Megan Thee Stallion on Being the New Face of Revlon

It only took a year for Megan Thee Stallion to go from buzzy rap artist to one of the most obsessed-over and sought-after women in hip-hop. She ruled over the months of May to August 2019 with "Hot Girl Summer." The phrase (and later, the song) became the theme of the season, which was subsequently co-opted into oblivion by brands and corporations in a desperate appeal to youth culture.

Megan took it all in stride — and also to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, where her label, 300 Entertainment, was granted a trademark over the ubiquitous phrase. "When I saw Wendy&aposs and Forever 21 saying, &aposHey, are you having a Hot Girl Summer?&apos I was like, &aposHell no, Forever 21, you&aposre going to have to pay me,&apos" she told Allure in an interview last year. "I wanted to get it trademarked because it&aposs me. It&aposs my thing."

It&aposs still early in her career, but Megan has proved she&aposs got a knack for creating pop cultural moments that define the times. Last year, it was "Hot Girl Summer," this year, her "Savage" single (and then its remix with Beyoncé) became an anthem in the time of social distancing. The tune — and the TikTok dance that came with it — were absolutely inescapable if you were a person on social media. And given that much of the world was under stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of COVID-19, that&aposs a lot of freakin&apos people.

As Megan&aposs influence continues to grow and her appeal becomes ever-more widespread, of course, the brand partnerships are rolling in. The rapper was recently (and appropriately) featured in the summer campaign for Savage x Fenty, and now, she&aposs inked her first major beauty deal. Folks, allow us to introduce you to Revlon&aposs newest global brand ambassador.

"I feel proud," she tells Allure. "I&aposve loved Revlon products since I was a kid, and the company has a history that&aposs real close to my heart." The rapper will be bringing a bit of that Hot Girl swag to the storied drugstore brand, which broke barriers for American cosmetics companies in 1970 when it cast Black supermodel Naomi Sims in its advertising.

"To have the opportunity to be that role model and to champion real diversity is something that&aposs real special to me," she shares. "The whole concept of this campaign fits so well with the Hot Girl lifestyle; having fun, being confident, living your truth, and, most important, living boldly."

We hit up her royal savageness to talk about the new partnership, and how she&aposs handling life in a truly chaotic time.

ALLURE: Congratulations on your new deal! What kind of vibe will you be bringing to the Revlon roster?

Megan Thee Stallion: That H-Town vibe honey, you know it&aposs good.

ALLURE: What are your favorite Revlon makeup products?

MTS: I love staying cute on the move, so the ColorStay Looks Book Eye Shadow Palette is perfect. The portable packaging is fire! It&aposs the size of a credit card, so I can touch up my look on the go, and it holds every color I need to keep my eyes shining all the time. Y&aposall know I have to keep my lips poppin&apos too, that&aposs why I always keep a Super Lustrous The Gloss on deck. This gloss is super thick, so I&aposm never worried about it coming off. The Crystal Clear shade keeps my lips looking juicy all day.

ALLURE: What are your must-have Revlon products?

MTS: Real Hot Girls stay active no matter what they do, so I gotta keep a liner that won&apost budge throughout the day with me. The ColorStay Liquid Eye Pen lasts through anything and goes on so smooth. I can go from the stage to the afterparty without reapplying it.

ALLURE: How would you describe your makeup style?

MTS: Whew! Well, you know I love makeup — it&aposs so fun to experiment with and it&aposs also another avenue to my art and how I express myself. I&aposd say my style is really reflective of my roots in Houston. Watching the women in my family get made up was a really precious moments for us. I love how makeup can make you feel, and that&aposs why I&aposm not afraid to go bold with it — more, more, more!

ALLURE: Who are your beauty icons?

MTS: Pat McGrath is an incredible artist and someone I really respect for her craft and the path she has created for other Black women in this space. I also love how Naomi Campbell has always had such amazing, radiant skin. It&aposs also really inspiring to me to see what the hotties are doing with their makeup looks. I&aposm always keeping an eye out online for inspiration from them, so keep tagging me in your posts!

ALLURE: You&aposve had so many amazing wig looks — which have been your favorites?

MTS: Why, thank you! Some of the looks we did for the [HBO Max show] Legendary were so fun, we really went all out. The pink wig was probably one of the favorites we have done.

ALLURE: What are some of your favorite products to use on your natural hair?

MTS: I really love to use natural oils on my hair to keep the moisture in.

ALLURE: This is an extremely difficult time for so many different reasons, and you&aposve unfortunately had to deal with a lot publicly. How do you ground yourself in all the chaos?

MTS: Honestly for me, it&aposs all about the music I make and connecting with other people: My team, my friends, my family, and of course the fans, my hotties. I&aposve said it before, but Black women are so unprotected in this world and we protect the feelings of others before our own. With the hotties, I really do feel they got my back, and, you know, I sure as hell got theirs. That connection is the most real and grounding thing in the world to me. I am blessed to have this community.

Check out some more stories about Megan Thee Stallion:

• Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B Have the Most &apos90s Updos in the Photo for Their New Single

• Megan Thee Stallion Just Debuted Aurora Borealis Hair for Pride

• Megan Thee Stallion&aposs Waist-Length Hair Was the Star of Her BET Awards Performance

These are the first and last five things Miz Craker does every day:

Originally Appeared on Allure