Patrick Starrr was not born with the surname that sounds like that of Spongebob’s best friend.
The Internet celebrity with 3 million followers on YouTube and 4 million on Instagram is actually Patrick Simondac in real life.
His parents migrated to the United States, worked there and raised three boys—Patrick, Peter and Paul.
Patrick is a talented makeup artist who has done the faces of many celebrities, including Kim Kardashian, Katy Perry and Pia Wurtzbach. The YouTube video of Patrick doing Kim’s makeup has over 11 million views so far.
His mother, who is known on the Internet as Mama Starrr, is from Negros Occidental, while his father hails from Bicol.
Patrick is also MAC Cosmetics’s Key Artist Collaborator for the year, meaning there are at least two more collections coming from him aside from the one that is now completely sold out in stores. Patrick is loved for his bold and sassy personality and his fabulous makeup looks. He is idolized by kids and adults alike, as shown by the public response to his collection for MAC Cosmetics.
The beauty world knows how fast (from minutes to two hours at the most) Patrick’s Powder sold-out online and in stores. This must seem surreal to Patrick, who started out as a makeup artist for a MAC store in Florida.
MAC Cosmetics Philippines flew in Patrick for the grand launch of his 12-piece collection, which includes three lipsticks, three lip glosses, three lip liners, two eyeshadow palettes and, of course, Patrick’s Powder.
Patrick sat down with members of the press for an intimate interview, hours before his Beauty Event at Samsung Hall in SM Aura.
During the interview, Patrick said his road to fame wasn’t full of glitter and glamor. Like most success stories, Patrick’s is marked by hard work, determination and, yes, even frustrations and disappointments.
Here are some of Patrick’s thoughts and experiences:
ON MAMA STARRR
“THE best tip I learned from her is…I think it’s don’t wait for tomorrow what you can do today, and that’s really because if I had waited I wouldn’t have this career and I wouldn’t be able to fly them out here.”
“She [Mama Starrr] had us and she didn’t see her mom for 30 years. She sacrificed so much for us that when we landed [in the Philippines 18 years ago], my lola passed away, and so it’s like a burden that, you know, she took care of us for so long that she couldn’t see her own mother.”
ON HIS IDENTITY
“I THINK there was a fire in me growing up as a little boy, but there was also a balance of guilt at the same time because I’m the oldest of three. I think the lowest [point in my life] was maybe at 14 or 15. I think shaping my identity was really hard because my parents wanted me to do one thing and I was fighting so hard, and, you know, you don’t want to disappoint your parents. But, you know, it looks bad before it looks good.”
ON HIS ROAD TO FAME
“I DIDN’T grow up with cousins, or titas, or grandmas. I saw my lola last night for the first time in 18 years. And so, I thought there was a lot of passion and perseverance for me to want to do this for my parents. Them coming to America was work but me not listening to them was a big part, too. Again it goes back to the fire. I wanted to do America’s Next Top Model. I wanted to do photo shoots. I wanted to recreate pictures. I managed to DIY myself with my own camera, my own makeup, my own editing into what we know now as a beauty vlogger.”
ON BEING A STARRR
“IT was so funny, because my family members would go, ‘I’m Tito Starrr! I’m Tita Starrr!’ I’m like, ‘I don’t remember you. You have to audition to be a Starrr.’ You know, grabe naman wish list nila. [Their wish list is crazy.]”
ON TRANSFORMATIONS
“I THINK I’ve been inspired by stories of transformation. You know those stories we grew up with, like Cinderella. You know, those Disney princesses we grew up with. I always wanted to know how magic tricks worked. When it came to fashion and beauty, I was intrigued with how things worked and how things were made. How did she get her nose small? How is their skin so clear? How is their hair so coiffed? And how are they so fabulous?”
ON COMING HOME
“THE last time I came to the Philippines, my other lola passed away. This was in 2000. It wasn’t very much a proper introduction to the Philippines. So this time, I’m eating the food, seeing the people. I got to go to a mall and celebrating other things and not mourning. It’s really special to see all the fans. I had a young gentleman come up to me last night at the Sofitel and he was crying. I’m really proud that he had lipstick on. I think it’s really special that someone who identifies as male would be out like that. This is Patrick Starrr’s first time here. Patrick Simondac has been here before.”
ON CONFIDENCE
“My mantra last year was self-awareness. Life opens up when you do. It comes back at you. And you’re able to grab these moments and these experiences through your life to store them in your pocket and say, ‘Okay, this is a little bit of me. I’m a little bit fabulous. I’m a little bit funny. I’m a little bit chubby, I’m a little bit pretty.’”
ON MAC COSMETICS
“When I wanted to pursue makeup, shopping in a makeup store was the closest thing to being a makeup artist. I knew a MAC makeup artist who could do editorial looks. I was lucky enough to have been able to work for MAC in Orlando, Florida.”
ON PATRICK’S POWDER
“I don’t think any influencer has had a setting powder. And I think for me to be a man putting on makeup online, no one puts as much powder as I do. I smack it all over my face. My wish list was for Patrick’s Powder to be translucent and very skin tone-friendly. I was asking myself if I should go more yellow or more peach but I still wanted the durability of a powder. It was a unicorn wish list and MAC put it in a jar for me. It is the perfect powder for every skin tone and texture. I wanted it to be MAC’s credo in a jar—all sexes, all ages, all races. I wanted it to work for my mom, my gays, my mamshies.”
ON KEEPING HIS MAKEUP FRESH
“I put on so much powder! Also, the trick is spraying the powder. A lot of people are scared that powder might make their skin so dry. The combination of powder and spray and then powder and then a puff to push it all in does the job in melding the products together.”
ON DRAG MAKEUP
“The makeup that I do is wearable everyday and it’s not about those harsh lines. Drag makeup is very harsh. When I was first doing makeup, I had very big lashes top and bottom and so glamorous and powder and lines, lines, lines. Almost like the chocolate-vanilla ice cream. That’s what I looked like. But I wanted to tone it down and make it attainable for people to learn. I toned it down. I still wear a lot of makeup but I think the way I break it down online is much more attainable.”
HIS DREAM PINOY CLIENT
“I want to do my lola’s makeup. She’s 86. I’ll do a glam grandma, glam lola. I think it would be a great video to see a lola being glammed up. Lola Starrr!”
ON BEING PROGRESSIVE
“Beauty and makeup are beyond aesthetics, beyond looks. I literally cried on the day of my [MAC] launch party doing an interview because we’re changing lives. I literally get e-mails and messages almost everyday [that say], like, ‘I got kicked out’ or ‘Someone beat me’ but they look to my channel or to my social media as refuge, and that’s beyond the lashes that I wear, beyond the makeup, beyond the lipstick. And for MAC to trust me and for them to amplify my persona, my messaging, my meaning, we’re changing lives one at a time.”