CARA DELEVINGNE: Happy belated birthday! You recently turned the ripe old age of 22. How old do you really feel?
KENDALL JENNER: It fluctuates. Sometimes I feel like a complete kid when I’m running around with my friends being stupid for a week, and then sometimes I just want to sit in my house and sip tea and watch old movies like I’m 60.
CD: Sounds about right. Every time we’re together we’re either rolling around making bird noises or sitting on the porch in rocking chairs talking about the young people these days. Do you feel like an accomplished 22-year-old?
KJ: I feel like the life I live is extraordinary in a lot of ways but that it also comes with a lot of responsibilities. I’ve had to grow up pretty fast and deal with situations most 22-year-olds aren’t really put into. There are days and weeks and months when you just don’t stop.
CD: The pressure can be crushing sometimes.
KJ: It can! And you know me and how OCD I can get over the littlest things. If something isn’t going the way I planned, I freak out. Some days I just want to go live on a farm and not talk to anyone and just exist in the middle of nowhere.
CD: What sorts of animals would you have?
KJ: On my farm? I would literally have tons. I’d have seven horses because I feel like that’s a reasonable amount of horses to love and take care of, and sheep and goats and chickens and dogs—like, 10 dogs. But no cats because I’m not a cat person, unless they’re Savannah cats, which are like little cheetahs.
CD: I want one so bad.
KJ: They’re so good. Sorry, I got really excited about that question.
CD: You’ve really thought this farm thing through! You grew up in the public eye. Is there anything you feel you missed out on?
KJ: The obvious answer is college, I guess, but I don’t even know if I regret that. I had a pretty normal childhood, with a twist, and went to school until the 10th grade. For 11th and 12th, I did homeschool, but I still saw a lot of my old friends. I didn’t go to prom, though, which was kind of annoying. I can’t really complain except for now, maybe, I would like to go to Disneyland or a public beach. To go to a beach in peace would be lovely. To be able to hang out and meet new people and not be bothered would be awesome.
CD: When you have children—because I know you’re going to have loads—how will you feel if one of them wants to go into fashion and become famous like their mom? Will you let them have access to social media?
KJ: I think I’ll definitely put an age limit on it and try to keep them away from it as much as possible. I always loved being able to play in my yard with my animals, and my dog, and my friends. It’s going to be interesting to see what the world is like when I do have kids. But I definitely don’t plan on having them anytime soon.
CD: Bringing kids into the world is a scary thought right now, isn’t it?
KJ: It’s super scary.
CD: We have to make sure we have ours at the same time so they can look after each other. What in particular keeps you up at night?
KJ: It’s funny you ask that because I have such debilitating anxiety because of everything going on that I literally wake up in the middle of the night with full-on panic attacks. Where do I even start? Everything is so horrible, it’s hard to name one thing. I just think that the world needs so much love. I wish I had the power to send Cupid around the planet, as cheesy as that sounds. You go online and you see everyone saying the worst things to each other, and it’s hard to stay positive. It’s hard not to get eaten alive by all the negativity.
CD: What does it mean to be a supermodel today versus 20 years ago?
KJ: I’ve actually talked about it with a couple of women, like Cindy Crawford, who have been doing this for a long time. I feel like social media obviously has a lot to do with how it’s different. A lot of people are like, “Oh, it’s so much easier now because you have Instagram. You don’t even need an agency anymore.” But that’s just not true. I still had to go to all the castings, I still had to go meet all the photographers, I still had to do all of that to get to where I am now. There wasn’t a step taken out just because I had social media. I still have 12-hour days, I still have even 24-hour days sometimes; I still have to do all those things. We don’t work any less hard than the ’90s models did when they were young.
CD: Social media is an interesting beast. When you have more than 85 million Instagram followers, you get a lot of attention you might not want. How do you keep from becoming jaded?
KJ: Lately I’ve just tried to stay off it, and I definitely don’t look at comments. I think Instagram is still a fun place for the most part. I like going on and seeing what people are up to, but I mostly follow stupid accounts with pictures of puppies and little baby animals and people saving animals. Forget about Twitter, which is so not fun these days. It just makes me sad.
CD: It’s true. Even if you go on for, like, a minute, you know you’re going to read something horrible, either about yourself or about the world.
KJ: I’m not even worried about myself anymore at this point. [Laughs]
CD: From what I’ve seen of your friends, you hang out with an incredibly creative, crazy group of people who are doing their own thing and don’t seem to care what other people think about them. Has that rubbed off on you a bit? You seem to be taking more fashion risks.
KJ: It has. I think, for sure, being in the fashion industry and having so many friends who are into fashion—young people who would die for it—inspires me to try and push the boundaries. I’m not afraid to try something even if I know no one will like it.
CD: Who’s a friend who inspires you?
KJ: Tyler [the Creator] really inspires me. He’s so determined to do anything he thinks is amazing. He just opened a new store on Fairfax in L.A., and he put out an incredible album last summer, and now he’s on tour. Whatever he wants to do, he just does it, and in the coolest, best way. I like people who push the limits of what’s expected. Even you, bro! You’re fucking inspiring.
CD: Ha!
KJ: No, for real! You’re out here killing it, doing movies because you feel like it. I want to be like you, I want to be like Tyler, I want to be like all my friends.
CD: Would you ever consider designing your own line?
KJ: Kylie and I have our little brand that we do together, and actually have a fun time doing it, but I would love to branch off and do something a little more serious and really sit down and test my brain and play with it a little bit.
CD: Every time I come to your house, you always have a new artwork hanging. Is that something you’re exploring?
KJ: Most people don’t know this about me, but I have a real love for interior design. I’ve been working with a designer named Martyn Bullard who’s really awesome and who kind of made me fall in love with art. Kanye has also been a huge influence. He’s really, really into art and has the sickest pieces in his house.
CD: What do you hope to be doing 22 years from now?
KJ: I hope to have a family, and I hope to be in love. I just want light and happiness and love. And you! I want you in my life!
CD: Hopefully some of that love will reach the people who are feeling so much hate in the world right now.
KJ: I hope so. I’ll keep sending out vibes.
This article originally appears in the February issue of Harper's Bazaar, available on newsstands January 23.
Lead image: Chanel cape and boots; Hair: Malcolm Edwards; Makeup: Val Garland; Manicure: Adam Slee; Set design: Robbie Doig/Dragonfly Scenery.
