October 23rd 2023.
Joy Mohammed, a Detroit mom of five, has become the face for Melissa Butler’s The Lip Bar beauty brand. Mohammed was chosen to model for the brand’s newest product, a foundation shade 6.04 Warm Red Ebony. This choice had a special significance for her, as she had been previously bullied for her dark skin tone.
Speaking to Daily Mail, Mohammed said, “I couldn’t get over the fact I was tapped to represent a foundation shade that was unavailable when I was in need of make-up for senior photos and dance recitals because my skin tone was so ‘undesirable’ to the masses.”
Mohammed shared her childhood story of always being the darkest kid in class. “People would make comments about my skin color and call me things like ‘blackety black.’ They would even ask me if I was out in the sun too long or what was wrong with me. They would ask me, ‘Oh, is that your mum because she isn’t as dark?’”
Finding a foundation suitable for her complexion was always a struggle. Most shades left her skin looking too light and mismatched. But The Lip Bar changed that. Product developer Kori Fields invited Mohammed to match her skin to the foundation. Mohammed said, “I was drawn to this brand not only because it was also Detroit-owned, Black-owned, and women-owned, but because it worked so well and showed up on my skin so well. The product color is seamless; it goes on, and you can’t tell when the product ends and where my skin begins.”
Being able to represent a beauty brand that was catered to a wide range of melanated skin tones was a breakthrough for Mohammed. She wanted her daughter Adaline, who was only five at the time, to see that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. Mohammed said, “I wanted her to see that what we consider beauty diversity to be normal for her and that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.”
Mohammed said she felt relieved after decades of facing racial slurs from her peers and community. She was grateful to The Lip Bar for giving her a platform to represent dark-skinned women.
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