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Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Empowerment through beauty vloggers

YouTube creators travel the country spreading messages of positivity.

Beauty and lifestyle vloggers will move out of computer screens and appear before audiences over the course of 20 shows, including one in D.C. on Oct. 15.

These shows will promote self-acceptance and include YouTube creators Eva Gutowski, Sierra Furtado, Meredith Foster, Alisha Marie, Mia Stammer and musician Andie Case. Vlogging is short for video blogging. Vloggers talk to a camera about their life and post the video to the internet on a weekly or sometimes daily basis. During this tour, the creators will hold contests, sing, dance, do crafts, play games and act, all while preaching positive messages to their viewers.

“I feel like I have a responsibility to be a good role model for people that watch my videos,” Gustowski said. “I want to make sure that the things I care about are being heard and that the people that follow me grow up to be good people.” 

One reason viewers keep coming back to these vloggers is their relatability and genuine care for their viewers.

“We all try to show who we are and be ourselves as much as possible,” Case said. “You can tell when someone is being genuine, and people recognize that. Me being genuine makes other people want to be themselves as well.”

Some people refer to these vloggers as “Beauty Gurus,” in an effort to demean them. Critics argue that vlogger videos on makeup and DIY crafts are less important than videos of teenage boys playing video games.

Society tries to put down things that teenage girls like, like One Direction or YouTube creators. But these beauty and lifestyle vloggers put their influence to good use by teaching their viewers how to see the world in a more positive light.

“We’re in a day and age where you can do what you want because of the Internet and tools around us,” Case said. “You don’t have to follow rules or what society thinks to have the career you want, and I feel responsible to let my viewers and listeners know that they can do that too.”

Like all of the vloggers on the tour, Gutowski has built her career from the ground up. Her career started from her dorm room at Cal State Fullerton. Today, she has over 4 million YouTube subscribers, and she is the face of Wallflower Jeans in Kohl’s.

“Growing up, I was creative, and I wanted to [have a career] that seemed impossible because the entertainment field is so difficult,” Gutowski said. “But with YouTube, I’ve found that you can do what you want and people will see it. You don’t have to be one type of person to be successful.”

These women aim to emphasize the idea of individuality through the tour, providing empowerment and self-confidence in a world that puts down the products teenage girls like.

“This tour is a safe place for our viewers to come and get away from their lives and what they’re going through,” said Furtado, a vlogger who does makeup, hair and craft tutorials. “We do that with our videos, and the show is bringing more of that."

thescene@theeagleonline.com


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