Colorful palettes and eye-catching highlights might have been able to blind us to the realities of the beauty industry before, but now everything is coming to light as all the makeup is stripped away. YouTuber Shane Dawson and beauty guru Jeffree Star have flipped the makeup world upside down with their new series, “The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star,” which takes a dive into the good and bad of being a part of the beauty world. The series follows Dawson and Star as they collaborate on the Conspiracy makeup launch together, but what makes it stand out the most is that it is a Shane Dawson launch.
Shane Dawson was not a part of the beauty community on YouTube prior to the series and had no makeup experience until meeting Jeffree Star. The launch was huge and highly anticipated by millions, but this sort of thing is usually only done by big name beauty influencers, such as James Charles. For an outsider to be able to successfully launch a makeup line of this magnitude was unheard of.
However, Dawson was able to do it with ease, or so it may seem from his social media. The reality is that it was not a smooth experience, and there actually was high levels of anxiety for both Dawson and Star. Fans got to witness that reality and all the outside factors that influenced the creators during the makeup construction process.
To an average consumer, like you and I, makeup palettes seem easy. We rarely consider what really goes into the color-picking process and even palette construction. To us, we see the product, and if we like it, we buy it. We rarely take time to admire the colors and craftsmanship of the palette, which is most likely because we aren’t shown how much effort really goes into making it.
Dawson and Star’s series highlights this and takes viewers step by step to show them what it truly means. Personally, seeing Dawson pick out every color and give feedback for improvements really made me aware of just how special the palette is to him. Overall, it showed that the shades were truly made by Dawson.
Similarly, seeing Dawson pick names for each shade was an eye-opening experience. It showed that the names were something that he could connect with and not just something that would sell. It made the palette so much more personal. That is one of the major factors that contributed to the launch being so successful.
One topic that was discussed throughout the series was the scandals and tragedies that took place while the makeup line was being made. This included a resurfacing of old controversial Shane Dawson videos, Jeffree Star’s robbery and concealer leak and the upsetting death of Star’s dog. We see the two influencers deal with their struggles while also working on a highly anticipated launch.
While these issues were not directly related to the palette, it was touching to see the two friends grow and lift each other up through their hard times. One moment that really touched me was when Star had to rush his dog to the vet, just after losing one of his other dogs, but still showed up to Dawson’s photoshoot for his palette. The Conspiracy palette moved beyond a simple makeup palette into the product that would spark an everlasting friendship.
The series also exposed the beauty industry for taking advantage of influencers and their audiences. One scandal that was mentioned was the NikkieTutorials (Nikkie de Jager) and Too Faced collaboration. In short, De Jager partnered with Too Faced cosmetics to create a palette. Once it was released, fans started noticing defects in their products and started to call the YouTuber out.
In the Shane Dawson and Jeffree Star series, Star touched on this issue and revealed that De Jager was given little to nothing from the profits made off the palette. While this was public knowledge, Star brought this issue back to light further exposing the industry. Along with this, they also touched on an old collab Dawson did with Hot Topic, and it was revealed that he lost a lot from it. While Hot Topic isn’t a part of the beauty industry, it does show how big companies take advantage of influencers and their following.
Star and Dawson were also extremely open about the money side of makeup, which to me was interesting. Money is something that no businessperson wants to discuss, especially in such a public way. Star was open about the money he makes from his palettes and how much he spends to make each palette as well. Dawson and Star were also open about the deal they had to split the profits. They also discussed just how much Dawson could potentially walk away with.
Talking about the money side of everything was definitely another huge factor of why this launch was so successful. It showed transparency, which as consumers, we like. While the two did admit they were making millions off the palette, being open about the money and allowing fans into that side of the business built a really strong relationship between them. I think it was a really nice touch, and I’m glad that they went about it in the right way.
Overall, the transparency and step-by-step reveal of Conspiracy makes buyers feel like we’re friends with the creators of the palette. It allows us to know that we’re buying from actually people who put a lot of care and thought into the products and not just another company.
Conspiracy is now available online and in Morphe stores as well as at jeffreestarcosmetics.com. Shane’s merch collection is only available on Star’s website. As of now, everything is sold out, but there is a restock coming soon for the Conspiracy and Mini-Controversy palettes and a few of his merch items. The palettes can also be pre-ordered, so if you’re interested, be sure to snatch them up while you can.
