Lourdes Leon just turned 25 years old. An important age for many people. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 2018, and since then she’s lived in New York full-time and she’s paying her own way. I believe that – I think Madonna was a strict mother in a lot of ways, and one of the benefits of her strictness was that her kids understand the value of money and they’re not afraid to work. While Lourdes has that too-cool-for-school vibe, throughout her Interview Magazine piece, she talks about money and paying her own way and supporting herself. She wisely knows that if she asked her mom for any kind of financial help, Madonna would either say no or use the money to control her. Here are some highlights from Interview (Debi Mazar interviewed her, which is amazing because Mazar has been one of Madonna’s BFFs forever).
Her first Met Gala: “Did I have fun at the Met Gala? I’m really grateful to have been able to go. Maybe because it was my first time, but it felt crazy. You’re just shoved into a room with all these famous people and you’re supposed to talk to them and be their friend, even though you don’t f–king know them. That’s not my vibe. I’m sure it’s fun if you’re someone who is friends with a lot of famous people, but I’m not. I didn’t know who the f–k to talk to. I felt so awkward that I literally called my boyfriend in the middle of it, but the dinner was fine.
She’s a New Yorker: “I don’t consider myself a Californian in any way. I never lived there. I was born there. I consider myself a New Yorker because that’s where I grew up. But the worst part about L.A. is the people. Otherwise, it would be great.
She steals her mom’s clothes: “I do, but now there’s a lock on her closets. When she’s not in the house, those things are locked tight, because I take everything I feel that I’m entitled to.
Her goals: “I don’t have a specific goal. I probably should. Financially, modeling is a smart decision. I enjoy being very hands on with the campaigns I do, so that I’m not just modeling, per se… I don’t know how I feel about acting yet. I think it’s about finding a role that wouldn’t be too far off from who I am already. Honestly, actors really annoy me and I can’t be around them. As for music, I can sing. I just don’t care about it. Maybe it’s too close to home.
On Madonna being a strict mother: “The list of things I wasn’t allowed to do is never-ending.”
Whether she sees herself getting married: “I don’t feel the need to get married, but I would take a ring. Kidding. I don’t think of myself as traditional, but I’ve pretty much only had traditional relationships. I enjoy being a caregiver. I like cooking dinner for my boyfriend. I don’t want to miss out on having children, but the idea of birth scares me literally to my core. I can’t push a baby out of my vagina. It will not happen. So, I’m down for kids, but that’s kind of a problem. Of course, there are other ways.
She paid for her college tuition & apartment: “We don’t get any handouts in my family. Obviously, I grew up with extreme privilege. There’s no denying that. But I think my mom saw all these other kids of famous people, and she was like, “My kids are not going to be like this.” Also, I feel like if your parents pay for things, then it gives them leverage over you. My mom is such a control freak, and she has controlled me my whole life. I needed to be completely independent from her as soon as I graduated high school.
On social media: “Instagram is not real. It’s the biggest lie of all time. People create personas on Instagram that are nothing like who they are in person, and it’s the scariest thing to me, because I’m the same everywhere.
Her dad didn’t teach her Spanish: “No, because he was lazy and didn’t feel like it. That’s not to say he’s not amazing, I love him so much, but he didn’t feel like it. He thought I was juggling a lot with French, which I speak fluently. I’m really trying to learn Spanish, and I try to speak it with my boyfriend and my other friends who are fluent. A lot of my friends are mixed Latins, and a lot of Latin parents want their kids to speak English really well, and almost seem white. It was about fitting in and not having any problems. But now, I feel like my generation is craving that knowledge of the diaspora. We want to know.
A trend she hates: “I hate TikTok people. It’s something I can’t explain. Maybe there’s something I’m not fully understanding about it.
An average day: “I smoke a lot of weed. In general, I don’t really have an average day, because of my work. I’m constantly traveling. When I’m not doing that, I try to go to a dance class or do some yoga. I have a really intense hair-care routine. It’s the only thing I actually care about, because it’s my best feature, in my opinion. I feel like I wouldn’t be pretty if I didn’t have this hair, so I’m really psycho about it. Oils, all the time. Other than that, I try to work out, because it makes me feel good. I don’t watch what I eat, ever. I’m not there yet.
I appreciate that she has a strong personality, although I’m sure she rubs people the wrong way. I see her as a Cool Girl, perhaps one of the most impossibly cool girls of today. She has the authority, self-assurance, wit and DGAF attitude of someone born into privilege and money, but again, I don’t doubt that she works and that her biggest priority in life is to not be controlled by her mother. I also think it’s cute that she’s obsessed with her hair and thinks it’s her best feature. It’s one of her best features, for sure. But I would also say her eyes and her legs are her best features.
Photos courtesy of Interview Magazine.
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