While outlets like New York Magazine might have thought that calling out nepo babies (by, among other tactics, quite literally naming names) could deter them or the system they thrive in, MAC Cosmetics has single-handedly proven that such “trivialities” not only don’t matter, but certainly aren’t going to keep a nepo baby down (not that anything could; see also: Hailey Bieber attempting to reappropriate this new “n” word). In other words, keep them from getting a gig that someone else would probably be better at if only they had been shot out of the right vagina.
To emphasize that point, MAC has decided to try to jumpstart Lipglass sales with a campaign called “Born Famous,” starring Amelia Gray, Francesca Scorsese and Zaya Wade. Out of those three names, it’s obvious that the last name “Scorsese” stands out the most, therefore making Francesca the guiltiest of cashing in on her name. Then comes Zaya Wade, daughter of Dwayne Wade and Gabrielle Union. As for the nepo baby with the least clout (at least name recognition-wise), Amelia Gray Hamlin (daughter of Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin)—who generally goes by Amelia Gray—she was the most vocal while promoting the campaign in terms of, in effect, “defending nepo baby rights.” And, seemingly more than the product itself, this was the driving force that prompted her to lend her modeling skills to the “cause,” joined, of course, by her mother, Lisa. After all, MAC made it abundantly clear that their interest in these women stemmed solely from who their parents are.
Trying to give it a “retro” feel (a.k.a. the 2000s), one of Wade’s images features her holding up a Motorola Razr as she applies a gloss, exuding the kind of “I’m so unbothered” look that perhaps only people of privilege can truly perfect. Same as Scorsese’s campaign shots, which, among others, feature her lackadaisically walking down Hollywood Boulevard carrying a MAC bag. With regard to that “00s feel,” it’s apparent that MAC is trying to appeal to a sense of nostalgia that Gen Z has for an era they didn’t live through (all while simultaneously mocking those that did [read: millennials]). And yes, as Business of Fashion confirmed, the campaign’s photographer, Sharna Osborne, took her inspiration from “tabloids in the early 2000s, when Lipglass—and three of four of Air’s campaign stars—were born.”
Attempting to “reboot” that original Lipglass with a new formula, MAC is positioning Lipglass Air as the, you guessed it, “Born Famous” daughter of Lipglass. Ergo, she’s a nepo baby. Like Paris Hilton, who is of course referenced (since it’s an 00s-centric shoot) via Gray wearing a white tank top that says, “Stop Being Sticky” (an allusion that doesn’t need to be explained to the real ones). In the same image, Rinna stands next to her in a white tee reading simply, “Mother.” Not just the gay man’s epithet for all women who “serve,” but a word that effectively reduces Rinna, in this case, to nothing more than a “progenitor” of a next-generation famous girl (who will never have to suffer through the same ills that Billie Reed did).
Scorsese, being the “artsy” one of the trio because of who her father is, also did her best to rationalize participating in a campaign that continues to thumb its nose at “regulars” (especially regulars with the audacity to talk shit about nepo babies). This by echoing the sentiment behind Lipglass Air being an already famous “daughter,” telling Nylon, “The whole idea behind the Lipglass Air being the daughter and taking on her legacy in her own way resonated with me, having grown up in the spotlight and trying to create a name for myself.” Ah, what a way to poeticize capitalism and being a nepo baby.
And, talking of capitalism, the bid to tap younger, more “influencer-y” representatives for the brand is, also per Business of Fashion, due to “lagging relevance with younger consumers.” As such, “the next phase of its 2025 creative plan hopes to capture this cohort by reminding them of MAC’s legacy in language they can understand. Where the original Lipglass was a multipurpose gloss that provided a radiant but sticky finish, Lipglass Air is seven percent oil, and provides a sheer, moisturizing gloss in ten shades. Unlike its mother’s paint-tube pack, Air… resembl[es] similar lip oils from the likes of Summer Fridays, Rare Beauty and others in the new guard.”
A new guard that, if not relying on “nepo baby cachet,” then at least relying on the cachet of a “progenitor” celebrity, as is the case with brands helmed by Selena Gomez (captain of the aforementioned Rare Beauty), Ariana Grande (r.e.m.) and Rihanna (Fenty Beauty). And yes, someday, all three (instead of just one) of these women will have nepo babies of their own who will probably want to start a beauty brand—or be the face of one like Gray, Wade and Scorsese. But it was clearly Gray who exhibited the most insecurity about truly “owning” her identity, still feeling obliged to defensively lean into the non-defense, “I think the whole argument of the nepotism, nepo-baby thing is just so mindless and unnecessary. The people that are arguing against nepo babies aren’t nepo babies, and that’s cool for you too. The grass is always greener, but the grass is never greener.” Well, no, actually, it’s not “cool” for the non-nepo baby to have to explain to nepo babies why the grass is, in fact, much greener for them—objectively so. But, of course, up there from the ivory tower perspective of nepo babies, they can’t see the bona fide greenness.
Instead, they like to bandy the usual insistence that civilians will never understand what it’s like to lose their privacy. Just as nepo babies will never understand what it’s like to be poor/not be privy to countless undeserved opportunities. But no, Gray insisted to People, “I just think, let people live their lives. And who gives a damn where someone’s from. Just do the most with the cards you’re dealt with and people will respect you if you work hard.” Yes, that’s right, Gray, dealt an excellent hand in life, actually had the gall to tell others who weren’t to “do the most” with their shitty cards (it reeks of Kim saying, “Get your fuckin’ ass up and work”). As if she would even know where to begin on that front if she hadn’t won the birth lottery (though not as much as nepo babies like Maya Hawke and Lily-Rose Depp).
Continuing to unveil the extent of her total obliviousness, Gray kept going, “And I think that being a nepo baby is a very beautiful opportunity. And I think it would be a shame to let it go to waste… Wouldn’t it be so sad if I just sat around and did nothing with my life’s gift?” Yes, so sad. Since, clearly, posing for a MAC ad campaign that lauds those “famous for being born to a famous person” (replacing the 00s phrase “famous for being famous”) is the height of what one could do with their “life’s gift.”
Gray, Wade and Scorsese’s unabashed “leaning into being a nepo baby” status is, however, a further sign of the times. Mirroring, believe it or not, the fact that the U.S. willingly voted in a president who, over and over again, effectively said, “Yeah, I am a criminal. What of it? At least I ‘get things done.’” The culture has all but demanded this kind of “so what?” behavior from those they apparently want to see on top—in all aspects of society. That is to say, the least worthy, least talented and least competent. And yes, let one remind that Trump also qualifies as a nepo baby (as does his “next generation” brood, particularly Ivanka).
