Jeffree Star has never kept quiet about his opinions on Kylie Jenner and her beauty empire. Per his statements about everything from her lip gloss to the infamous makeup brush fiasco, Star has made it clear that he doesn't exactly view Kylie Cosmetics as a top-notch beauty brand.
The beef seemed a little one-sided until Jenner made her own statement by officially removing him from the Kylie Cosmetics PR list. Star revealed during an interview series with YouTube star Shane Dawson that he and Jenner made up after that (and even went shopping together afterward), but it appears the pair are back to having bad blood.
Now that Jenner has officially been named the "youngest self-made billionaire ever" thanks to her Kylie Cosmetics empire, Star — per usual — shared a non-celebratory opinion that strangely suggests he was originally in the running for that same status from Forbes magazine.
In July 2018, Forbes magazine estimated that Kylie Cosmetics — 100% owned by Kylie Jenner, by the way — would earn $1 billion by the end of 2018.
"Kylie Cosmetics launched two years ago with a $29 'lip kit' consisting of a matching set of lipstick and lip liner, and has sold more than $630 million worth of makeup since, including an estimated $330 million in 2017," the magazine reported.
"Even using a conservative multiple, and applying our standard 20% discount, Forbes values her company, which has since added other cosmetics like eye shadow and concealer, at nearly $800 million. Jenner owns 100% of it."
Combined with her other business ventures like her KENDALL + KYLIE brand and a Puma deal, Kylie Jenner was then worth $900 million — a short skip and a jump from the estimated $1 billion.
Forbes officially named her the youngest self-made billionaire on March 5, 2019.
The magazine specifically credits her huge deal with Ulta for giving her the push needed to complete the feat.
"Fueled in part by the Ulta expansion, Kylie Cosmetics’ revenue climbed 9% last year to an estimated $360 million," Forbes reported. "With that kind of growth, and even using a conservative multiple from the booming makeup industry, Forbes estimates Jenner’s company is worth at least $900 million."
Unsurprisingly, people collectively scratched their heads at the "self-made" part of Forbes' declaration about Kylie Jenner.
Many people disagree with the idea that Jenner built the Kylie Cosmetics empire all on her own. Although she is the sole owner, it's hard to forget that Jenner is part of one of the wealthiest and most famous families in America. Jenner is the daughter of Kris Jenner and Caitlyn Jenner — the latter of whom is a retired Olympic gold medalist.
She has also been afforded a national television platform via Keeping Up With the Kardashians, which she has appeared on since she was 10 years old.
Even Dictionary.com added its two cents into the online "self-made" debate.
According to the website, being self-made means "having succeeded in life unaided." By that definition, Kylie Jenner is not self-made at all. In fact, her Kylie Cosmetics success is largely due to her huge social media platform, which she accumulated because of the Keeping Up With the Kardashians show. The reality series was created in the first place to capitalize on the post-sex-tape fame that Kim Kardashian required.
There is even a legendary scene on a season 15 episode, where Kourtney Kardashian's former boyfriend, Scott Disick, gives Kim Kardashian credit for helping all of them attain their careers.
In short, it's understandable that the public doesn't really get how Kylie Jenner is "self-made."
Forbes did confirm how it came to the conclusion that Jenner is indeed worthy of the label.
"To be clear, since 2014 Forbes has defined “self-made” as someone who built a company or established a fortune on their own, rather than inheriting some or all of it," the magazine shared on its Instagram. "As long as the list member didn’t inherit a business or money, they are labeled self-made."
Translation: Forbes said what it said. Jenner is the self-made billionaire girl and they aren't walking it back. Still, that doesn't mean the public cannot drag such a conclusion.
Jeffree Star also shared the Dictionary.com tweet, stirring a little of his own tea into the mix.
"I declined the feature so they had to pick someone…," he wrote on Twitter. Star's statement is even more confusing than labeling Jenner a self-made entrepreneur.
The tweet suggests that Forbes was originally looking at him to be the subject of its "youngest self-made billionaire" story.
Star's fans seem to believe he is more deserving than Jenner for a Forbes feature.
"Honestly, Jeffree Star IS the definition of self-made, don't @ me," a fan wrote.
To provide fair context, Star is a superstar YouTube beauty influencer and the owner of the wildly successful Jeffree Star Cosmetics. He built his following on MySpace in the early 2000s and was able to transition to YouTube and keep it growing into the millions. Star is one of the richest beauty influencers of all time, and people adore his makeup.
Lots of fans see his rise to fame and success as a much more practical blueprint than Kylie Jenner's trajectory.
"I'm actually studying his ((publicly available)) life and career. He's my business role model. If ever I'm successful at ANYTHING in life, I want his influence in there for it," one fan shared.
"I feel like this is so smart," another person replied. "People don’t give Jeffrey enough credit Bc they are judging based on what they see. But he literally came from nothing & conquered everything he wanted. I’m sure there’s so much more we don't know. He also doesn’t come off as flaunting his success."
Still, Star's claims about Forbes are strange for a couple of different reasons. The most obvious one is that it would be weird for Forbes to approach Jeffree Star about this feature since it was originally part of an issue about successful women in business.
On Jenner's original cover, the title reads, "America's Women Billionaires." While Jenner was the primary subject, the story also examined how other women like Anastasia Soare and Huda Kattan have leveraged social media to boost their beauty brands.
The current story that Forbes is running now is merely a follow-up to this cover feature from July 2018. Why would the magazine have been approaching Jeffree Star for a feature about women in the cosmetics industry?
There's also the age difference between Kylie Jenner and Jeffree Star.
Kylie Jenner is 21 years old while Jeffree Star is 33 years old, according to a quick Google search. Even if Jeffree Star had made it to billionaire status (which, by reports, he has not yet), he could never be considered the "youngest" because there is an 11-year age difference between the two.
Forbes also specifically shared that the person Jenner dethroned is Mark Zuckerberg, who became a billionaire at age 23. Jeffree Star would have been 22 when that happened, which still means he would be out of the running because Kylie Jenner did it at 21.
My head hurts from doing all of this unnecessary math, but you get the point.
Ultimately, one billion dollars is one billion dollars.
It really doesn't matter how Kylie Jenner got to this point; she's there now. As for Jeffree Star throwing salt on the moment, maybe that's not so necessary? A Forbes feature or lack thereof cannot take away the success, influence, or fanbases that either of them has acquired.
One million? One billion? Us regular folks don't even really feel the difference anyway. Seriously, just enjoy being rich.
