts literally 10 minutes while the show is on and the rest is 2-3 hours of getting done and waiting, then on to the next one. Aspiring models have no idea what they’re aspiring to!

  5. iseepinkelefants says:

    I’m sorry but I can understand why they’d be mad. Kendall got where she is by being a Kardahsian. She doesn’t have the “it” factor for runway (but she has a look for print). That must suck when you’re a model who doesn’t have a name and has to get castings all on your own. Imagine busting your ass for weeks, and in strolls little Ms. kardashian getting it all because of her name. I’d be pissed too.

    And like Coco said, they’re all little girls, who are obsessed with looks, of course they’re like that, do you expect them to be Zen Buddhists? No their whole life in that moment is to hunger games each other. I would never want to be a model.

    • Tammy says:

      No excuse for bullying, though. I don’t care how mad someone is, it is never okay to bully another person.

      And like it or not, this is life.. It does not matter what you do or work, there is always going to be someone who is less qualified who gets a position because of who they know or who they are related. It is how you handle these situations that defines you.

    • Allie says:

      I can understand their frustration too. It’s no excuse for bullying, but at that age I would probably be a bitch to her as well.

      And I agree with a poster from above. Coco didn’t say she was a fan, she just described her experience in backstage antics.

    • Eleonor says:

      she is not the first sister/daughter of someone more famous who works in fashion, models are used to deal with that.

  6. Alex says:

    Coco is not saying anything that other models haven’t talked about. Tyra Banks has talked about how rough the first years as a model was too. Basically made the same points about how you’re living with 5 other girls and fighting for the same jobs all the time. Very high school. I get their frustration, Kendall got where she was because of her last name and she brings her trashy family with her. Whether she will make it far…not on the runway. Print I could see though

    • SAKS says:

      Yeah, Doutzen Kroes also said to had been miserable her first years in the industry, apparently that is, sadly, super common. I don’t like Kendall or her family one bit, but I kind of felt bad for her when I read what the other models did to her

    • jwoolman says:

      Alex- Kendall did indeed bring her mother with her…. ! And it’s quite possible than one incident was magnified to many by Demon Mother (still wondering how all that happened under D.M.’s eagle eye anyway). Kendall is definitely not on her own. The Kardashians (including the Jenner girls) are always looking ahead to the next story line for their shows and also tabloid attention.

  7. nah mean? says:

    Kendall is no angel. Remember the waitress situation and her throwing money at the young lady, then threatening to sue? She behaves very entitled. I can see why they would ash in her drink.

  8. Arya Martell says:

    So I have a little anecdote for this. When I was getting my undergrad I worked as a cocktail waitress for a popular casino in eastern Canada. The BOH was similar to the type of environment that is discussed by Coco. It was extremely competitive despite the fact we all walked out with good money every night. The BOH was extremely catty to the max. But I worked there for 3 years every weekend. Why? Because the money was good. I went in, did my job and left. I ignored the cattiness and I ignored the girls. If they tried to engage me in a negative way, I took a step back and breathed just like Coco did. It was a miserable job where I felt objectified every weekend but the money was good so I stayed.

    While I understand Kendall’s plight and can empathize it does not mean I can give Kendall a ton of sympathy. She chooses to work in this environment and she chooses to allow this behaviour to affect her when all she really has to do is ignore it, do her job and not complain. The complaining and the whining that she can’t get along with other girls is going to affect her negatively. So Kendall has a choice, stop playing victim and do her job or find another career if this is affecting her so negatively. If a model like Coco can come off as gracious and aweet and dow to earth then Kendall can do her job if she chooses to.

  9. booboocita says:

    The thing that struck me most about these photos is how much MORE beautiful Coco Rocha is than Kendall. Not harshing on Kendall — she’s quite pretty. But Coco is simply stunning. And that’s what’s needed to become a top model: great beauty, which Kendall simply doesn’t have. I know it’s difficult to be impartial about one’s own looks, and obviously PMK has twisted all of her daughters into self-deluded wrecks, but if Kendall could see the difference between herself and Coco, she’d KNOW that her career has everything to do with her name and very little to do with her “hard work” or looks.

    • hunter says:

      If you’ve ever watched Coco model, one can see she possesses a genuine talent for physical composition, an ability beyond her physical beauty.

      Kendall does not appear to have any such talent.

  10. Bridget says:

    Backstage at fashion shows have been like this for a long time, Kendall Jenner wasn’t even getting special treatment there (which is probably the worst thing to say to PMK). Its a bunch of hungry teenagers that are living off nicotine and then the champagne is flowing backstage. Modeling is infamously catty and competitive.

  11. Claudia says:

    I used to model for a short time and did fashion shows. Of course not such big things like NYFW but nevertheless it was high fashion. Basically you sit around backstage for hours and wait. And wait. And wait more. Get your hair and make-up done, sometimes you have fun hair and make-up people and chat along with them, most of the times they ignore you. Most girls are barely 16 and Russian or the like and speak basically no English. You really don’t talk that much to anyone. There is a lot of gossiping who got “fat” (everything above a BMI of 16 or 17). It a pretty dumb and dull job and you are a cloth-hanger and a piece of meat.