Black beauty creators : Sylvia Smith

I recently interviewed a black beauty creator located in the Huntsville, AL area; who has pushed and made a lane for local black makeup artist to create and inspire all things beauty. A creator who’s extensive and highly impressive resume speaks for its self, a person who not only inspires black beauty, but creates it, meet Sylvia Smith.

Sylvia is a Huntsville makeup artist and owner of Pro Makeup Artist Studio located at, 225 Spragins Ave NW UNIT L, Huntsville, AL 35801. Sylvia has worked in the makeup industry for over 25 years, and her extensive resume includes: working on various television networks such as BET and TV One, and with legendary singers such as: Patti Labelle, Kim Burrell, Syleena Johnson, and Mary Mary. I interviewed Sylvia via phone in the interview below.

Niesha: Let me explain a little bit of what our interview will entail. I’m writing an article on black beauty and why the black space and voice is important to the beauty industry, so that is what we will be discussing.

Sylvia: Mhmm.

Niesha: So how long have you been in the beauty industry?

Sylvia: For over 25 years.

Niesha: For over 25 years? Wow, what got you into it?

Sylvia: My mother, my mother got me into the beauty industry. Back in 1978–79, as a little girl I used to watch her get dressed, her and my aunts would get ready for the club and put their makeup on and things like that. I would just watch her, I would study her. I would go and get a ink pen, nail polish, and a marker; go get my barbies, my cabbage patch dolls; the ink pin would be eyeliner, the nail polish would be the lipstick, and the marker would be eyebrows. So I was like three years old with my hands in makeup, and I would steal her makeup as well and put it on my dolls. My mom actually got me started- she got me infatuated with makeup, hair and the beauty industry when I was a kid.

Niesha: So needless to say, she probably was your biggest influence?

Sylvia: She was my biggest influence and inspiration, and she got me started on spearheading my career in beauty.

Niesha: So give me a little background, of your experience and what you’ve done so far in the beauty industry?

Sylvia: I started off retail, one day I woke up and had my review for a cosmetic brand I was working for, and at that point in time I was the top sales person. At that time I had grossed up to $250,000 of product that I sold for them in a year, and I was like you know what? This is ridiculous, I got to do something.

So that year 2010, I stepped out and open up my own makeup studio, located in downtown Huntsville(we’ve been open for 10 year and it has been very profitable) but throughout that time of me freelancing, I also stepped into the entertainment industry so, I’ve worked for television networks such as: WE TV, BET, TV One. Keke Wyatts, Syleena Johnson- all of them were like my clients- Kim Burrell, I was on set of BET’s Sunday’s Best, for three years, worked with some of the Atlanta housewives, I started off with Married to Medicine, Love and Marriage Huntsville, I’ve done a lot in reference to the industry- I’ve done Patti Labelle’s makeup, T.D. Jakes, Sarah Jakes makeup, I’ve done a lot of people in the industry — that’s just some to name a few.

So once I did that- my dream was to build a team. So I started off with myself at the studio for one year, prayed let me condition this studio and let me pray over it and asked God for the employees that I wanted, and right now everyone that I have hired are good artist- I have nine women working under me now.

Niesha: Wow that’s very impressive, do you ever feel like though as a black woman in the industry that there are challenges? Like in trying to create spaces- like a black face or space in the industry? Like you know, sometimes as black women we don’t always have the products- or brands and makeup that caters to our skin tone/undertones, do you find any challenges or problems in that?

Sylvia: In reference to foundations matches, and things?

Niesha: Yeah, like you know- I would say probably like maybe 10–15 years ago, we had makeup like the Queen Collection from Covergirl that was like our first drugstore foundation range.

Sylvia: Right, right- Okay so that was like drugstore foundation range. You know Fashion Fair was out for a long time for African American women. But I would say this, “There’s a difference between just doing makeup, and you really being a makeup artist.” I have a art background, so even way back then when I had issues with darker skin- this really wasn’t a challenge for me because I knew my stuff.

Like I studied under some of the best before I hit the streets, I didn’t call myself a professional makeup artist until after eight years of me being in the industry. So you have a lot of people who pick up this skill, because they know how to do eyebrows and their like professional makeup artist- certified makeup artist, and I tell them just because you’re certified doesn’t mean you know what you’re doing, there’s a difference.

So in reference to the foundation, back then with me, the way I would accomplish that challenge was- lets’s just say Lupita Nyong’o, you see how dark her skin tone is right? 9 times out of 10 her makeup artist probably gets the darkest foundation and then he sprinkles black loose pigment into it and mixes it up with the foundation, drops a couple drops of oil in it, and he makes it right there on the spot so that it can match her. So even back then, I knew how to do that, so that wasn’t challenging for me when I came across clients with darker skin.

Niesha: That’s interesting that you say that, because I remember like a couple of years ago back when beauty gurus first popped up on YouTube, when people started uploading their makeup tutorials. I remember seeing a darker skin woman using black eyeshadow to contour, and I thought to myself isn’t that a little too harsh? but maybe she didn’t have any products like that in the market. But like you said, if you know what you’re doing you know how to navigate around it.

Sylvia: Absolutely that's right.

Niesha: What does black beauty mean to you? Why is it so important?

Sylvia: Black beauty is important to me because we’ve had white beauty for so many years. So in reference to me being in the industry, the way I like to project my black African American women, I don’t like to cover them with a lot of foundation and a lot of makeup. I like for their true beauty to stand out, so that white America, doesn’t look at us differently or she’s needs to wear all that makeup in order to look pretty or to feel pretty or things of that nature. So my role in this industry is to set the tone that we of all colors and skin tones and what have you — We are beautiful. You know what I mean? So for me to enhance that beauty, naturally as I possibly can. Like right now the trend is the heavy heavy makeup and the big thick lashes.

Niesha: Like the heavy contour, and all that?

Sylvia: The heavy contour, the cut crease eyeshadow — and to be honest with you it’s cute, but you do know that’s drag queen makeup

Niesha: Right, you know it’s funny that you said that- because I thought, its the Instagram look. I always thought that, because girls take those techniques- those were techniques created by drag queens to soften their face.

Sylvia: Right, and I’m like what are y’all doing? So I don’t like to project that; I know how to do it, but I don’t post it, I don’t promote it because that’s not my client. My client is me pulling out the natural beauty of black women. I also mentor other young black women as well, I try to do what I can when it comes to the black beauty industry. I try to mentor those young up-and-coming makeup artist, so they can know what not to do, and how to treat their clients as well as they grow within their profession.

Niesha: What do you think the future of the black beauty industry will be?

Sylvia: The future of the black beauty industry is big, its major. Like right now we got hit with COVID- but once this is all said and done, it’s going to be even bigger and I’m excited to see it. So it’s going to be even bigger, it’s always going to stay trendy- we are the trendsetters. The beauty- the black industry, we are the trendsetters. I don’t know if you saw it or not, but asian people I think over in Korea or Japan, are now wearing faux locs now- dreadlocks. They watched a YouTube video, of a girl doing it and they have set up a shop in Japan and they are walking around with different color faux locs- we started that, that’s ours. We will forever be trendsetters, it’s going to be bigger and major. This is like a billion dollar industry, it’s not going any where any time soon.

Niesha: Absolutely, I think the thing is we’ve always been innovators and always been like the trailblazers. And trends and everything else, always follows suit after what we’ve started first.

Sylvia: Absolutely, yes absolutely.

Niesha: To me it’s also important that, not only we create our own space but also get the recognition and you know the flowers for everything we’ve contribute to black beauty.

Sylvia: We do, we get the recognition and the flowers. But what I wish we would do as a (black) industry, is to do for one another instead of hating on another. Like here in Huntsville, I try my best to keep open dialogue with all the makeup artist or hair stylist in our area. I’ve also acted as the mediator, between some of them that have gotten into it. I’m just hoping that we all can start coming together all lot more often, instead of causing a divide.

Niesha: I agree, we all can eat there’s room at the table for everybody.

Sylvia: Absolutely, that’s right. Absolutely there is.

Niesha: Well I think, that’s pretty much it. This was a very good interview, very insightful and impactful. I really appreciate and thank you for your time, but lastly before I do let you go, can you tell everybody where they can reach you?

Sylvia: Yes, well my website is actually under construction but its actually Promakeupartiststudio.com, but you can reach me on Instagram @Sylviapromakeup and @MakeupbySylvia on Facebook.

Niesha: Well again thank you for your time Sylvia, take care.

Sylvia: Thank you for interviewing me, take care too.