Model Bella Hadid rose to fame in 2014 when she was signed to IMG Models. Bella — who became famous alongside her older sister Gigi Hadid — is certainly one of her generation's most successful and famous models. Over the years Bella has mentioned that sometimes she uses her alter egos to help her deal with the pressure of fame — or just for plain fun.
Today, we're taking a look at everything we know about Bella Hadid's two known alter egos, Belinda and Rebekka Harajuku. From how they came to be to why one of them is a bit controversial — keep on scrolling to find out!
6 Bella Revealed That 'Belinda' Came To Be During The 2016 Cannes Film Festival
The famous model revealed that her alter ego — the persona the public seems to think she is — is actually very different from how the real Bella is. Here's what Bella revealed:
"I think [that moment] was the start of the Bella persona that everyone sees of me. That’s my alter ego — that’s Belinda. I’m just so the opposite of her. She’s very va-va-voom. I was still nervous about cameras, and nervous about having a lot of makeup on, and nervous about this slit. I think that maybe there was one little slip that happened. But I kind of get embarrassed of this moment still even though the dress is gorgeous. It just, again, doesn’t feel so much like me."
5 And That She Felt Pressured To Put On A Sultry And Sensual Image Early On In Her Career
In an interview for Vogue this year, Bella Hadid revealed that Belinda came to be because of the pressure the model felt at an early stage of her career to be more like what people think she is. Here's what Bella said:
"It’s like there were two Bellas - me, this person in the process of figuring out who she was, and ‘Bella Hadid’ the alter ego, who was, I dunno, a sexbot who goes out every night?"
4 In 2018 Bella Introduced Her Second Alter Ego To The World — Rebekka Harajuku
During a trip to Japan in 2018 Bella Hadid revealed her second alter ego — a Tokyo-inspired one. Bella liked having fun with her alter ego so much, that she even created an Instagram account for Rebekka, which currently has 30.5 Instagram followers. While the star hasn't been active on the account since 2018, perhaps she will bring the alter ego back to the spotlight one day. Here's what Bella said about how the alter ego was created:
"It's so funny because one of my friends and I were in Japan. Every day, we went back to Harajuku because we wanted to, literally every single day: we'd start and end our days there. So we picked our favorite place in Tokyo and made it the last name of this alter ego. We went to the store and bought a wig because I just wanted to be able to walk around and see the city without having anyone…not bother me but I wanted to be able to experience it."
3 Rebecca Harajuku's Instagram Featured Bella In A Blonde Wig Having Fun Around Tokyo
The Instagram account — which includes a total of eight photos — shows Bella's shenanigans around Tokyo with her real-life best friend, Fanny Bourdette-Donon. In the pics, Bella — or should we say Rebekka — is seen posing with locals, chopsticks, and fashion items. Here's what Bella said about the how and why the Instagram account was created:
"We actually ended up having fun with it because my friend is a photographer and he was shooting me throughout the day, so we ended up getting all these photos. So we thought, why don't we put them somewhere so someone else could see them too?"
2 Plenty Believe The Alter Ego Was Problematic Because It Exploited Japanese Culture
While Bella said the alter ego had 'an appreciative and celebratory aim', many believed that the model actually exploited Japanese culture. The backlash Bella faced at the time could explain why the model hasn't brought the Rebekka Harajuku alter ego back since 2018. Bella certainly wouldn't be the first celeb accused of exploiting Japanese culture — musicians Gwen Stefani and Avril Lavigne have been there before.
1 Lastly, Bella Clearly Likes Having Fun With Alter Egos — And Maybe She Has More Than Just These Two
Those who keep up with Bella Hadid and her career definitely know that the model loves having fun with fashion, hair, and her alter egos. No one would be surprised if Bella hides other alter egos and perhaps one day she will introduce her fans to a new one. For now, it seems as if we'll be only getting Belinda — as Rebekka seems to have been retired after some of the backlash. However, Rebekka's Instagram is still there, so perhaps she's not gone forever either.