Amber Grimes Is The Finest-Smelling Music Exec Round

“As a result of I’m from Atlanta, I’ve all the time been within the music world. I feel it is probably the most accessible-to-music place you could be in. Like, in the event you go to Lenox Mall as a child, you see well-known folks and it’s regular. On the Underground, I bear in mind very vividly assembly Jermaine Dupri after I was six years previous. My mother labored in music, too. She was a star hairstylist for music movies after I was youthful, again when movies used to price 1,000,000 {dollars} and weren’t shot on an iPhone. I nonetheless bear in mind going to Lil’ Bow Wow video units and plenty of Dave Matthews concert events as a result of she was their touring hairstylist for 14 years.

At Love Renaissance, I’m the EVP GM, which is numerous letters to say that I’m the one woman and I’ve to maintain the man’s shit collectively. I guarantee that the document firm is working and that everybody is doing their job. Outdoors of that, I oversee the advertising crew—for artists like Summer season Walker, 6lack, and Odeal—which isn’t commonplace for that function however advertising is the place I come from.

We introduced on Tanner Adell to the label final yr. She was after all assembly with different labels earlier than she signed with us, however we actually wished her. Whereas we had been courting her I remembered that Sylvia Rhone—someone we glance as much as within the trade—would purchase billboards for artists she wished to signal of their hometown to essentially present that she cared. So I labored with Justice Baiden, the top of A&R, to purchase billboards for Tanner forward of her Stagecoach efficiency, which was solely the day after our second assembly along with her. We wrote, ‘Tanner Adell is subsequent in nation, out of your largest followers.’ The billboard is a cute story, proper? However exhibiting up and personally being there was essential. We’ve all the time been a bit loopy as an organization, however there’s a lot competitors to get artists. It’s nearly like relationship. You must make large gestures for what you actually need.

Outdoors of labor, I run a guide membership known as Amber’s E book Membership. I feel—particularly within the trade I’m in—that individuals don’t discuss sufficient about books. Everybody talks about their jewellery, their garments, their make-up. I thought of beginning a podcast, however truthfully, possibly everyone ought to have their mics taken away. [Laughs] Then, my boyfriend and I purchased a home with a shed in our yard. Once I noticed it, I instantly thought of turning it right into a mini library and that spawned the guide membership. The motto is ‘Studying is a flex.’ We launched with Wealthy Paul’s Fortunate Me, and since then, we’ve additionally included books like Regulation Roach’s How To Construct A Style Icon, Bozoma Saint John’s The Pressing Life, and Jemele Hill’s Uphill.

SKINCARE
I watch numerous make-up movies and I’ve observed that the girlies have actually intense skincare routines, however I simply can’t—so sorry. Moreover, Cerave does the trick, so I begin off by washing my face with their hydrating cleanser. I began utilizing Recent’s rose toner not too way back. It’s an additional dose of hydration, however greater than something, it makes me really feel good. I’ll use Cerave’s vitamin C serum if I’m attempting to do away with hyperpigmentation—it’s really helped rather a lot—but when not, I’m going straight into my Cerave moisturizing lotion, which acts as my primer. And since I’m obsessive about shining from head to toe, I combine Nivea physique lotion with Vaseline cocoa radiant oil—or generally child oil—to make a thick, moisturizing, and glittery combination.

MAKEUP
‘Going out’ for me normally means a live performance, a mixer, or a listening celebration—something work adjoining. Usually I love to do my very own make-up, but when another person is doing it, I all the time ensure to pay further consideration so I can copy what they did in a while. Light Storm, who generally does my make-up, fucking sprays MAC’s Prep + Prime Repair+ on all the pieces. When she first did it I saved asking her, ‘Lady, what’s going on? Why do you retain wetting my face? Why are you spraying this in your magnificence sponge?’ However now I can’t cease. I spritz my Dose of Colours magnificence sponge and it carries my look by the night time, however I’ve additionally discovered that my merchandise mix collectively higher this manner.

Danessa Myricks has some unbelievable merchandise for melanated pores and skin. She has this wonderful Common Yummy Pores and skin blurring powder balm that I exploit as a primer. I’ve actually deep—however excellent—smile traces, and I realized this bizarre trick from TikTok the place you puff out your cheeks and fill the traces in with the balm. If I don’t have it with me, I do the identical factor however simply with my translucent One/Dimension blurring powder and go over it with my basis.

I would like my cheeks to look actually sunken in, so I contour with Fenty Magnificence’s Match Stix in Ebony. Then I’m going in with my basis, which modifications seasonally; proper now, I’m in my Danessa Myricks Yummy Pores and skin basis part—I exploit 23W. After which I exploit One/Dimension’s Flip Up The Base concealer round my eyes. I begin off with my darker shade in Darkish 4 after which end off with Deep 1 on my beneath eyes and nostril. Oh, and one other trick I’ve realized is that you must let your concealer dry—the ladies must know!

At this level, I exploit my Fenty Match Stix in Caviar to chisel out what I already created beneath. Then it’s time for liquid blush. I like e.l.f.’s Halo Glow blush in You Go Cocoa. To set all the pieces, I do a skinny layer of the One/Dimension translucent and blend it in with MAC’s Mineralize Skinfinish powder in Darkish Deep so it’s not too vibrant. These little black triangle powder puffs? They’re life-changing. The place had been they three years in the past? I exploit them to essentially press the combination in, particularly beneath my eyes.

I finished being loopy about my eyebrows a yr and a half in the past. I have already got fairly thick brows anyway, so I simply shortly draw the road of no matter form I would like with Profit’s Exactly My Forehead pencil in Heat Black Brown and brush that shit in earlier than combing them up with the NYX laminating forehead gel. I let it dry a bit bit, rub it by, and it makes my brows appear like they’ve been relaxed.

Then it’s time for my eyes. If I spend an hour on my eyes, I gained’t have time for my base—what actually issues. Individuals who do their eyes first? Serial killers. [Laughs] If I’m simply doing my common eye look, I’ll take a bit fluffy brush with my MAC Powder Kiss shadow in Give A Glam and go in. I even have a 24/7 eyeshadow from City Decay that’s jet black—it’s known as Blackout—and I like utilizing it to create a extremely attractive, smoky eye. I’ll take a really sharp eye brush to line my decrease eye and it lasts all night time. I may even do this on the highest of my lids, however I do want One/Dimension’s waterproof liquid liner there.

At this level, I mud the combination from earlier with MAC’s Darkish Deep once more so I’m not trying white or grey. Then I spray the hell out of my face once more. I let that moisture take over earlier than getting into with my One/Dimension setting spray, which I dry down with a fan—I realized that from David Velasquez. Then I’m going in with my Fever powder blush from MAC [Ed. note: discontinued] and Deep bronzer palette from One/Dimension. They’re the one two merchandise that I put over my setting spray to guarantee that all the pieces actually stays. After which for my lashes I exploit KISS Falscara lash extensions. They’re these little clusters you place beneath your actual lashes—takes me 5 seconds.

My lip by no means modifications. I exploit Dimensional Darkish Brown—a really, very darkish brown lip liner—from Make Up For Ever. It’s wonderful. Earlier than I discovered that one, I might even go so far as utilizing a darkish brown eye pencil as liner as a result of it doesn’t budge. I prefer to overline my lips only a bit, and relying on how I really feel, I colour within the center with the lightest shade of pink lipstick that I can discover—generally I even use concealer. I end off with my wonderful e.l.f. Glow Reviver lip oils. I like the Crystal Clear, Honey Talks, and Coral Fixation shades. They’re $2 and wonderful. I throw that on, let all the pieces combine collectively, and with that, I’m achieved.

HAIR
My hair is all the time final, and truthfully, since my mother’s a hairdresser, it’s the least of my issues after I’m going out. You may simply get no matter look I awoke with, but when I do spend 5 minutes on it, I escape my Wavytalk 5-in-1 curling iron. I discovered it on TikTok Store, and you are able to do something with it with none actual ability. It’s a godsend. I additionally purchased an UnBrush on TikTop Store, and there’s actually no different brush prefer it—and solely $5! It could possibly brush by any sort of hair like magic. And I prefer to have little child hairs occurring—however not an excessive amount of, I’m an grownup. [Laughs] I lay them down with the Bask & Lather edge management after which I throw on a bit little bit of Biosilk to make them look recent.

NAILS
One other factor that I’m by no means doing is return to the nail store. I haven’t been because the pandemic. I can’t be sitting in a nail store for 2 hours attempting to have a personal dialog about an artist’s subsequent challenge in LA—I don’t know whose firm I’m conserving. In the course of the pandemic, I taught myself find out how to do Gel-X and that was a course of. I might actually be on a Zoom name drilling my nails. However I’m over that, too. As an alternative, I’ve been utilizing the KISS ImPress no glue press-ons. They’re primarily stickers, and so they final three weeks. You may actually put them on in your automotive if you’ll want to—you shouldn’t, nevertheless it’s that simple.

FRAGRANCE
I’m by no means ever, ever, ever going to cease sporting Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s Baccarat Rouge 540. I don’t care what anyone thinks about it. I don’t care how previous it’s as a ‘pattern.’ No fragrance smells pretty much as good on me. If I stroll in someplace and somebody doesn’t say, ‘Oh, you scent good,’ or ‘Somebody in right here smells good,’ we’ve got an issue. I went by safety on the airport a bit in the past and the TSA woman walked away from the scanner to ask what I used to be sporting. That’s all I would like. The trick is to combine it with one thing else—and Baccarat works with nearly something—to confuse folks. [Laughs] I purchased Loewe’s Amanece la Bella Cibeles at Selfridges just lately, and till now, I haven’t informed anybody. It’s beautiful. Six Baccarat mists, two Loewe mists, and we’re set to go.”

—As informed to Daise Bedolla

Photographed by Brittany Bravo in Los Angeles on October 2, 2024