Saweetie might just be the beauty vlogger we never knew we needed. Earlier this week the rapper, while cooped up in her Los Angeles home during quarantine due to the outbreak of coronavirus, went live on Instagram to demo her new makeup collaboration with Morphe called Backstage With Saweetie. While in Saweetie’s words she, “failed miserably,” at first, the video ended on a high note with a soft yellow and shimmery orange look that culminated with a celebratory “mhmm” and “that’s cute” as she looked at the finished product in the mirror.
The now Insta-famous four-piece collection features a 24-pan artistry palette with both vibrant and muted colors, a six-piece makeup brush kit, limited-edition mini setting spray, and Saweetie’s signature lip gloss, all packed in a bright orange belt-bag, for beauty on-the-go. The collection launches today on Ulta.com.
Ahead of it the launch, the the CEO of Icy Girls chatted with ELLE.com about her makeup journey, why she’s on the beauty tycoon grind, and how that lyric from “My Type” inspired a lip gloss shade.
Morphe
What made you want to partner with Morphe?
I have so much more to learn about the makeup industry, so it was dope to collaborate with a makeup brand that has so much integrity. Girl, don’t you hate when you buy a bomb eyeshadow palette and the colors look ashy or too sheer? When it comes to Morphe, what you see is what you get. The products are super pigmented and super affordable. Creating a quality makeup line that’s also affordable for the everyday girl is something I always wanted to do.
It feels like I’m moving in the right direction of my career and being a beauty guru. I’ve always been into makeup, but it wasn’t until a couple of years ago when I finally got it right.
How did you learn how to do your own makeup?
A lot of trial and error! My mom and my auntie were successful makeup artists in the Bay area. I would come home from college and would always ask them, “What are you doing with your eyebrows? What are you doing with your foundation?” For so long, I thought makeup was just one foundation, and I thought that you could draw your eyebrows on with anything. I later learned that there’s contour, there’s the highlighter, all these things that make up a “beat” face. It was dark times. Thank God for YouTube because I love watching girls put on their makeup. YouTube helped me become better at doing my makeup.
What was on your vision board when creating the eyeshadow palette?
l I thought about the summer and what people are doing during that time—festivals, going out, FOTD (face of the day), OOTD (outfit of the day), the sky, sunset—and wanted to play off that but make it more modern. I wanted the colors to complement every outfit and use the shimmer shades to take your look up a notch.
What are some of your favorite colors?
My favorite would have to be the highlighter shade “Spotlight Stealer” because it has little stars in the pigment. I’ve been really enjoying the different glitters, solid colors, and shimmers, all in one palette.
Between shows and hanging out during the summer, what’s your secret to long-lasting makeup?
Setting spray! I just learned that I needed this in my routine like last year. I remember watching videos wondering, “Why do y’all keep spraying your faces?” [laughs] Setting spray is great for my oily girls, that’s why I included one in the collection because, girl, you can’t have an oily face and not set it the right way or you’ll blotting your face all night. Plus, it smells like peach gummy bears.
An Icy Girl never leaves the house without lip gloss. How did you come up with the names “Boss Tycoon” and “8 Inch”?
Exactly! I’ve always loved lip glosses from the local beauty supply store. I used to have all the flavors—cherry, grape, strawberry, pineapple. Even as a little girl, I’d put lip gloss on before I went to bed. I think I just always loved how it felt on my lips and I loved the glossy look. For me, the names had to be on-brand but also funny. I remember when Nars released the Orgasm blush, everybody was talking about it. I wanted my lip gloss names to be memorable like that, which is why I named the purple lip gloss “8 Inch”, a memorable lyric from “My Type.” Then, “Bo$ Tycoon” and “Money Mami” are for all the Icy Girls who are just about their grind and their money, like me.
Shop the Backstage With Saweetie collection below:
