Meet Jeffree Star – The Controversial Beauty Influencer

Jeffree Star is an American YouTuber, entrepreneur, makeup artist, and former singer-songwriter. He is the founder and owner of Jeffree Star Cosmetics. His real name is Jeffrey Lynn Steininger Jr. His father’s name is Jeffrey L. Steininger and his mother’s name is Marra Shubyann Lindstrom Steininger.

A first look at his photo will leave you wondering what gender he belongs to. Jeffree Star is a “he” who has become a household name in cosmetics and a force to reckon with when makeup is mentioned. He got involved with makeup as a teen and has not looked back since then. As of this writing, Jeffree Star has a net worth of $200 million.

There are so many other things he’s good at, he’s an internet personality, makeup artist, beauty influencer, singer, songwriter, actor, and a shrewd businessman. Among the many things he is known and acclaimed for, he is famous for his androgynous appearances and gender-bending looks.

He is known for his controversial phrases but does not really give a sh*t what anyone thinks.

His Background and Early Life

Jeffree Lynn Steininger was the birth name given to the cosmetics guru, Jeffree Star. He was born in Orange County, California, United States of America on 15th November 1985 and he attended Pacifica High School in Garden Grove, California.

Jeffree Star was born to Glen Steininger and Laurie Steininger. He is obviously an only child as he has never talked about a sibling but has mentioned how lucky he was growing up with a parent who supported him.

His father died when he was just 6 leaving the responsibility of raising him to his mother. Jeffree’s mother being a model would always go on assignments leaving him alone and this would lead to his discovery of makeup at 13. He had enough time to experiment with his mother’s makeup and convinced her to let him wear makeup to school when he was in junior high.

His interest in cosmetics and makeup spiked with the observation of several cosmetics ads and models in his mother’s fashion magazines. He was laughed at and mocked for his dressing which appeared very feminine. But guess what? Jeffree found what he loved to do and would be doing for a very long time and as such, other people’s opinions meant nothing to him.

Jeffree Star’s Music Career

He took music classes in school and grew better with instruments as well as words. Following his graduation, he moved to Los Angeles and started fending for himself with jobs in makeup, and music. His friend, Peaches’ drummer, Samantha Maloney encouraged him to make music. He did and that kickstarted his career as an electronica and pop vocalist.

He launched his music career on MySpace with over 25 million plays on his self-released music. This brought him fame as one of the most popular unsigned artists. Jeffree was advertised as a member of the True Colors Tour 2007 which traveled through 15 cities in the United States and Canada. The tour which began on June 8 was sponsored by the LGBT Logo channel.

Jeffree released his debut album, Beauty Killer which featured Young Money and Nicki Minaj in 2009 after his two EPs [Plastic Surgery Slumber Party (2007) and Cupcakes Taste Like Violence (2008)], under Popsicle Records. In 2010, he appeared in the second version of Kesha’s music video Take It Off. He collaborated with other music performers like Blood on the Dance Floor, Deuce, Millionaires, and Larry Tee.

On-Screen Appearances

Jeffree Stars debuted on television in July 2007 as himself on the talk show, Spread TV. The following year, he made his film debut in the musical comedy movie, Hella Crazy. Since his first time on TV and in films, he has made a number of other appearances in works like LA Ink, Video on Trial, Turn the Beat Around, Gaze. He appeared as Victoria in the 2015 romantic comedy, What Now.

Makeup Success and Modeling

Growing up, he already had his eye on fame. While other kids were studying and doing homework, he was in mansions and music videos, doing makeup and making tons of money. He revealed how he went to Hollywood Clubs on weekends clad in minidresses and skyscraper heels where he met celebrities who appreciated his makeup skills.

He would later get contracts for makeup works at the homes of these celebrities. In one of the clubs in Los Angeles, he met Kelly Osbourne in 2006 who asked him to do her makeup for the BRIT awards. That was a needed boost to his career as it announced him and brought many other contracts. Jeffree has also freelanced as a makeup artist at a MAC Cosmetics store.

Jeffree Star Cosmetics and Makeup Line Launch – 2014

When you can’t stop thinking about makeup, go play with some. That was exactly what Jeffree did. Since he discovered his first lipstick, he nursed a dream to create and own his very own brand. His makeup line, Jeffree Star Cosmetics was created in 2014 to fulfill that dream. His products do exactly what they say, lasts and are cruelty-free.

The makeup line has among its collections Beauty Killer eyeshadow palette, skin frost, velour liquid lipsticks, and velour lip scrub. He has a great love for lips which inspires him to make the most lightweight liquid-to-matte lipstick and creating new colors. His products are well anticipated and they sell out quickly once they hit the market.

He is also known for his fashion line, Beauty Forever, which includes t-shirts, tank tops, and headwears. Jeffree has also voiced his desire to create a skincare line.

Jeffree as a Social Media Star

From the days of MySpace to the current social media platforms, Jeffree has maintained a celebrity status in all. He finds so much fun in whatever he decides to do and does it well. He used MySpace where he had over 500, 000 followers to blog about his life and make commentaries on social image and confidence, fame, beauty and life.

In 2006, he joined YouTube where he talked about life, makeup, and tutorials. His eponymous YouTube channel features beauty looks, beauty products, and makeup tutorials. It boasts of over 6 million subscribers and over 500 million views.

Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook are not left out of the list. His Facebook account has over 2 million followers, his Instagram commands a following of more than 5 million, and his Twitter handle has more than 1.4 million followers.

Has Jeffree Star Had Plastic Surgery?

Jeffery was honest enough to acknowledge that he was not born perfect and therefore, has done some bit of plastic surgery, but not the Michael Jackson style. Funny huh?

The makeup connoisseur who is full of self-belief says he does not look up to anybody in particular and has been honest about the changes that he has undergone even sharing the adventures online.

There were rumors some time ago that he got a facelift, but that was not confirmed as he already had a sharp chin since his younger days. He uses just enough lip fillers to pump his lips thereby giving it a sexy look. His mastery of the art of his liquid lipsticks also confers a perfect look on his lips. Jeffree also admitted to having a hair transplant and filmed the process to that effect.

Controversies

Like most celebrities whose lives are interlaced with strings of controversies, Jeffree Star is no exception. He made some racist comments on YouTube years ago which has always come back to haunt him. At one time, he called a Black YouTuber, Jackie Aina an irrelevant rat following her announcement that she would no longer patronize his products due to the said racist remarks.

Down to the Kardashians, he accused Kylie of copying packaging, and in 2016, he complained about the frayed applicator sticks in her lip glosses on Twitter and Snapchat.

Kylie was apologetic and subsequently shipped replacement sticks. His feud with Kim however, spilled the most ink. He criticized Kim for her swatching skills which brought her fans to her defense on social media. His racist comment was hauled again leading Kim to come to his defense. She however backtracked and withdrew her defense after some hot criticisms from her fans.

Jeffree was yet again involved in a public feud with fellow makeup artist and his longtime friend, Kat Von D which put an end to their decade-old friendship in July 2016. Soon after, a fan complained about finding a hair in one of her products bought from Jeffree’s brand.

Is Jeffree Star Gay?

Jeffree likes to dress up like a woman which is evident in his styles, hairdo, and clothes. This has often left people wondering what gender he belongs to and if he had a sex-change. He stated that he is a man who looks like a girl and does not want a sex-change.

His sexual orientation was questioned also and he was open about being attracted to men. He has dated different men in the past which include musician Tyler Carter (2015) and Chris Crocker (2005-2009).

He started dating Instagrammer, Nathan Schwandt in 2016. They met through Instagram when Nathan reached out to Jeffree. Nathan is a Michigan native and was born on August 18, 1993. He is part of Jeffree Star Cosmetics and works in the warehouse of the brand. Nathan has been accused of turning gay only because of Jeffree and is only connected with him for his money.

The two don’t care about the opinions of others and seem to be good for each other. His homepage on Instagram proudly states that he is wifey to Nathan and mom to 5 Pomeranians. The couple resides in Calabasas, California.

What is Jeffree Star’s Net Worth?

As of this writing, Jeffree Star has a net worth of $200 million. He makes money from his business in the make-up, fashion, and cosmetics industry. He also makes a lot of money from his YouTube channel. According to Forbes, he made $17 million from YouTube alone in 2018, making him the fifth-highest paid star on YouTube that year

How old is Jeffree Star?

Jeffree Star is 38 years old. He was born on 15 November 1985

How tall is Jeffree Star?

Jeffree Star is 185 cm (in feet inches- 6′ 1″)

Is Jeffree Star married?

No, he is engaged to his boyfriend whose name is Nathan Schwandt

Is Jeffree Star transgender?

No. He identifies as male and a gay man.

What happened to Jeffree Star?

Jeffree Star and his best friend Daniel Lucas were involved in an accident that led to injuries on Hat Six Road near Casper when his Rolls Royce hit some slush on the road, resulting to it leaving the roadway and rolling multiple times.

Lucas, who suffered internal injuries as a result of the crash, was taken to a hospital in Las Vegas for surgery. Lucas has been treated for colon cancer multiple times, leading to medical complications.

Star would later write on Twitter following the accident, which he called one of the scariest moments of his life.