Makeup junkies are definitely familiar with Jeffree Star and Kat Von D. While most people know that a feud occurred between the once best friends, many aren't totally clear on why. Their friendship lasted long enough for the pair to support each other's makeup line launches, but it eventually came to a bitter end with a public statement made by Von D denouncing her former friend.
While Jeffree Star and Kat Von D's feud seems to revolve around Star's treatment of their mutual friend, many wonder if competition came into play as both Kat Von D's line and Jeffree Star Cosmetics are extremely popular brands. What really happened in this feud that led to the BFF's breakup?
In 2010, singer/songwriter and future makeup artist Jeffree Star wanted to start a tattoo sleeve of actresses and starlets, and he figured famed tattoo artist Kat Von D would be up for the job. By 2010, Von D was well known in the tattoo industry; her work was featured on the reality TV show Miami Ink before she founded her own tattoo studio and subsequent reality show LA Ink. Star contacted Von D by email to ask if she would be interested in doing portraits of Marilyn Monroe and Sharon Tate.
Not only was Von D interested in tattooing Star, but she wanted to feature him getting said tattoos on LA Ink. Star was featured in two separate episodes getting tattoos by Von D, and the two quickly hit it off and became close friends.
In 2008, Von D launched her own self-titled makeup line. The beauty products were made available at Sephora, and she immediately took the makeup world by storm with her creative and unique product line. Von D's makeup line continues to be successful, and new products are released regularly. Star, already well known for his talents as a makeup artist, decided to start his own line called Jeffree Star Cosmetics in 2014.
Kat Von D Publicly Announced She Was Ending Her Friendship With Star
Over the years, Von D and Star were seen together on many occasions, and they seemed like genuine friends. On July 19, 2016, seemingly out of the blue, Von D made a public post about Star and posted it across all of her social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. In the scathing post, Von D included a photograph of Star with a bold banned symbol over his face. Von D wrote the following:
"After years of making excuses for and rationalizing Jeffree's inappropriate behavior (including promoting drug use, racism, and bullying) I can no longer hold my tongue after recent events. I know that over the years, many of you were introduced to Jeffree through me, and regardless if you chose to continue to follow him or not, I just would like to disassociate myself from him and his brand from this point on. I plan on posting a video explanation as to why I felt compelled to make such a statement. But for the time being, I simply want to apologize to anybody and everybody who has ever had to deal with any of his negativity. And yes, with a heavy heart, I will be pulling the shade "Jeffree" from my collection. Sending extra love to everyone out there."
Von D Claimed Star Never Paid Her Friend B.J. Betts For His Logo Design
On the same day that Von D posted that she no longer wished to be associated with Star, she uploaded a video to Youtube further explaining her reason behind the decision. The video, titled "It's so much easier to do the right thing," is nearly 14 minutes long and explains Von D's main reasons for cutting ties with Star. Von D alleges that she introduced Star to fellow artist B.J. Betts to help Star design a logo for his makeup brand.
Von D states that Betts came up with the logo and signature design for Star's line. Star is said to have featured the design on all of his packaging yet never paid Betts for the design nor had he ever acknowledged that Betts was responsible for the logo. Von D explains that Betts called Star only for Star to block his number. When Von D got involved and asked Star about not paying Betts, he told her off and blocked her number.
Von D Described Other Issues She Had With Star In Her Youtube Video
In addition to explaining that she felt as though her friend was ripped off by Star, Von D had plenty of other reasons to end the friendship. Von D claims she is largely responsible for Star's makeup line and that she set up the meetings with distributors for him. She notes that he would not be where he is today without her help. She also says that she disagrees with the way Star lives his life and the way he treats others. Von D further explains that Star will go out of his way to attack people by whom he feels intimidated while asking others to join him in his vitriol.
Von D takes jabs at Star for promoting his makeup line as vegan and cruelty-free, something Von D is outspokenly passionate about, while promoting makeup lines that are not in fact vegan.
Although much of the drama between Star and Von D is personal, no one can deny that Star has a long history of making extremely racist comments. He once stated that he "wins by having diamond rims" and you "win by being a poor Mexican." Star has said the n-word on multiple occasions and once called a woman a "stupid c*nt." It's not surprising that Von D has distanced herself from Star's deeply offensive comments.
