Social Media Superstar Bretman Rock Is Leading the Beauty Community
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“Hey Bretman, how are you?”
“I’m just, you know, cute.”
This is the first thing Bretman Rock said to me. I thought it to be unbelievably on brand. As a long time follower and fan of Rock, I had grown to love his unapologetically open and outrageous personality. His Instagram videos and Snapchat stories have brought me to tears as I laugh uncontrollably at his crude and raw humor. The numbers show that I’m not the only one who feels this way. Rock currently has 9.8 million Instagram followers and over 3 million subscribers on YouTube. He is one of the few male beauty gurus in the industry, but that does not intimidate him in any way.
Rock is a Hawaii native and still resides there. He was named after wrestlers “which is quite ironic because [he is] now a beauty guru/comedian/that bitch." Rock has always had a big personality, one that made people laugh. In his freshman year of high school, during his track practice at school, he would record himself doing funny things and upload them to his Snapchat story. “I would make videos on Snapchat and my friends would be like, ‘Dude, it deletes after 24 hours. You should post them on Instagram.’ So my ass uploaded them on Instagram because I love attention. My account was private at the time, so my friend asked me to go off private so she could show my videos to her uncle. I went off private, and ever since then my life has changed!” After this, Rock’s account blew up. People across the world found themselves watching this loud, young man from Hawaii with a full face of makeup simply being himself. His following rose quickly, which did not really shock Rock. “The humble answer would be yes, [that the rise in following was surprising], but honestly, this is something that I always wanted to do, so when it was happening I was like, ‘Wow, this is it! This is my calling. Social media is my shit, and I’m about to make this my job!’” While for some this newfound online stardom could have been a complete life changer, for Rock it marked only a small change in his day to day life. “I think that the rise in following affected my life differently than other social media stars because I live on a rock (Hawaii). The island is so small, the population is literally four people, so when my social media following went up, I didn't really feel that much of a difference with people. I grew up with these people my whole life! Everyone in my school knew me before I lost my virginity, before I was a hoe, and I have always been a bitch, so it wasn’t really a surprise to people here. I only felt different when I went to the mainland.” Typically, YouTubers end up moving to LA to further their careers, but for Rock LA doesn’t suit his vibe.
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Rock was one of the first men on Instagram to wear makeup not for drag. His high class and precise looks amazed everyone. Although this might have taken some aback, Rock grew up wearing makeup and never really saw it as being something out of the ordinary. “The first time I ever wore makeup was in fifth grade when I watched a show called America’s Best Dance Crew and one of the Asian kids had a slit on his eye brow, and I was like, ‘Wow, that is so chic!’ Imagine my little fifth grade ass thinking that. And so I started plucking my eyebrows. I accidentally plucked one too many, and it looked like I had chopped off half my brow. So I stole my mom’s makeup bag and started to put mascara on my brows. I was like damn bitch, I am already here, might as well put on blush and mascara on my lashes. I put on lipstick and went to school. I remember hating the fact that no one even complimented me. I went to school feeling all cute, thinking people were going to ask what lipstick I was wearing, but no one gave a shit! I was so pressed!” Rock’s statement, which might have shocked some, was seemingly ignored by his peers. Because of this, he said he stopped wearing makeup for a bit; “I was so pressed that no one complimented me, so I stopped wearing makeup. And then I started wearing it again my sophomore year.” And even if wearing makeup could have been negatively received by his classmates, Rock would never have let that turn him off. “Girl, they can try to hate, but guess what? They’re ugly.”
“I think happiness is the most important thing to me.”
One of the things that struck me the most about Rock was his genuine “I don’t give a fuck” attitude. It is something that we all want, to be able to walk confidently with no doubt about ourselves. And even if those doubts do exist, to never allow them to control us. Rock attributes this to his incredibly supportive family who has always accepted him. “Honestly, I’ve always been like this. You can ask any of my elementary school friends; I have always been a bitch. And I think it was because I was always so sure of who I was. I grew up with accepting parents, and I think that is really a big part of Bretman Rock. I was really accepted at such a young age. I remember I was in fourth grade and my dad’s gift to me was a car that drove itself, but in the trunk he had put all these Barbie dolls. That was the first time ever that I felt accepted. My dad was willingly buying me dolls, and we grew up in a Catholic home, so that meant a lot to me. Ever since then, I have known that my dad and mom accepted me so I really don’t care if anyone else doesn’t. If the two most important people in my life love me for who I am, why the fuck would I care about what a stranger thinks?” Rock has an unconditional and deep love for his family and home. He features his younger sister, Mae, and his niece, Cleo, in a lot of his videos. For Rock, these people are what keep him going and happy. This is why he says he would never want to leave Hawaii. “I think happiness is the most important thing to me. With my job, it can be so hard to be happy. You get so caught up in fame, and you forget what makes you happy. That is a big reason as to why I am staying in Hawaii. My happiness is my family. If I am on the mainland, in LA, I honestly feel like I am competing with all these other influencers and people I don’t even give a fuck about. I have to worry about what I look like when I go outside, what I smell like. I think as long as I put myself and my happiness first, that is honestly what is most important. I can’t even make videos when I am on the mainland. I have no inspiration over there.”
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“If you live like a star and you see yourself like a star, then you are a star. Ain’t nobody gonna mother fucking tell you otherwise!”
In March, Rock released a highlighter palette as a collaboration with Morphe Cosmetics. The palette features six highlighters of varying shades which Rock began working on when he was still in high school. “It was so weird. I felt like I was Hannah Montana when I was working on this because sometimes I would run home from school to go open the packages [that Morphe Cosmetics would send]. I was like doing all this shit but also in high school! I was doing the most.” Rock put a lot of work into the palette and took his inspiration for it from the place he knew best at the time: his school. “The biggest inspiration for my palette was my school. My school is very diverse. It is a military school so you see people from all over the world walking the halls. It is so cool to see so much diversity, so I wanted my palette to show that too. I wanted to represent Hawaii and what it stands for, a melting pot of different colors, races, and beliefs. I wanted the highlighters to complement any shade and for everyone to be able to wear at least one of them. I think I did a great job!” In recent years, many cosmetic brands have changed the way they create makeup to make it more inclusive for people of varying skin colors. For Rock, a high school student at the time, to be ahead of the curve and naturally know to do this is impressive and speaks to his talent. He has largely changed the way the public views makeup on a man. “I think influencers like myself are not only shaping the beauty world but also shaping the whole world. The beauty community is so diverse now. It’s so great! Three years ago, it was so rare to see a man in makeup, and now you see everyone wearing makeup, people who you would not even expect to wear makeup. I think that’s the beauty of the industry. Makeup is for everyone, and I think people are realizing that now. Makeup isn’t just for women. It’s like clothes: they are for everyone!”
Rock’s expression has paved the way for many more young men to be able to wear makeup fearlessly. He has changed the beauty world with his bold personality and stunning makeup looks. His bravery and big heart amaze me and his millions of followers daily. I’ll leave you with a quote he said which really inspired me. “If you live like a star and you see yourself like a star, then you are a star. Ain’t nobody gonna mother fucking tell you otherwise!”
STORY ANA SANDOVAL
PHOTOS DERRICK FRESKE
STYLIST LISA CATALINA
CREATIVE DIRECTION ANNA ZHANG