If you asked me who I’d side with during an argument between Adam Levine and Alicia Keys, I’d probably just slowly step back, shake my head and run off to do something worth my time. So imagine my surprise as I now HEARTILY agree with Adam Levine for pointing out that Alicia Keys’ “no makeup” look does, in fact, involve makeup.
During an interview with Howard Stern, Levine told a story about watching his co-star on The Voice apply makeup before the show. Via Mic:
“She was putting on a little bit of makeup,” Levine told Stern, “and I was like, ‘Oh, I thought Alicia doesn’t wear makeup’.”
Alicia’s response: “I do what the fuck I want.”
Now, Alicia’s response is very fair! She is a grown-ass woman who can do whatever the fuck she wants. However, she is also a grown-ass woman who says she’s not wearing makeup when she clearly is and you can’t argue with the truth, even when it’s coming from Adam Levine.
I blame Alicia entirely for getting herself into this. Nobody actually gives a shit whether she wears makeup or not—she’s the one who made it a whole fucking thing and curiously also started almost exclusively wearing headwraps as if those two thing somehow go together.
If you don’t want people pointing out your hypocrisy, maybe don’t run around acting like you’re not wearing makeup and then allow your makeup artist to give interviews detailing the makeup you put on your face. When asked if Alicia Keys truly is makeup-free, her makeup artist explained that she does wear “some” but“compared to the world of makeup, there is minimal.”
Um hey, “minimal” is not the same as “none”! What Alicia is doing is a “no makeup look,” which is not the same as “makeup-free.”
Yes, yes, she’s making a larger point about beauty standards and blah blah blah but in this post-fact world, you’ve got to stand up for something or you’ll go insane!
We wouldn’t even being having his conversation if she had just said: “Hey, I’m tired of wearing so much makeup so I’m going to cut back now. Give my skin a chance to breathe. That’s all. Just a personal decision.”
And we’d all gone: “Yeah, ok whatever girl” and this now completely unhinged blog post would not be happening. But she didn’t and it is. Also, she’s clearly wearing makeup.