Jeffree Star is at it again.
Yesterday, the beauty giant took a jab at Huda Beauty ahead of their first mascara release.
The brand, founded by OG beauty influencer Huda Kattan, is launching their new mascara, LEGIT Lashes. The double-ended mascara contains two full-sized applicators in one wand, each with their own formula— one to lengthen and curl and the other to add volume. Huda claims they have been working on this product for a whopping 5 years.
Upon the reveal posted to Huda’s YouTube channel, fans had mixed feelings. Many praised Huda for refusing to Photoshop the promotional photos and were relieved to see models had not been put in false lashes, something many brands do when promoting a mascara (kind of defeats the point, right?).
Known for her super-glam and ultra-flashy approach to branding, Huda said she wanted this campaign to represent something different, “Some of those perfect ads and everything being Photoshopped almost felt like, very un-inclusive,” she said in the video. “This is truth, this is real, this is for everyone.”
However, some fans took issue with Huda’s claims used to market the product, namely that the mascara is allegedly “clinically proven” to deliver the following results:
- 100% of people agreed their lashes looked fuller and multiplied
- 100% of people agreed they had an instant lash extension effect
- 100% of people agreed these mascaras gave their lashes extreme curl and extreme length
While we can find no evidence of Huda Beauty using the term “clinically proven” in any of their own marketing, popular makeup page TrendMood used the term in her caption to announce the mascara reveal. Many brands send promotional collateral, including caption copy, to TrendMood ahead of launches.
This is where Jeffree Star stepped in.
In the comment section of TrendMood’s reveal, Jeffree responded to a popular post which said, “You can’t ‘clinically prove’ a mascara. Not only is it illegal to claim something is clinically proven when it isn’t, it’s also false advertising that goes against FTC guidelines.”
Jeffree jumped in to add his two cents, writing, “Exactly. She is ruthless and only cares about money. I think a long time ago she used to actually enjoy creating content and beauty products.”
While the comment is not entirely true, as many aspects of this mascara could fall under “clinically proven,” it’s not far-fetched to assume a brand may be making false claims about their mascara.
In 2018, Too Faced was sued in a class-action lawsuit after being investigated over claims that “clinical studies” proved their Better Than Sex Mascara would provide a 1944% boost in lash volume.
Fans have also noted that earlier this year, Jeffree teased that his brand, Jeffree Star Cosmetics, would be releasing a mascara in 2020.
Though it is unclear whether Huda Beauty used the term “clinically proven” themselves, the listing for LEGIT Lashes Mascara on Huda’s website notes that their claims are “based on an independent panel test of 22 women using the ‘Volume’ mascara followed by ‘Curl & Length’ mascara.”‘
Jeffree Star has since deleted his comment.
And the Huda Beauty LEGIT Lashes Mascara now has a waitlist of over 10,000 people.