The most viewed video shows Nyadollie applying her make up (Picture: Nyadollie/@dollievision/TikTok)
For as long as many of us makeup lovers can remember, the cosmetics industry has been predominantly geared towards white women.
Though we’ve seen huge strides in diversity in recent years, including foundation launches for deeper shades in a variety of undertones and finishes (thank you, Fenty) and product marketing geared towards men and other genders, there’s still work to be done.
And now, this desire for more inclusivity in the beauty industry can be seen in TikTok’s most viewed video of the year.
According to their data, influencer and model Nyadollie Deng claimed the top spot with a quick and easy makeup tutorial that, at the time of writing, has had more than 504 million views since it was uploaded back in March.
The video posted by Nyadollie, who is a dark skinned Black woman, is simple, but is powerful in what it represents to the beauty community.
When venturing to Boots to get shade matched in 2021, I was lucky to know that it wouldn’t be too hard to find my match (once again, thank you Fenty), but that hasn’t always been the case.
Saskia Calliste, 28, from London knows this all to well. ‘As a dark-skinned Black woman having only Dream Matte Mousse in Cocoa to choose from, to seeing this absolute queen reach number one for showcasing dark-skinned Black beauty, is everything,’ she tells Metro.co.uk.
‘You can’t deny the influence Black women have on makeup trends and I’m glad she’s getting her flowers. We love to see it.’
While other consumers are not only celebrating the video as an example of the beauty of deeper skin tones, they’re also hoping it leads to change.
Saskia loved seeing Nyadollie claim the top spot (Picture: Saskia Calliste)
Tammie Danquah, 28, says she hopes the video encourages more people to feel comfortable in their skin.
‘The first thing that came to my head when I saw her was “I think she looks absolutely stunning!”‘, says Tammie.
‘We need more darker women who are comfortable in their skin, period, and Nyadollie shows exactly that!
‘I hope the fact she’s number one ignites more representation for dark-skinned Black women like myself. We have variations and undertones and all of that. What we now need is for all shops to sell all of those shades in store – not just the lighter ones.’
Tammie hopes the video sparks more representation (Picture: Supplied)
And the impact is felt across different cultural backgrounds, too. Zareen Kazmi, 27, from London, who is South Asian, says: ‘I think she did an amazing job in showing that brands need to cater to darker skin tones and it’s not an after thought’.
This was also felt by Ayesha Peters, 27, another dark-skinned Black woman from Bedfordshire. ‘I gasped out loud when I saw it originally,’ she says. ‘Especially when she put on her pink eyeshadow.
‘It feels like the industry is just now realising we also love big bold colours and one blanket shade for dark-skinned people isn’t enough.’
Nyadollie’s video has been viewed over 500 million times this year. (Picture: Nyadollie (@dollievision)/TikTok)
A report released in 2022 revealed how far the beauty and wellness industry still needs to go to be inclusive.
The Black Pound Report from that year found that multi-ethnic consumers are spending £230m every month on health and beauty products, but around four in 10 Black female shoppers believe it’s not easy to find fitting cosmetics and skincare.
Although there has been a big diversity drive from many brands as a result of Rihanna’s juggernaut Fenty (yes, I really do love it) ushering in new expectations from consumers, the findings revealed how brands across the board are falling short.
According to the report, ‘multi-ethnic consumers’ spend 25% more on health and beauty products than any other consumer. This is, in part, due to 22% of those shoppers who need to go to specialist (often more expensive) brands to get items suitable for their hair and skin.
For us the video’s popularity extends beyond it being an easily binged video to try and recreate later.
It’s a reminder to all the makeup brands that we love makeup too; our shades and undertones need to be represented, we want vibrant eyeshadow colours that don’t appear ashy on our skin and having wealth of options like those who are lighter than us is important.
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MORE : ‘I can never find a shade deep enough’: 40% of Black women say beauty shopping is still hard
Nyadollie’s video has been viewed over 500 million times since March.
