Jeffree Star may not be a common household name. However, his 15.2+ million YouTube subscribers might say otherwise. But Jeffree Star hasn’t always been this successful. He went from a young man who experimented with his mother’s makeup to launching his own multi-million-dollar cosmetic line and brand. He is a man with a passion for makeup, and often uses the term “androgynous” to describe himself. After all, he does get the question, “are you a male or female?” every day. As a man in the makeup industry, he’s trying to change the stereotypes.
Jeffree Star started out posting photos on Myspace, went on to record music, and then found his passion for creating makeup reviews and tutorials on YouTube. Okay, makeup has always been his passion, but he’s stuck with this passion, unlike his singing career. He posts a few YouTube videos a week, showcasing not only his makeup line, but makeup brands from the Dollar Store to Sephora. His videos average at least 6 million views, and the click-bait titles get up to 18 million views. His goal is to provide honest- yet entertaining- makeup reviews, with some miscellaneous videos sprinkled in. He starts every YouTube video with, “welcome back to my channel!”, an iconic slogan that any Jeffree Star fan would recognize.
His YouTube success has spilled into other platforms: he has 4.7+ million followers on Twitter, 13+ million followers on Instagram, 2.8+ million followers on Facebook, countless Snapchat followers, and his own website, https://jeffreestarcosmetics.com/. “Through blogs and self-branding, women have built both cultural and social capital by developing online followings that cross over into traditional media.” (Humphreys, 2016, p. 143). Although Jeffree Star is biologically a male, he relates and caters to a female demographic.
All his social networking sites are bright and attention grabbing. Jeffree Star himself often wears bright wigs- pink, purple, green- to stand out. His Instagram is what the average person would call feminine, promoting his makeup line and showcasing video thumbnails from his YouTube videos. Almost all of his Instagram posts are of him in makeup, and show him with a fierce look. His Twitter is littered with retweets and likes of other people’s posts about his makeup line. For example, a follower of Star’s with less than 8,000 followers created a makeup look, and Jeffree Star retweeted his look and asked the follower to message Jeffree his address so he could be put on the PR list (see photo below). His Facebook is a lot like his Instagram and website, promoting his makeup line and current YouTube videos. His Snapchat, however, tends to be more personal with him sharing what he’s doing in a day.
In my opinion, Jeffree Star has a lot going for him on his social media sites. His Twitter shows him interacting and supporting his fans of all ages, races, sexual orientation and genders. He has been a big supporter for makeup brands creating a variety of foundation colors, and will publicly shame the companies who don’t do so. His YouTube videos are honest; if he doesn’t like someone or something, he will let the viewers know. He promotes self-love and acceptance on all his social media platforms, and doesn’t let the negativity get to him. He’s even made a video about hate comments he’s received. He leaves his negative comments on his social networking sites, and receives a lot of hostile language, derogatory remarks, and flaming. (Humphreys, 2016, p. 91).
Jeffree Star could be doing better when it comes to engaging and interacting with his followers. He rarely responds to YouTube or Instagram comments. This could be because he receives thousands of messages and comments daily. However, I think he could strengthen his connection with his followers by responding to them. Other YouTuber’s do this, why can’t he? Next, Jeffree Star often mentions how he came from a low-class, struggling family with no father figure in his life. While he makes affordable makeup, he never seems to donate or do any type of charity work. Promoting charitable work could help boost followers and subscribers for Jeffree Star. Last, Jeffree Star’s social media content is repetitive. What he posts on Twitter is the same thing he posts on Facebook or Instagram. Therefore, there’s not much incentive for following all his accounts.
Overall, Jeffree Star is all over social media. He does a great job of posting frequently, although repetitive. Twitter appears to be his most used social media, but we can’t tell what goes on behind the scenes when it comes to his YouTube channel. Obviously, his target audience is mostly female, and of course males who dabble in the makeup industry. It is evident from all his platforms that he’s not trying to attract the stereotypical straight, white, middle-aged man. His goal is to make money off his social media content, and he’s doing just that by promoting his products and showcasing others that promote his line. Jeffree Star is not afraid of being a unique, outspoken individual.
Humphreys, A. (2016). Social Media: Enduring Principles. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
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