GLOSS LEADER
Teen makeup artist and social media star talks about ‘Being Reuben’
WELSH teen Reuben de Maid, the star of “Being Reuben,” isn’t your typical makeup artist/ influencer. “When I started [around age 9 or 10], I never really thought anything of it,” de Maid, 14, tells The Post. “Looking back now, I was a bit naive . . . When people started saying stuff to me or being negative online, I realized [being interested in makeup] was different.
“But you know what? Everyone has something different about them,” he says. “I just embraced it.”
“Being Reuben,” airing Fridays at 9 p.m. on The CW, follows de Maid as he balances his home life and regular teen activities (school and family time) with his budding career as a makeup influencer. He currently has over 285,000 Instagram followers and over 233,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel, where he posts makeup tutorials.
His social media presence landed him on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” in 2017, on a segment with Kim Kardashian. From there, his profile has risen.
“It’s an interesting dynamic, being a 14-year-old boy flying off to LA to do these crazy makeup shows or things like ‘Ellen,’ which is insane,” he says. “And then going back to Cardiff in the UK and living a really normal life with three siblings in the house and going to school and things like that. I think [‘Being Reuben’] is quite interesting to watch whether you’re a kid or a parent or grandma. It just shows the family dynamic.”
De Maid’s family consists of younger sister Coco, who loves fashion; younger brother Sonny, who wants to be a professional soccer player when he grows up; single mom Vicky, who de Maid describes as “Wonder Woman”; and his grandfather, who the family calls “Bampa.” It wasn’t hard to convince them to appear alongside him on the series, he says.
“They’ve all been really supportive of me through everything I’ve done, which I’m really lucky and grateful for,” he says. “We had a lot of fun filming it. I think it brought us closer, spending more time together.”
One episode of “Being Reuben” follows the family as Bampa takes the kids camping in the countryside sans phones, in an effort to get them to “detox” from social media. Another episode shows de Maid taking his first trip to New York City, to rub elbows with influential people in the makeup world. He aspires to have his own makeup company and brand, he says.
In his native Wales, he’s had the same group of school friends since he was 5 years old. They’ve been nonchalant about both his penchant for makeup and his fame.
“My friends have always known me as me...and they don’t think anything of it,” he says. “I’m so glad. When I go back to school I’m the normal me again. Society is changing for the good — people are becoming more accepting, more aware. This is not just a girl thing. It it doesn’t say ‘for girls’ on the [makeup] package.”
Even with his family and friends’ acceptance, though, he’s still experienced some bullying. But thanks to his mom’s advice, he’s been able to navigate that hurdle.
“My mum says, ‘Be yourself because everyone else is taken,’ and that’s what I’ve always stuck by,” he says. “She’s also told me that people will have something to say. Before I came into the public eye a bit more, she did warn me ‘Not everyone will agree with you.’
“At the start, I had a thin skin and got offended quite a lot,” he says. “But now, having those negative comments has made me a stronger person.”