OUT MAGAZINE
Zaya Wade, like her mother, Gabrielle Union, is a certified beauty icon.
At 17, Wade is not only a model, a full-time student, a trans advocate, and a co-founder (with her father, Dwyane Wade) of the nonprofit Translatable, but she has now also been named a next-gen beauty icon by MAC Cosmetics.
Wade is one of the models from MAC's new "Born Famous" campaign, which also includes Lisa Rinna's daughter Amelia Gray, and Martin Scorsese's daughter, Francesca Scorsese. Despite being in the spotlight, they are now shaping their own future beyond their legacies.
The campaign also debuts a new lip gloss, Lipglass Air Non-Sticky Gloss, which shares a name with MAC's classic 90s gloss, Lipglass Air.
"The next generation of gloss, Lipglass Air takes everything you loved about the original — the mirror-like shine, the addictive appeal — and reinvents it for today’s beauty lover," a MAC press release says. "She shines like glass, feels like air, and delivers that high-shine look you love without the stick. Plus, she nourishes and hydrates lips. Available in ten universally stunning, lip-conditioning sheer shades, she’s designed to flatter every mood, every moment, and every It-girl in the making."
Zaya Wade in a campaign for MAC cosmetics.Sharna Osborne/MAC Cosmetics
In a new interview with Out, Zaya Wade talks about being a second-generation beauty icon, beauty tips she learned from her mom, and why she loves lip gloss.
Out: How does it feel to be crowned a MAC BORN FAMOUS next-gen icon?
Zaya Wade: I mean, royal, to use similar terminology. It's iconic, it's long-standing, and it's something that just really sums up girlhood to me. And so to get put in a place like that is just satisfying as a trans girl.
Your mom, Gabrielle Union, is also a beauty icon. What are some beauty tips and tricks you've learned from her?
She's definitely really helped me in the hair department, you know what I mean? Something that I feel like when we say beauty, we don't always think of. But I mean, without her, my hair would be a hot mess. In the earlier years, I just did not have a clue how to maintain 4c hair because it's not something that's often explained.
So having her as a guiding hand for that, whether it's active or passive, being able to watch her and her makeup journey and her beauty experience… It's just inspiring to me and how I understand beauty and care in this world.
Zaya Wade in a campaign for MAC cosmetics.Courtesy MAC Cosmetics
Do you have any tips for trans youth who are at the beginning of their beauty routine journey?
My favorite word: Experiment, experiment, experiment. It is such an experiential thing. You can't just think one day, 'got it.' You have to go through it.
I have had many a botched look in the mirror right before a shower – we all know what that's like – when you feel your most confident to do your makeup because it's about to be off anyway. And I have had some dangerous moments, including a failed attempt at an eyebrow slit and just... I've gone through it and I've come out of the other side so much better for it.
Any other tips?
A big thing that I also feel like we don't talk about, especially for women, trans women, and also people of color, is skin… There's a lot of mystery about it, and so it goes a little unheard.
So I think it's a really important thing to educate yourself on skin because that's the first step to beauty. You want to talk about face, you want to talk about hair, well, you need to talk about how to make sure that those things are healthy and maintained.
I'm a girl in STEM, so I've also looked at it from a scientific standpoint, but just understanding my skin and what makes it feel good, so I can feel good and look good, is just another part of the process that's helped me boost my confidence in terms of beauty.
What's your must-have summer beauty accessory?
Well, during the summer it's always a lip gloss. During the winter, it's different. It's cold, lip gloss doesn't always work the same during the winter. Sometimes it's giving bare face, it's giving just cute, keep it mindful.
During the summer, it's the time to whip it all out. It's the time to look dewy and glossy and just fun and fresh and happy. And so a gloss is always going to do me.
I mean, it's not a coincidence that I'm a part of a lip gloss campaign for MAC. That definitely is my number one beauty product. Literally, I will wake up in the morning, and I'm like, oh, I don't feel pretty. I put a little lip gloss on. I'm like, oh, who is she? I look at someone in the mirror and I'm like, wow, so cute. It makes or breaks my day.
Zaya Wade in a campaign for MAC cosmetics.Courtesy MAC Cosmetics
Do you have any plans for Pride Month?
June is mainly dedicated to school for me, as I'm at one of the schools that lasts way too long. But through Translatable, there's the long-awaited Pride Month, which is obviously a really big month for us.
And I feel like we kind of need Pride Month right now, and I need it. I get fueled every time Pride Month comes around, and it gives me so much energy for myself, but for my community as well. And I think I really want to express that through Translatable and just the ways that that can go about.
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