September 25th 2023.
29-year-old trendsetter and Hip-Hop artist Saucy Santana is taking matters into his own hands by becoming the beauty ambassador for Black, female-owned brand, Thread Beauty. Santana uses his platform to push for representation in the beauty industry, especially for Black LGBTQAI+ creatives.
The trailblazing artist and makeup lover is representing his community and doing it in full glam. Founded in 2011 by The Lip Bar Inc CEO Melissa Butler, thread Beauty is Gen-Z focused, clean, cruelty-free, and inspired by BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. Thread beauty is devoted to creating products that cater to all beauty lovers with diversity, inclusivity, allyship, and self-expression at the forefront of the brand’s identity—and the collaboration with Saucy Santana is a major extension of that commitment.
The partnership itself is not only a step forward for representation, but it also demonstrates that beauty brands have the opportunity to challenge traditional standards and to be the catalyst for change. Butler expressed her excitement about the partnership, “Prior to launching thread beauty, we weren’t seeing diversity in the beauty space, especially when it comes to men in makeup. Who better to be the face of a beauty brand championing unapologetic self-expression and genuine authenticity than ‘the’ Saucy Santana? We are overwhelmed & overjoyed that we get to embark on this first partnership with him.”
BLACK ENTERPRISE spoke to Saucy Santana about his collaboration with Thread Beauty, the importance of representing LGBTQAI+ creatives in the cosmetic industry, and what he hopes supporters will take away from the partnership.
When asked about representing his community, Santana said, “I feel that this collaboration is truly a win for the culture, especially being a Black, male-presenting and feminine gay man signed to a beauty deal is just great representation and visibility for my community. It’s hard to secure opportunities like this, especially in the spaces that I am in, such as Hip-Hop & Rap, being a black, dark skinned and feminine gay man, so I really appreciate the recognition and thread beauty for just giving men like me an opportunity to be seen and visible in a positive light within the beauty space.”
Santana went on to describe the impact of seeing more representation in the beauty industry, “I was getting my nails done the other day, and I was smiling to myself watching a boy who looked like me, with a bald face haircut and lined up beard, sit down and get his acrylic tip nails put on. I was so happy and so proud that more people are living their lives how they want and feel comfortable just being themselves. Our representation might not be plentiful, but we’re growing and that’s having an impact. I think people seeing me and others like me, it’s making people feel more comfortable doing what they want to do & accept us for who we are.”
When asked what beauty brands can learn from this collaboration, Santana said, “Thread beauty being Black-owned, female-founded, affordable and offering 26 shades of foundation, including deeper melanin tones in the foundation and concealers is really ground-breaking. You don’t really see a lot of makeup brands doing that. Typically once brands get to a certain medium-deep brown shade, they stop, a lot of brands don’t usually even offer a deep enough shade for me. So I just think this is a great thing and more brands should create a more inclusive shade range for BIPOC people.”
Santana went on to describe what inclusive beauty means to him, “I remember, back in the day, when I was getting make-up, foundation colors would stop at certain colors, and they wouldn’t really go that deep for darker skin tones. They would have two shades and then it was up to us to figure it out. I love that thread beauty just goes so deep, and is truly inclusive all into the deeper shades of their product line- especially the ‘face it’ complexion sticks. That was one of the first things that attracted me to working with the brand, knowing that it would be catering to everyone and that even my dark-skinned followers and fans could find something to love with the brand.”
Santana expressed his hopes for his fans to take away from his collaboration with Thread Beauty, “That they can do it too! We all have our own battles, even in the gay community. Boys like me, who are dark skinned, feminine and plus sized, get counted out within the community and don’t get a lot of opportunities. So, for me to be the first celebrity face of thread beauty shows people that we are able to be accepted for who we are, and it just speaks volumes. It’s making us more visible and helping us win.”
Santana’s favorite product from the cosmetic line is the multi-use face it complexion sticks and cover it complexion fluids because of the inclusive range of 26 shades catering to the BIPOC complexion range, and he mentions that the brand is expanding soon. He also loves the clear lip gloss it! He says that he “literally throws one in every bag when [he’s] heading out.”
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