Jeffree Star’s ‘Cremated’ Palette Causes Controversy For Celebrating COVID Deaths
YouTube Reading Time: 4 minutes
Jeffree Star’s makeup palettes are all the rage these days. But, his most recent one, called “Cremated” is causing quite the stir amid the COVID-19 pandemic. People think that it is insensitive and problematic in a multitude of ways during a global health crisis.
The palette features 24 eyeshadow shades that are grey toned and give off a gothic vibe. They include names like Eulogy, Hearse, Grave Digger and R.I.P. These are all names that are associated with death.
Jeffree Star Posted Promotional Pictures In A Graveyard
To promote this palette, the YouTube star had some pretty unconventional photo shoots. In some of the photos posted on his Instagram account, he is posing in a cemetery in front of a pink hearse. In his caption he wrote “The Cremated Collection is all about tapping into your dark desires and exploring another side of yourself.” The process of cremation refers to the disposition of a dead body through burning. Ashes are then taken and put into urns.
In another photo, Jeffree is actually laying in the back of the hearse showing off his makeup. He was dressed in all black along with the other models for the shoot, a nod to the dark attire that people wear at funerals. This comes after over 336,000 people have died from COVID-19 since the outbreak began. The timing of his product launch was questioned by a lot of fans that believe something like death should not be celebrated.
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People Felt Like The Name Of The Palette Is Heartless
Jeffree has 18.2 million subscribers on YouTube, but not all of them agreed with his decision to launch this spooky product. “Ok hear me out. I know Jeffree Star had this palette name trademarked in September but to drop a line called “cremated” during a pandemic while thousands are dying and given no option but to be cremated…. it’s kinda f*cked up,” said one Twitter user. Jeffree said in a video that he had this idea for over a year.
After the beauty mogul tweeted about his launch, one persons reply was pretty sad. The comment said “My grandma had to be cremated after she died from COVID. This seems like bad timing for such a product.”
Another Twitter user said “I love jeffree’s brand but releasing a palette with a theme revolving heavily around death in the middle of a global pandemic which has already claimed hundreds of thousands of lives is just… wrong. i get it he needs to secure the bag but couldn’t it wait? it’s so tone-deaf.”
The Star Responded To The Comments Calling Him Insensitive
He posted a YouTube video titled “Responding To The Backlash Over My Cremated Palette.” In this video, he talks about how his father who passed away was cremated along with two of his dogs. It is a tradition in his family. He created this palette to make people smile and for the people that feel like they don’t really fit in. “In no way was this created to be offensive ever,” he said. There was extra emphasis on the fact that he has been working on this idea for a year and already delayed the product launch once. He did not want to delay the launch for a second time because he did not want to sell expired makeup.
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While he understands everyone’s feelings and opinions on the matter, he insists that everything he does comes from a good place. His response to the backlash was a little bit different than the tearful apologies we have seen from beauty gurus like Jaclyn Hill and James Charles in the past. Jeffree pretty much recognized that people will have something to say about his products no matter what but he did not have bad intentions.
A comment on this video said “The only offensive thing about this pallet is that I can’t afford it.” Another comment said “The backlash over this pallet ‘s name is proof that we’ve gotten over the shock of being in a pandemic. We’re back to squabbling over minor stuff again. I imagine the same stuff was going on during other major events in world history.”
Do you think this palette is offensive or are people just taking it too seriously?
