Kate Upton Proves She Is On The Rise [Video]

After taking America by storm with her 2011 Sports Illustrated spread, Kate Upton has become a sex symbol that most women would dream to be.

However, the sexy model’s upward rise has gained most of her star-studded ground through the social networking medium; as the blondie hottie has over 170,000 Twitter followers and over 3 million viewers on YouTube amongst others.

Models publisher Wayne Sterling, who seems to have a grasp on internet success gave his input on the phenomenon.

“We all know that social media now creates its own reality,” said Sterling. “If you become a YouTube star among teenagers, you have even more recognizability than a TV star,” he continued. “Kate Upton is the perfect example of that,” he finished.

As with any high profile figure, Kate Upton has faced her share of disapprovel. This is due to the fact that she doesn’t fit the super skinny model bill.

Ivan Bart, who many consider a super agent at IMG, had the following to say regarding the beauty:

“When Kate first came in, everyone at the agency thought I was crazy,” said Bart. “She wasn’t ‘fashion’ enough,” he went on to add.

When questioned on how the 5ft 11inch model fit into the industry as a whole, the agent had the following to say:

“Kate is bigger than fashion. She’s the Jayne Mansfield of the Internet,” said Bart.

When it comes to clothing, many shoppers not only purchase the style, but the image that represents it. Trey Laird, who is a creative director at Laird & Partners gave his point of view on their casting approach:

“It’s not just enough to cast such-and-such a girl that opened Prada or Vuitton or whatever,” said Trey Laird, who advertises behind brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Juicy Couture and the Gap. “It’s a huge help if a girl already has a platform and followers, and Kate Upton is a great example of that,” he continued.

Stephen Gan, editor in chief as well as creative director of V magazine commented on what initially drew him to the sexy star.

“I wasn’t necessarily drawn to her because of her having been big online and having several million hits on YouTube,” said Stephen Gan, V’s editor in chief and creative director. “In fact, I first heard of her when we were having a party at the Boom Boom Room and Kate Moss’s agent called and said,‘Can you put Kate Upton on your list?'”