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The annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show is one of the most prestigious gigs a model can land. Gaining your "Angel wings" — intricately designed pairs of wings given to the most highly regarded models in the show — is a whole other privilege.
Jan Planit, who used to head up top modelling agency IMG and now runs Planit Model Management, once told the New York Post: "There are very few special things you can achieve as a model. Getting your Angel wings is the ultimate."
The iconic shows are famed for their dramatic, colourful, and skimpy outfits, as well as their impressive lineup of entertainment.
Last year, 51 top models made the final cut for the show, just 14 of whom were designated "Victoria's Secret Angels" — brand ambassadors who travel the world promoting Victoria's Secret year-round. Best friends Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner became the most recent models to earn their wings on stage at the 2016 show.
While being in the show might be a privilege, the money doesn't hurt, either. Nine of the models who appeared in the 2016 show even appeared on Forbes' list of the world’s 20 highest-paid models in 2016.
Scroll down to see the highest-paid Victoria's Secret models from last year's show, ranking in ascending order by their 2016 earnings, according to Forbes.
*The earnings are an estimate based on income from all modelling contracts, both from Victoria Secret as well as other companies.
9. Taylor Hill — $4 million (£3 million).
(AFP/Getty Images)
Taylor Hill, the 21-year old "girl next door from Colorado" and Vogue cover star, became the face of Topshop's AW16 campaign in July 2016. Since then her Instagram follower base has almost doubled — she now has 8.3 million followers of her @taylor_hill account.
Hill walked her first VS show in 2014 and became an Angel a year later.
8. Jasmines Tookes — $4 million (£3 million).
Californian Jasmine Tookes is one of only three nonwhite models — all VS models — to make Forbes' highest-earning list in 2016.
The 25-year-old gained her wings in 2015, after first walking a Victoria's Secret show in 2012.
7. Lily Aldridge — $4 million (£3.5 million).
(Getty Images for Victoria's Secr)
LA-born Lily Aldridge walked her first Victoria's Secret show in 2009, and became an Angel the following year. The 30-year old's favourite place in the world is her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee, according to her VS profile. Her Instagram has 5.1 million followers.
6. Joan Smalls — $4.5 million (£3.5 million).
Puerto Rican Joan Smalls is an Estée Lauder spokesmodel, and was the first Latina signed to the brand for a worldwide campaign.
The 28-year old first walked in a VS show in 2011 and has since walked on five more runways. She has a net worth of $16 million (£12 million) according to the Daily Mail, and 2.2 million Instagram followers.
5. Alessandra Ambrosio — $5 million (£4 million).
AlessandraAmbrosio (Getty)
Alessandra Ambrosio first took to the Victoria's Secret runway in 2004. The 36-year old is one of the show's veterans. According to the Daily Mail, her net worth is in the region of $60 million (£47 million).
Her Instagram has 8.5 million followers. Ambrosio's favourite places to visit are Bali and the Brazilian party city of Florianopolis.
4. Liu Wen — $7 million (£5.4 million).
Chinese-born Liu Wen has a net worth of $35 million (£27 million), according to the Daily Mail.
The 28-year old became the first Asian model to take to the Angels runway in 2009. She is also one of only three non-white models — all of whom walked in the 2016 VS show— to make Forbes' list. She has 2.8 million Instagram followers.
3. Gigi Hadid — $9 million (£7 million).
GigiHadid (Getty)
The eldest of the supermodel Hadid sisters, 21-year old Gigi has more than 34 million Instagram followers.
She walked her first Victoria's Secret show in 2015 and was recently voted runner up Model of the Year 2016 by models.com readers.
2. Kendall Jenner— $10 million (£8 million).
Kendall Jenner (Getty)
20-year-old Kendall Jenner came out as the third highest-paid model in the world overall, according to Forbes' 2016 ranking, and the second highest earning VS model, having made her debut on the list in 2015.
She has an impressive 81 million Instagram followers, and first took to the Victoria's Secret runway in 2015. She is also a brand ambassador for Estée Lauder.
1. Adriana Lima — $10.5 million (£8 million).
Adriana Lima has dismissed 'negative' reports of a rivalry between her and Victoria's Secret models (Getty Images)
Brazilian-born Adriana Lima is the longest serving Victoria's Secret Angel ever. She was also the highest earning VS model in 2016, according to Forbes.
Lima walked her first Angel show in 1999 and is worth an estimated $75 million (£58 million), according to the Daily Mail.
The 35-year-old currently has 10.8 million followers on her Instagram account @adrianalima.
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