- Hi, ladies!
Guys, thank you so
much for coming today.
You all look so beautiful.
There's so much we have
to talk about today.
The standards of beauty are
often not for us or by us.
Now, we're having
these conversations
so we can define
beauty for ourselves.
Y'all ready?
All right ladies, it's
time for Black Girl Beauty.
(soft instrumental music)
Girl, I just found
a lash in my braids.
That's Black girl beauty.
(bass heavy instrumental music)
- The culture gotta
catch up to us, facts.
(bass heavy instrumental music)
- We are social media.
We are the culture, period.
(bass heavy instrumental music)
- All right, ladies, y'all came
to the set looking beautiful.
I see green here; I see
the green under eye.
- I got the Fall look going.
It's clean.
- Okay, and the curls.
- Yes!
- Speaking of curls, we've got
the queen of curls
herself over here.
- [Taija] Yes, ma'am.
- Hi, thank you, as I lean.
- Okay, with the blond.
You look beautiful!
- Thank you, as do you ladies.
I'm so happy to be
here with you guys.
- Tell me about--.
You've got a dress,
and then you've
got a little thing to
bring it less, like.
- Yeah, I wanted
to give you guys
just a little bit
of pulled together.
Not my weekend look.
(laughs)
- You look gorgeous.
Are you guys feeling good?
- [Taija] Yeah, of course.
- Feeling wonderful.
Honestly and truly.
- Yay!
Well, I think it's times to
get into some good, deep convo.
You guys ready?
- Thank you, as you are.
- Thank you, sis.
Are y'all ready to get into
some Black girl beauty?
- Absolutely.
- A hundred percent.
- All right, let's get into it.
- Ladies, today we're
coming together to talk
a little bit about one
of the craziest trends,
I think, of our generation.
Is the ability to be
able to cancel a brand,
a person, a moment, a movement.
The cancel culture is very real.
It can ruin your whole career,
if you make the wrong move.
What do you think of it, and
have y'all ever been canceled?
- Oh, now I'm like
(exhales), 'cause
I'm like, what to knock on?
As of now, I have
not been canceled.
- Me neither.
- I haven't had that issue.
What's interesting about
cancel culture now,
is the fact that it's so--.
It's not forgiving and it's also
not reflective of current times.
I'm saying, one of the things
I love about social media
and what we're seeing
within culture now
is that we have a
lot more awareness,
we have a lot more
tolerance for diversity.
We have a lot more
celebration of individuals.
We've got new
pronouns for everyone.
There's a lot of beautiful
evolutions that are happening.
But I don't think
cancel culture gives
a lot of space for
people to recover.
That's the window
that's missing.
- Interesting.
Okay, I like that point.
- I don't think it's fair
to have a cancel culture,
being that the
internet is so new.
We just started getting
on the internet.
When I was on the
internet I was what?
10-years-old, saying
whatever a 10-year-old
is gonna say, or 14 or whatever.
- I'm like, 10?
- Sorry Dad!
Sorry, Dad, it was 10.
(laughs)
But yeah, I feel like a
lot of the reason why it's
a thing now is because
it's become a trend.
It's become a trend to cancel.
Oh, I don't like her shoes
today, I'm gonna cancel her.
It's whatever you don't like,
throwing that person away
and throwing their
business away.
It's not fair to everybody.
- But, one thing I do
appreciate about cancel culture
is that it's holding
people accountable.
- Yes.
- We're saying that we're not
tolerant of certain behaviors,
of certain words, of
certain discrimination.
We need that spectrum.
So I do appreciate cancel
culture because it brings
certain things to light
that need to come to light.
- Absolutely, but then for
me, especially as a girl
who consumes beauty and
fashion, music, all things
of pop culture, I've
seen that cancel
culture has also been selective.
There's been times where
there's maybe White influencers
will get away with certain
things and be forgiven,
then you have other
influencers who might
really be canceled
and that's it.
- [Taija] Yeah, right, right.
- What do you guys think
about the almost--.
'Cause I feel like the
reason why cancel culture
is problematic is because
it's driven by humans.
At the end of the day, we are
all at fault for something.
We've all offended
somebody, we just might
not have had a million
followers doing it.
Then I'm like, I don't
love cancel culture
in the same way that you
said, where it's like,
oh, well, they tweeted
that and it was like,
I might've said that
at a kitchen table,
but I'm not gonna cancel you.
- Small group of friends.
- In my community.
Excuse me, I'm saying
it to my community,
in my community, with the four
people I have on the internet.
I'm talking to them,
but then I become famous
or the internet becomes
a thing, and that's
how we present ourselves,
that is our portfolio.
They're looking through our
portfolio now, looking back.
What did you do when you were.
- Four.
- An adolescent.
(laughs)
- When we look at the way
some people get canceled,
versus others, if your
personality is rooted
in a space of controversy
or being bold,
then you can kind of get
away certain behaviors.
Some of your audience
will celebrate you
because they already
expect that from them.
- If you did do something.
If you've changed into
that personality now,
that doesn't meant that that
was your personality back then.
- It's just scary.
'Cause it also takes away
the feeling of being human.
Again, I always bring
it back to humanity,
'cause I feel like all of us
have made mistakes before.
I think it's right to
get canceled if there's
a situation like a Gucci,
where y'all have had
so many people in meetings and
putting out certain products.
When is there a
person that's like,
hey that looks like
Blackface on that sweater.
I think that makes sense because
people boycotted it for a while.
- I was about to say that.
- That's another problem
of cancel culture!
- Everybody wearing
Gucci belts still.
- Okay, they back.
- That's a trend.
- Then H&M had that moment.
- Exactly, with the
monkeys on the Black boy.
- But because we are
seeing that, guess what?
I'm sure how much more aware all
these corporate offices are.
Well, we hope anyway.
But I'm sure we'll see many more
of these situations pop back up.
- Absolutely.
- Yes, the idea these
conversations are
now gonna happen.
That's a positive that's
gonna come out of it.
That is where we start
to get our power.
- Yeah, and I was
actually gonna say,
African-Americans
spending power is
projected to hit 1.2
trillion by 2021.
- How many jars of conditioner.
- Sis!
- Shampoo, leave-in, everything?
- Sis!
I got like this many.
- Every kind, and how quickly
do they go down to empty
where you're
scraping the bottle?
- I rarely finish conditioner.
Because I'm always
like, wait, that's cute.
I'm gonna try that one now.
I'm horrible!
I'm not loyal to a conditioner.
- What I love now
is that we're seeing
a lot more Black
owned businesses
and that's what's
exciting about us having
such a powerful voice
even if we do talk
about the toxic side
of cancel culture,
on the positive
and the flip side
is that we are driving sales for
Black owned businesses
and we're encouraging--.
I think Black female
entrepreneurs is the fastest
entrepreneurial
category that's growing.
- Yes, yes.
- 'Cause they want
us, they need us,
they gotta have our flyness.
- I think we're also,
again, I always say,
in social media and
culture we are the ones
that change conversations,
amplify conversations.
I'll be interested to see
when we really get behind
our own businesses,
our own beauty lines,
our own influencers and really
push them to the next level.
I do want to talk
about Jeffree Star,
because he was canceled
a few years ago.
We all saw how that moved on.
But then, he's kinda
back in the limelight,
using and doing other things
with different brands.
But do you feel like,
at the end of the day,
if you cancel someone,
the way to cancel them
is to stop using their products
and encourage your
followers to do it?
How do we keep people
who deserve to be
quote unquote canceled, or
are proven to be controversial
aware of what they
did was wrong?
- I feel like the biggest
thing that I've seen with
canceling Jeffree Star
is I ain't never seen
in my life my Black friends
have a Jeffree Star anything.
- Right, talk.
- Never in my life.
- [Gia] I didn't even know--.
Never mind (laughs).
- Who is that?
I mean I know about him
because of the things
that he's done and the
things that he has said.
- Right, and he's broke records
and stuff; he's out here.
- I'm sure he's doing something.
(laughs)
But honestly I've never
heard of him in my community.
You know what I mean?
So it's like, who
is canceling him?
Because that same person
who is canceling him
is buying his
stuff the next day.
It's like, you're not
really canceling anyone.
- [Gia] Yes!
- But generally speaking, I
want to encourage my audience
to use products that are
gonna be good for them,
that represent them,
that represent us
versus spend a lot of my time
going through and canceling
something and kind of dragging
someone through the mud.
- Right, absolutely.
- Yes, I want to
talk about awareness.
Yes, I'm gonna have
discussions like this
where we can say, okay, what
does the Black dollar mean?
- That wasn't right, I agree.
- How are we taking
our power back?
And knowing and really
highlighting the influence that
we have versus spending a
lot of time kind of dragging.
So yes, some of the
people do come back,
but not necessarily
on my platforms.
- Absolutely, I realistically
do not follow these people.
The top beauty influencers
who are not of color.
- We can't relate to them.
Being honest, we just can't.
- They're not using makeup
that's gonna look great on--.
- [Taija] Me!
- I can't see myself following
you and supporting you.
Again, I don't know if that's
necessarily a bad thing.
- [Taija] A bad thing.
- Or if it's just how it is.
I was sitting there
like, I don't know.
Unless you talking
about Jackie Aina.
Unless you talking
about Monica Muse.
If you're a person
that isn't necessarily
representative of me,
my people, my community,
the things I care
about then I'm not--.
I don't even probably
know about you.
So I think that's an
interesting conversation
to have as well
because you feel like
the worlds are almost separate?
- Almost, almost.
But it's a cultural thing.
I grew up in a predominantly
Black neighborhood.
My father raised me Hawaiian.
So I only know Hawaiian
culture and Black culture.
That's all I know, so for
someone to try to come
into my community, a lot
of times I'm like, no.
- [Gia] I don't know you.
- I don't know you.
- The problem that arises
in these situations
is that this is where the
advertising dollar is going.
I think that's where this
discussions comes back around
of okay, maybe they're
not in my circle,
but at the same time if
they're gonna be given
opportunities that I'm
not gonna be given,
if they're gonna be
getting dollar amounts,
securing bags that I
should be securing,
but I'm not because it's
not available to me,
and yet I am standing
for certain morals
and I present myself
a certain way,
I'm speaking on behalf of my
community in a certain way,
then that's where the issues is.
I think that's why we do
have this cancel culture,
'cause then we turn
around and we say okay,
how can I change
this with my dollar?
My Black power.
- Do you feel like
within the last few years
you've been giving
your money more
towards Black owned businesses?
- Girl, yes.
- Absolutely, absolutely.
- Or not?
- I ain't playing with y'all.
- But I love is that our
awareness is shifting
and the conversation
is then shifting,
and that's why we're seeing
things like standards.
We're saying okay, back
in the day I just accepted
that I was gonna open
a magazine and I may
only see one version
of a woman of color.
I thought it's how it is.
- Now we gotta attitude.
- Now what I love
is that, right,
we're saying that's
not how it is.
- [Taija] That's not right.
- And I don't accept it anymore.
I may not buy this magazine.
I may not read that blog because
I know I'm not
being represented.
- Absolutely.
- Then we're saying, how can I
consciously make a difference.
Well, I can go and stay
at Black owned hotels
or I can buy Black
owned beauty brands.
I absolutely think we're
making a difference,
both in how we consume
it and then also
in the standard that
we hold other brands.
When it comes to advertising,
when it comes to shelf
space, everything.
- Is is wrong if the
people that are creating
these makeup brands in
these mainstream communities
where they see these are
the number one bloggers.
Is is wrong then for them
not to use our people
because they don't see--.
They're not aware of us?
I guess that's the point
of social media, then.
For us to be like,
hey, we're here!
- We're over here!
- Just in case you know.
- Look at me.
- I did use your liner one time.
- I did use my money
to buy your liner, too.
- Exactly, so do you
think when it comes to,
especially Black owned brands,
or brands for Black people,
do you think it's wrong for
them to include all types
of people in their
representation?
Like campaigns, different
things like that,
if their number one
consumer is mostly Black.
- I feel like if you
have the foundation range
for it, put someone
in their for it.
If you have a really
light foundation,
you have a tan foundation
and a dark foundation,
there should be
different cultures,
different types of people
within those foundations.
It's kinda tricky, right?
Because we can
have a Black brand,
but White people can't
have a White brand.
It's just specifically
for White people.
We all need to be all inclusive
to everybody, to everyone.
- There's a ton of brands
that are just White.
That don't have any
diversity evident.
- That's why we're stirring
up the pot right now.
That's why everybody
is like, no you're not.
I wanna use that, too.
Why I can't use that?
Us being loud about
it is making them say,
okay, we have to now.
- No, absolutely, for
sure I was just like,
there's still some lacking.
- [Taija] Most of them.
- They're still out there!
- There's still some out there.
(laughs)
- I also see when I go to
certain areas of the country.
I went to California and
it was this many products
for White women and this
many for me, just me.
You didn't even have a product.
- Right, right.
- It's like I get it culturally.
I get it wherever
the money is going,
that's where you
push the product to,
but sometimes I'm
there and I don't
have anything to
wear, so what do I do?
I have to go all the way back
to New York to
get my foundation?
That makes so sense.
- Right, right, right.
Just to get into some more
stats, 'cause I love stats;
one in three African-Americans
find out beauty brands
from a social media
influencer like y'all.
We are also 21%
more likely to say
social media influencers
are an important
source for beauty
products and tips.
Basically we're driving
the conversations.
We're also influencing what
people buy and how they move.
We really have to, I
think, hone in on our power
to move brands and
move the needle.
Do you guys also find that
your place now for beauty
and hair tips is
social media first?
- Yes, for sure.
Social media is absolutely--.
Like I said, there's
so many new hairstyles
and it's simply because
I saw it on Instagram,
itself is a platform
and then went to YouTube
and was able to teach
tutorials on how to do it.
But I think we're in a
really unique space in that
one, the market had
to catch up to us.
- Well, talk about it.
- Because we use to be like
scavenger hunting through
all the haircare aisles, so
we stemed from a whole lot
of hey sis, how did
you get this style?
Well, I found this one product
and I mix my own shea butter,
and I did this, and I
use coconut oil for that.
- Creativity.
- A lot of our understanding
of how to style our hair
stemmed from that
continuous communication
and conversation
amongst each other.
- That stemmed
onto social media.
- Yeah, so it's
like we move that
right back onto social media.
The way that we
dictated and influenced
with our buying
power, especially when
you're talking
about the spectrum
and we're saying
okay, 3b, 3c, 4a, 4b,
all the different,
various textures.
We have educated these
brands and we've forced
these shelves to
make space for us.
We've pushed this conversation.
I feel like we are the leaders
on so many areas of it.
What I wanna see is us
continue to hold that space,
and to have power
in the conversation.
- I would love to see more
earning power in that, too.
- Please, honey, yes!
For businesses to make
sure that we are creating
really incredible
opportunities for
all of us to win
financially, too.
We have the buying
power, but I would
like to increase
our earning power.
One of the brands that I
feel like really, really,
really showed why they can
really be successful is Fenty.
I think the rollout, even
before the first line launched,
the way that Rihanna
and her team were able
to create that is not only
aesthetically pleasing,
but inclusive and
authentically inclusive
of all people, of all
types of walks of life,
I think they did that the best.
- They did.
- I think that social media
played a major point in that.
But you were a part of
a few Fenty rollouts.
- I've been blessed.
- Okay, so tell me a
little bit about a person
from the inside, what
that experience was like.
Did you feel like they
hit the nail on the head?
- I would like to
start off with Rihanna.
Rihanna, Rihanna.
I don't look at Rihanna
and think a color.
I don't look at her and
think a certain culture.
I don't look at her and
think anything in particular.
She doesn't have
labels to her, to me.
I feel like they picked
the perfect person,
because everybody can
relate to Rihanna.
Being a part of something
that had so many shade range,
had so many different
types of people,
so many different types
of cultures within makeup.
It was actually a most
beautiful thing because I only
got to see my type of
Black culture in makeup.
I didn't get to see
all the other colors
and what they like to do and
what they like to put on.
What shades go particularly
for different people.
It made me feel like okay,
even though there's so many
different colors, there's
so many different formulas,
so many different things in
her line, I feel included.
She's breaking down
the beauty standard
and making beauty just beauty.
Just what it is.
- What I like that
she did with Fenty,
with those initial
rollouts, was that
she literally was so
intentional and kind of came
to the beauty industry and said,
you guys are not doing it right,
and you're not doing it justice.
It's like she
literally challenged
the entire beauty industry.
She was very particularly like,
we are not being represented.
This is a huge
issue; you guys have
failed us in so many
way and so here's
the answer, and I did it myself.
- She changed the
entire structure of how
the makeup industry
looks at shades.
This is no new industry.
The makeup industry has
been around for what now?
- That's where I feel like
canceling can be useful.
From now on, you don't
have a shade for me?
You don't gotta shade for you?
Uh-uh, bye.
Because you know
what it looks like.
- New standard; we've
set new standards.
- Now you know
what it looks like.
Now you know how
to do it correctly.
So what are you going to do?
Are you going to
still ignore me?
Knowing that I'm giving
you money, or I would
give you money, 'cause
I'm your pocket.
I'm the reason you
baking that bread.
- That's good.
I'm your pocket.
- I'm your pocket.
- Yes, and do you
have any last thoughts
about where you
would like to see
the future of beauty go as well?
I love that, that was
a good little wrap-up.
- I like the continued
idea of agenda setting,
in saying okay, you
don't have diversity?
Well, I'm gonna
call you out on it.
If you don't wanna
do it, I know this
Black owned brand
here will and I'm
gonna continue to
celebrate this brand.
I'm gonna continue
to uplift this brand.
I'm gonna continue
connect with my sisters
and let them know this is
what I recommend for you
because I know that it is going
to serve you and represent you.
Continue to be well aware
that your spending power
does have a voice
and it has an impact.
What you're buying,
what you're supporting
and what you're indulging
in and consuming,
if you can be
intentional with that,
that's how you're
gonna have your power
and that's how you're gonna
continue to see change.
That's my little two cents.
- Yes, come on, come through.
- Money talks, money talks.
- I love it.
Thank you guys so
much for joining me
on this episode of
Black Girl Beauty!
- [Taija] Thank you!
Thank you Rene, thank you Taija.
Guys, we are done.
I'm gonna see you
guys next time!
- Bye guys.
I love this.
(soft instrumental music)
- Hey guys, it's Gia Peppers
and thank you for watching
VH1's Black Girl Beauty.
To see more, make
sure you're subscribed
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