Jelena Noura Hadid – better known as Gigi Hadid – has become one of fashion’s most recognizable faces, but her rise has been anything but effortless. Born and raised in Los Angeles by real estate developer Mohamed Hadid and former model Yolanda Hadid, Gigi grew up surrounded by talk of contracts and catwalks, but she’s always insisted her success is the product of hard work, not just good genes.
Gigi signed with IMG Models in 2013, patiently working her way up in a notoriously fast-changing industry. By 2014, she’d already appeared in the Top 50 Models ranking – a breakout moment, but she hasn’t slowed down since. Her career milestones are well-documented: walking for Versace, Tom Ford, and Chanel; landing magazine covers around the world; and building a social media following that somehow feels less manufactured than most of her peers’. Fans appreciate her candidness – she’s known to share moments of self-doubt alongside glamorous photoshoots. “There are days I definitely think, ‘I’m not going to make it through this day,’ but somehow you just do,” she once told British Vogue, voicing the kind of exhaustion anyone could relate to, even if they haven’t walked a mile in her runway heels.
Off the runway, Gigi’s private life has always drawn a crowd – sometimes unwillingly. Like many celebrities, her relationships are the subject of endless speculation, but she’s managed to handle it all with a kind of quiet composure. Since October 2023, Gigi’s been dating Bradley Cooper. The two have been spotted on casual outings in New York, but they’ve kept things low-key, preferring baseball caps and coffee runs to red carpet reveals. They reportedly met through friends, bonding over parenting and the challenge of balancing high-profile careers with real life – a balancing act Gigi seems to take seriously.
Before Cooper, she briefly dated Leonardo DiCaprio between 2022 and 2023. Even that headline-grabbing romance stayed mostly out of the public eye; Gigi has always kept her circle close and her privacy closer. In 2019, she spent a whirlwind few months with Tyler Cameron, but it was her relationship with Zayn Malik that truly made waves. The two began dating in 2015, navigating breakups, reconciliations, and ultimately welcoming their daughter Khai in 2020. Their relationship – often dissected in the tabloids – remained, for the most part, remarkably private, with both parents fiercely protective of their daughter’s privacy.
Speculation has, of course, trailed her every move – rumors about links to Drake, Joe Jonas, and others have come and gone. Gigi rarely addresses the gossip directly, instead choosing to keep her thoughts to herself. When her relationship with Malik ended, she reflected to Harper’s Bazaar, “When you’re really happy, even when things aren’t perfect, you still feel thankful.” It’s a sentiment that speaks to her grounded perspective: after years in the limelight, Gigi seems determined to move through breakups and headlines with maturity rather than drama.
Past Relationships
Bradley Cooper
Leonardo DiCaprio
Tyler Cameron
Zayn Malik
Joe Jonas
Cody Simpson
As her career evolves and her role as a mother takes center stage, Gigi’s approach to fame – and relationships – has clearly shifted. She chooses carefully, prioritizing authenticity and stability over spectacle. It’s this mix of vulnerability and discretion, more than runway success or famous exes, that has made Gigi Hadid both relatable and enduring – a public figure still finding ways to keep some part of her life just her own.