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For years, Ziwe earned the nation’s laughter through satirical pop cultural and political commentary, first on YouTube, then Instagram Live, and then her eponymous late-night talk show, in which she put the internet’s favorite famous people in the hot seat. In late 2023, the 31-year-old transitioned from interviewer to interviewee while touring the country to promote her first book, Black Friend: Essays, a collection of Ziwe’s wildest personal tales. “It started off deeply satirical, and then over the course of several years I started to examine… what it means to be a public woman, what autonomy that allows us, and how beauty is so encapsulated in all of that,” Ziwe tells Allure.
After her searing interviews, Ziwe is arguably most known for her glamorous outfits and her affinity for beauty — so much so that Ziwe actually “used to review makeup products” via an editorial beauty column. One of Ziwe’s favorite brands back then was Urban Decay, and now, years after her beauty columnist days, she stars in a social media campaign for the brand’s newly launched Big Bush eyebrow gel. Regarding her own brows, the comedian likes to keep things simple and now that she’s teamed up with the brand, she says she uses Big Bush and nothing else. “Simplicity is key. I am a very busy woman; I do a lot of different jobs.”
After spilling the details of her eyebrow routine, Ziwe graciously acquiesced to our rapid-fire beauty Q+A.
Allure: What’s the signature Ziwe look?
Ziwe: A bob and a 1990s supermodel beat with lots of nudes, lots of browns, natural [skin] but with a really good contour, an overlined lip, and gloss.
Allure: What’s in your makeup bag right this second?
Ziwe: Chapstick and the Big Bush [brow gel].
Allure: How long does your entire skin-care routine take from start to finish?
Ziwe: 10 minutes, 15 minutes tops.
Allure: Not to be creepy or anything, but what do you smell like right now?
Ziwe: Flowers, the ocean, and beauty. I think it’s Beautiful from Estée Lauder.
Allure: What’s the weirdest part of your beauty routine?
Ziwe: I wouldn't say there's anything weird. I'm glad you asked me about my scent, though, because I care a lot about my scent. So maybe it's the fact that I douse myself in perfume in the morning. It's probably strange, but I don't consider it strange. I consider it part of my brand.
Allure: If your personality was a fragrance, what would it smell like?
Ziwe: Old Hollywood glam. Or, like, woody afterbirth. Is that an expression that people say?
Allure: What’s your least favorite part of getting ready?
Ziwe: Being finished and looking at myself in the mirror thinking, "Wow, I freaked out." Another day, another beat. That's what I like.
Allure: What are the three products that are always in your shower?
Ziwe: The CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser. I'm also one of those people who brush their teeth in the shower to save time, so toothpaste and a toothbrush. I don't floss in the shower. That would be gross. And the Aseop Citrus Melange Body Cleanser. I got really into Equinox at a point, and that's the soap they used. Then I realized I was just going [to the gym] for soap and I was like, "Oh, I could save money," so I still get the soap.
Allure: Taking a bath. Love or hate?
Ziwe: I love a bath. I like to turn the water so hot that I boil myself like a lobster. That's how I relax.
Allure: What’s your favorite beauty tip to ignore?
Ziwe: I take tips really seriously because I started writing in the beauty space. But I mix colors a lot. Even though we're at a place where there are concealers in my color, sometimes I like to mix three different colors so that I can really shape my face to look like a goo-goo ga-ga young Gen Z baby.
Allure: What’s a beauty trend you wish would go away?
Ziwe: I'm going to say something problematic, which is bleached brows, which I think are chic, iconic, gorgeous, sure. I just think that we've seen a lot of them, but I also kind of want to bleach my own brows, so who knows?
Allure: Biggest beauty pet peeve?
Ziwe: I'm on TikTok — BeautyTok — and so I get all of those different respective trends. My least favorite thing is when a beauty tip or beauty skill that has been around forever gets a really weird funky name where it's like, "Oh, get yourself the Auburn Halloween nails," and it's like, "You mean orange?"
Allure: Tell me about the most embarrassing haircut you’ve ever had.
Ziwe: It’s not a haircut, but have you ever used a curling iron and then held it for too long and your hair burns off? That's definitely happened to me, but you live and you learn, really.
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Now, watch Alia Bhatt's 10-minute makeup routine:
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