There is a new phenomenon among Chinese men, and it involves using makeup. More and more young guys today are wearing makeup, and it is now a common sight in the said country. However, there are still a lot of people that find this latest male makeup trend unacceptable.
With the influence of South Korea's flower boys and China's little fresh meat, there is now a rise in the demand of cosmetics for men. However, aside from being a part of the mainstream, the obsession to look good and valuing personal appearance incites the male makeup trend.
Just like women, men also now feel the pressure to have the perfect aesthetic. "It builds your confidence," Chen Yueqiang, also known as KK the king of make-up transformation, said, via the South China Morning Post.
Yueqiang became a social media influencer after he worked as a beauty counter salesman for a decade, and got a certification as a professional make-up artist. With the help of makeup, he can transform his looks to look like famous male celebrities today such as Lu Han, Kris Wu, Cristiano Ronaldo, and other comic characters. Although it seems easy, his 15-second video can take up to eight hours to film and edit.
Aside from Yueqiang, there are now a lot of male vloggers who share their beauty tips and makeup tutorials for men online. "We're seeing more men in the media wearing make-up," video blogger Lan Haoyi said, per Daily Mail Online. "This will naturally become the norm."
However, even though the male makeup is now an emerging trend, Haoyi admitted that he still often receives criticisms and hate messages for wearing makeup. Some of the messages he receives question his looks and the need to wear makeup. He also gets insults, and some of the haters even call him "sissy."
The older generation even finds male cosmetics weird and unacceptable, especially in conservative countries. Jian Cheng, another male vlogger, admitted that he is not putting makeup in front of his parents.
Liu, on the other hand, revealed his peers already embraced the male makeup trend. However, he still gets confused why some people find it unacceptable with the diverse gender expression today.
But despite the negative comments, it cannot be controlled that the market and gender norms are changing. Cosmetics are no longer exclusive for women. A lot of male celebrities have even been using makeup to hide their skin's imperfections.
The male beauty market is also expected to grow by 15.2 percent in the next five years in China. The research firm Euromonitor even noted that it could increase by 11 percent globally in the same period.
