A scandalous sister scenario. The online beauty community was rocked in May 2019 when makeup guru Tati Westbrook posted a tell-all video about James Charles, who was once the most subscribed makeup artist on YouTube.
In the video, which was titled “BYE SISTER,” Westbrook clearly stated that she no longer wants to be associated with the teenage makeup artist, whom she took under her wing when he first entered the industry. The longtime beauty influencer, who has been consistently posting videos on YouTube since early 2011, called out Charles for his inappropriate behavior while hanging out with her friends, his manipulative nature and more.
The first male CoverGirl spokesperson uploaded a public apology to Westbrook and her husband that same day, and told fans that he was going to try to learn from his mistakes in the future.
Westbrook’s 43-minute clip amassed more than 34 million views in three days and seemingly caused Charles’ subscriber count to plummet, while hers skyrocketed. (He lost nearly three million subscribers in three days, while she gained nearly four million in the same timeframe.)
A week after Westbrook’s initial video made waves, Charles fought back against Westbrook in a second video titled “No More Lies” in May 2019. Charles subsequently regained his subscribers and moved on from the scandal. More than a year later, however, the drama resurfaced after Westbrook alleged that YouTubers Jeffree Star and Shane Dawson “manipulated” her into starting the feud with Charles.
“I did not make my video because of vitamins. I made it as a result of all the poisonous lies that were fed to be by Shane Dawson and Jeffree Star,” she claimed in a 40-minute video titled “BREAKING MY SILENCE …” in June 2020.
Keep scrolling for everything we know about the drama:
Despite their significant age difference, Charles and Westbrook were once extremely close. The longtime beauty guru flew the New York native to her wedding in Hawaii so he could do her makeup, and they would often spend time together both on and off camera. Her husband, James, would also help the teen make important business decisions. “So blessed to have this amazing soul in my life @jamescharles,” she captioned a picture of the teen doing her makeup before she walked down the aisle. “Thank you for helping me feel so beautiful on such an important day ... your talent is out of this world, but you as a person are even more impressive & special. I'm keeping you close as a friend forever. Love you so much Sister.”
YouTube
Westbrook explained why she was cutting ties with Charles in a May 2019 YouTube video titled “BYE SISTER …” The Halo Beauty founder explained that she tried to help the former CoverGirl ambassador stay humble after finding success online, but he let “fame, power and a fat bank account” go to his head. “I don’t think there’s any getting through to you,” she said to him directly in the clip. “And I don’t want to be friends with you. I don’t want to be associated with you.”
Later in the video, Westbrook called out Charles for promoting Sugar Bear Hair Vitamins on Instagram after refusing to advertise her hair, skin and nails supplement brand, then lying about the circumstances that led to the sponsorship. She also accused the Sisters Apparel designer of sexually harassing heterosexual men, bragging about his sexual acts and talking about fellow beauty gurus being their backs for his personal gain.
YouTube
Hours after Westbrook posted her video, Charles responded with a message of his own. He said emotionally: “To Tati and James Westbrook, um, I’m sorry for everything that is going on and everything that I have put you through over the past few weeks.” The aspiring singer admitted that he is “disappointed” that he “ruined” their relationship and doesn’t “blame” the couple for cutting ties with him. “I hate knowing that I disappointed not only [fans], but, most importantly, two people who have been role models to me,” he continued. “I’m going to keep trying my best and keep learning and growing.”
YouTube
One day prior to posting her initial video, Westbrook had just shy of six million subscribers on YouTube. In the days that followed, she jumped to more than nine million subscribers, with an average of more than one million people subscribing daily.
Courtesy of Tati Westbrook/Instagram
Charles, on the other hand, rapidly lost subscribers in the wake of the feud. He had more than 16.5 million YouTube followers on May 10, 2019, and was down to 13.7 on May 13, 2019.
As of June 2020, however, Charles had not only gained his followers back, but was up to 19.7 subscribers.
Mike Coppola/MG19/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue
The Jeffree Star Cosmetics CEO took Westbrook’s side in the feud in May 2019. “There is a reason that [boyfriend] Nathan [Schwandt] banned James Charles from ever coming over to our home again,” he wrote in a since-deleted tweet. “There’s a reason why I haven’t seen him since @GlamLifeGuru’s birthday in February. He is a danger to society. Everything Tati said is 100% true.” Star also called Charles a “predator” after the latter’s younger brother, Ian Jeffrey, tweeted, “Why does everyone act so tough over the internet?”
Rodin Eckenroth/WireImage
Zamora, on the other hand, stood behind Charles amid the drama. The Ipsy creator posted his own video on Snapchat on May 2019 and called Westbrook out for not telling the complete truth. “Guys are the ones that are sliding into James’ DMs,” Zamora asserted in the eight-minute video series. “And, for some reason, because James is flirting, he’s a predator? What? What, Tati? The story doesn’t make sense.”
Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for ipsy
The May 2019 drama was featured in Dawson’s YouTube docuseries about Star, The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star, released that October. Westbrook alleged in her June 2020 video that she asked Dawson not to include the footage.
“Shane never reached out to check on me and he never shared the trailer with me,” she claimed in June 2020.
Courtesy of Shane Dawson/Instagram
Westbrook revealed in June 2020 that she and Charles made amends after he showed her “receipts” in December 2019.
"We apologized to each other, forgave each other, and agreed to wait patiently until it was safe for me to share my story. Since that night, James Charles has repeatedly said he wanted to be beside me for this video, but I felt it was important that I do it alone because he deserves my first apology, and I am really sorry, James," Westbrook explained. "I did not lie in that video. I never called James Charles a predator, and I never said that James Charles is a danger to society. My video was not made with any malice … Prior to the scandal last May, I started growing frustrated with what I perceived as a progressing sense of entitlement… None of my concerns became overwhelming until after I met Shane Dawson."
Annie Lesser/imageSPACE/Shutterstock; John Salangsang/January Images/Shutterstock
“I’ve lost a year of my life terrified of social media and terrified of speaking up against the people that used, coerced, and manipulated me into uploading my video in May of last year,” Westbrook said in June 2020. “Allowing myself to be gaslit into making that video is one of the biggest regrets of my life.”
She went on to detail Dawson’s alleged remarks about Charles. “Shane said he was planning to interview victims for the docuseries, he told me that something needed to be done to stop him from hurting more people. Eventually, I started believing what they were saying because they said they had evidence. Shane Dawson did not just know about my ‘Bye Sister’ video, he offered to edit it. He even offered to design the thumbnail and help title it. I declined his offer,” Westbrook said.
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP/Shutterstock; Invision/AP/Shutterstock; Courtesy of Shane Dawson/Instagram
In Westbrook’s June 2020 video, she also apologized to Jackie Aina, who has stood up to Star in the past.
"The moment that Jeffree went of on you, the day before my first video collab with him went live, I should have run for the hills," Westbrook said. "I was naive and I was excited about the video. I got it twisted that you'd provoked Jeffree because you were angry that I'd filmed with someone who had a history of being labeled by others as 'a racist.’ Jackie, I'm sorry that I did not do the right thing and walked away from him then."
Richard Young/Shutterstock
Dawson took to Instagram Live shortly after Westbrook’s video dropped in June 2020.
“That is not real!” he said while watching Westbrook’s video. “She is a f—king … I can’t, I can’t. I don’t want to say mean things about people. … This is insane!”
Courtesy of Shane Dawson/Instagramfrom Celebrity News – Us Weekly https://ift.tt/2YNjJIN
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