Growing up, when many of us heard “Easy, breezy, beautiful Covergirl“ we all knew that the “it” girls were about to grace our television screen.
As we have all grown up, the term Covergirl is always associated with beauty, femininity and endless glamour that we associate with women like Katy Perry. On Oct. 10, Perry took to Instagram to show how the Covergirl brand is moving into a new direction, announcing that 17-year-old makeup YouTube sensation James Charles is the new face of Covergirl, gaining attention as being the first ever Coverboy.
At first glance of his YouTube channel people can see the talent he has using makeup as a way to express himself. From his immaculately applied foundation and contour that is flawless, to lashes to die for, it is clear why Covergirl chose him to be their first ever Coverboy.
While many are celebrating this as first sign of breaking down gender-defined roles when it comes to beauty, other people see this as an attack on masculinity.
In a recent video that was leaked from The Rebel, a conservative Canadian news platform, the video claimed this was another attack on manhood and that we all need to realize that men make “crappy” women.
Upon reading more about the new Coverboy position and to why he was chosen, one realizes that his form of beauty is one that has always been a part of the brand.
One year ago, Charles started his YouTube channel to have an outlet to express himself while showing others it is okay to be who you are, this platform has gained him over one million subscribers that grows daily.
Most times we associate beauty with gender, men are supposed to be a handsome, rugged and the epitome of masculinity, while women are supposed to be nothing less than graceful. These very ideas are ingrained in us from childhood. Ideas that the media have been putting on the frontlines, even as fashion designers have been joining the gender neutral clothing trend.
Charles as the new Coverboy is not here as a way to destroy masculinity, but to show that a man in makeup is just as masculine as a man who is on the cover of GQ. We are moving into a time where the constructs that have been in place are being challenged, which then challenges how we as a society think. Beauty norms and roles change as the generation changes. What was once the standard before may not be the standard now and we have to open our minds to that.
A Covergirl is someone who is fearless, bold, edgy and themselves without the care of being judged. Now a young man can embody those things. Covergirl is challenging how we see gender defined beauty roles, but they are also giving us the room to realize that a man in makeup is in no way a threat to masculinity, but just another facet of masculinity.
