Talking Pretty sat down with celebrity makeup artist Day Hill, who has recently been on tour with rap artist Nicki Minaj, keeping her face beat. She revealed to us how she got started in the beauty industry, how she met Nicki, and how to get Nicki’s flawless look. Check out the videos below for the full interviews. –mckenzie harris
How did you get started in the beauty industry?
Actually I was acting. I went to a performing arts high school, Tri Cities, in Atlanta. I used to do everything from hair, makeup, wardrobe … and after high school I continued to perform. Some of my friends who made it big in the industry started asking me, “Can you do my makeup too? Can you help me with my hair?” … Over a period of time in between gigs, I was working with MAC and other cosmetic companies and [the] next thing I know, it just started taking off. People just kept calling me and it just became my life.
What’s it like working with Nicki Minaj and how did you two meet?
I actually met her on the set of The Young Money album packaging shoot. Shanell, who I actually went to school with at Tri Cities … had been calling me over a couple of years to do her makeup for different projects. She was like “Can you come right now? Can you come today?” I wasn’t doing anything so it was cool, and when I got there Nicki didn’t have anyone. [Shanell] was like, “Can you do Nicki as well?” So ever since that day, Nicki’s been calling me like, “Hey you did good, let’s keep it movin’.”
You do such a great job on keeping Nicki’s skin flawless. What’s your secret?
Thank you. You know Nicki and I have been through so many products, so I don’t think it’s about products at all. It really is about diet, like what she’s drinking, what she’s eating, she works on it so hard. Technique … it’s how you apply the makeup that will make it flawless or not. I grew up poor. I’ve used stuff from the beauty supply store to the most expensive like Armani. It really just has to do with how you apply [the product].
What’s your beauty secret?
Well, I think when it comes to secrets and products, that’s not so much the key to me, as it is knowing that you’re beautiful. … I can put a ton of makeup on your face, but if you don’t walk out the door knowing that you’re beautiful, that you can wear it, and you are worthy to have this look, then there’s nothing that I can do for you. So I think that’s the key.
