Heidi Klum's teenage daughter Leni has defended herself after she faced criticism following her meteoric rise in the modeling world.
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The 18-year-old – who was adopted by Heidi's ex-husband Seal – has been branded a 'nepo baby' (the child of a celebrity) in a viral trend on TikTok alongside the likes of Lily-Rose Depp, Maya Hawke, and Kaia Gerber.
WATCH: Heidi Klum lounges in pastel pink bikini
However, while her head start in modeling isn't lost on Leni, she insists that she is "doing the work and putting in the time" to carve out a career for herself.
"It's just a fact. My parents are famous," she told People when asked how she feels about the stereotype.
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"I did get help starting off, and I know that people would dream to start off with what I had. I'm so grateful that I've been able to take what was gifted to me by my mom."
She added: "But I am doing the work and putting in the time. Now I'm working on my own, traveling alone, going to school. My mom and I just have the same love for the same thing."
© Photo: Getty ImagesLeni has followed in her model mom's footsteps
Leni burst onto the modeling scene when she was just 16 and made her debut on the cover of Vogue Germany alongside Heidi.
Reflecting on the experience, Leni admitted: "That's like insane that I did that as my first job and my mom was with me, which made it so much fun.
"It was just such a good day. I wasn't nervous at all. I was just so excited. I was like, 'I'm finally modeling and it's Vogue.' It was just so many things to be excited about."
Leni made her modeling debut on the cover of Vogue Germany
Leni's biological dad is Italian businessman Flavio Briatore, but she was adopted by Seal when she was just a baby after Flavio stepped away from parenting his daughter.
Flavio told Italy's Il Corriere della Sera: "Leni is my natural daughter, but the three of us happily agreed that it made more sense if Seal adopted her, because a child needs to grow up in a family."
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