Marie Redding, Senior Editor11.12.20
Grammy-award-winning artist Pharrell Williams is now in the beauty business. He announced his new venture, Humanrace, which will debut with an all-gender skin care line launching on November 25.
Created for all skin types, Pharrell explained, “Humanrace Skincare doesn’t differentiate by race or gender. We’re creating for humans; we are all born in the same skin and Humanrace celebrates this.”
The line focuses on sustainability—with refillable packaging that Allure tried in vibrant green bottles and jars equipped with hygienic, hands-free delivery systems.
The packages were "designed as objects first," the brand states—"inspired to live on your counter and last in your home." Braille is also included on the packaging.
Discussing developing the line, Williams told Allure his job title should be Humanrace’s "chief sensations officer," as he often described the experience that he wanted his team to transfer to a product.
Allure's Brennan Kilbane writes, "Like the experience of wearing shoes that grasp your feet with the gentlest of embraces, or the feeling of humidity on your face, but in a cream that also glazes your cheekbones." Williams tells Allure, “You put on that humidifying cream...You’re like, ‘Oh man, my skin is popping."
As stated in the press release, Williams says, “My most favorite place to be is on the precipice of what doesn’t exist, imagining what it can be and then working with an amazing team of architects to reverse engineer and build that thing that didn’t exist before.”
The 3-Minute-Facial
Humanrace's "Three-Minute Facial,” named by Williams, was created to take just three minutes, morning and night.The skin care line's Rice Powder Cleanser, Lotus Enzyme Exfoliator, and Humidifying Cream are shown above. The products are all clean, vegan and fragrance-free formulations developed in consultation with Williams’ dermatologist of 20 years, Dr. Elena Jones, MD.
Dr. Jones says, "We adhered to the European standard of 1,300 banned ingredients as an important starting point and then we went further to develop our own restrictions. We worked to create products that had no rocks, nuts, seeds, or plastic particles in our formulas to ensure no microtears occur which can result in damaging your skin”.
The brand is rooted in Williams' own wellness philosophy, a press release states, and he believes that self-care is the greatest luxury—and wants the brand to be a resource to empower everyone to become their best selves.
Humanrace Focuses on Sustainable, Refillable Packaging
Putting sustainability at the forefront, all products were created with responsibility and transparency in mind, the brand states.Each component is refillable, to encourage consumers to reduce their use of single-use plastic. The packaging contains over 50% post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic.
Overall, the brand is rooted in Williams' own wellness philosophy, a press release states, and he believes that self-care is the greatest luxury—and wants the brand to be a resource to empower everyone to become their best selves.
The line will debut exclusively on the brand's website, linked above.
Alicia Keys is another singer entering beauty and wellness with her new brand, Soulcare.
