If you’re looking to know the secrets to Pharrell Williams‘ skin routine, you may be in luck. There’s been no better reason to dive into self-care and just in time for the holidays, the Grammy-award winning artist has announced his latest wellness brand Humanrace.
“There is nothing more important, now more than ever, than our wellbeing, it’s our greatest resource,” the entertainer tells ESSENCE. Rooted in Williams’ own wellness philosophy that “self-care is the greatest luxury,” Humanrace is designed to become a resource in hopes to empower everyone to become their best selves.
Humanrace launched last week with expertise from his dermatologist of 20 years, Dr. Elena Jones, M.D., who consulted with the award-winning producer and artist to develop three skincare products. “This routine is formulated from Pharrell’s skincare experience and we wanted to choose ingredients that are clean, effective and friendly for all skin types,” Jones exclaimed in a provided statement.
Despite the self-care market being arguably marketed towards women, Williams is stepping into a new territory in hopes to diversify the landscape. The celebrated entertainer underscores that Humanrace products will not be marketed towards one group. “Our product and ethos is created in mind with both male, female and gender non-conforming, and it was really important that this was inclusive and accessible,” he concluded.
Hear more from the “Happy” performer about his latest skincare line and what’s to come below.
For years there’s been a conversation around your skin, but why was now a good time to launch your skincare brand?
PHARRELL WILLIAMS: We are launching Humanrace as a wellbeing brand. Wellness is a lifelong self-discovery process that offers meaningful rewards to everyone. It was really important for me to create something that reflected that ethos and create something that was accessible and inclusive. Over the years, I’ve really learned how to take care of my skin, and subsequently, discovered the positive impact it taught me on how to take care of myself and others. One thing we all live in is our skin, being able to create regimes and products that nourish and look after ourselves is really important in my daily life. Humanrace skincare sets the foundation for that and what Humanrace wants to achieve.
For men, self-care is not marketed the same as it is for women? Do you hope to change that with your new business venture?
WILLIAMS: Adopting a mindset that’s rooted in wellbeing from an early age is important. Wellbeing is part of our culture now and I hope younger people learn how to integrate certain aspects of that into their life. We have a big part to play in making sure young males are inclusive of that.
What will you be offering at first? How do you plan to expand?
WILLIAMS: We’ve created a range of clean, high-grade formulations, a powder cleanser, exfoliator and moisturizer, that are really simple to use morning and night, to help you create a daily routine to improve your wellbeing. This is the beginning of a journey for Humanrace.
What are some key ingredients that you believe make your products unique?
WILLIAMS: Every aspect of the brand has been carefully thought through so they’re good for the planet and good for the people, from how we package the items through to the idea behind them. Formulating with clean, high quality, effective ingredients was a huge part of the process. We worked closely with my dermatologist Dr. Elena Jones, M.D, who has been educating me on my own skincare for the past 20 years.
We used natural ingredients when possible, while still ensuring the formulations were effective. Our Rice Powder Cleanser is over 50% kaolin clay, a natural alternative to other powder formulations, and fine-grained rice. The Lotus Enzyme Exfoliator has lotus leaf extract which is an antioxidant and protects from free radicals such as UV rays and environmental stressors, it represents rejuvenation and rebirth in certain cultures, which resonated with me in the process of exfoliation. The Humidifying Cream has snow mushroom extract which has a smaller molecule size so it can penetrate the different layers of your skin.
If there’s one thing you learned about your skin as you get older, what is it?
WILLIAMS: Look after it.