Rich the Kid and Rae Sremmurd sign to Wilhelmina Models

Rap acts Rich The Kid and Rae Sremmurd have signed on to strut their stuff as Wilhelmina Models’ latest recruits.
The rappers will be part of the agency’s celebrity division, following in the footsteps of Nicki Minaj, Shawn Mendes, and Niall Horan, who are currently signed with the company.
“We’re excited to join the Wilhelmina family; they take risks in the fashion industry the same way we take risks in music,” a statement from Rae Sremmurd’s Slim Jxmmi and Swae Lee reads. “We got a lot of dope (cool) things coming up, so it is going to be cool to see how we can take it to the next level in fashion.”
“(My relationship with the company will help bring me) closer with brands, and also will help me with getting out there more,” Rich the Kid adds. “I feel like fashion plays a big part in music.”
Wilhelmina’s chief executive officer Bill Wackermann explains he wanted to sign the rappers to his celebrity roster because he is trying to expand: “When I came to Wilhelmina about three years ago, our celebrity division really wasn’t as robust as it is now,” he says. “It was part of my business to really be engaged in the celebrity part of our business… We had Beyonce when she left Destiny’s Child, we had Whitney Houston back in the day, we had Usher, but it had become sort of quiet.”
And he feels the rappers are a perfect fit.
“We look for people who have a creative eye and outlook, and that they love fashion,” he says. “If you’re going to play in the space today, it’s got to feel authentic and it’s got to come from a real place.”