Where were you born?
East Harlem in New York City
Where do you live now?
I live between New York City and Chicago
What’s your sign?
I am a Pisces
When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I thought I would become a famous choreographer and dancer.
How did that transpose into makeup artistry?
When I majored in theater in high school, some of the musicals that we did, I didn’t land a role, so there were other positions for us like stagehand, crew, lighting, as well as hair and makeup.
How did you get your start in makeup?
I began my career officially at MAC in 1998 but truthfully, I actually worked at Ricky’s on Third Avenue and 18th St., and that started in 1996.
What was your first memorable work as an artist?
When I began my career working with celebrities and working on 112’s music video Dance With Me. This day was memorable for many different reasons one being that I was called at 5 AM last minute to do this job second I had no idea what I was even doing until I got there! I was shocked to see that I would be working with talent. The music video was extremely chaotic filled with a lot of people, loud, noisy and smoky, but I loved it and it became a moment for me that pretty much clicked that this is where I want to be.
What are the things about working in makeup that you love?
What I love most about makeup is the immediate gratification of making someone feel good. That’s really why I do it, I can immediately affect someone’s mood and energy in a very positive way.
What are the things about your work that makes it the most interesting to you?
How many people you meet from all walks of life and all over the world in this career. I’ve been blessed to travel around the world with my clients, and really see the world in a way that I may not have been ever able to do had I not become a makeup artist.
What should someone who is looking to develop a career in makeup know before getting into the business?
I would tell anyone getting into the industry that being kind to people is top priority. Be kind to everyone — no one is beneath you. I’d also say be prepared. Make sure your kit is organized and has all that you need to do the job. You don’t have to have the most expensive products in the world you just need to be clean and organized and have amazing artistry.
What makes you a good makeup artist?
I believe that I have a really nurturing spirit. A lot of my clients trust me and know that if you’re having a bad day or something is happening personally they know that it doesn’t go past that room. Our space is a sacred space that I take very seriously whenever any of my clients are coming to me about real life situations and issues. Also, I am pretty fast. I can do a face from start to finish in 40 minutes and have done that many times for major red carpets. Being fast and skilled is an amazing technique that keeps people booking me I believe.
How do you continue to grow as an artist?
I continue to grow as an artist by being open to learning new things, as well as surrounding myself with young artists and young talent. Surrounding yourself with young talent always keeps you fresh and sharp.
What has changed most about the industry in the time that you’ve been working in makeup?
A lot has changed, where do I begin? When I began in the industry there was no social media. The biggest thing was to secure an agent and that agent would shop your portfolio around to various clients to hopefully lock down a job. Now in today’s current market people can land jobs just from their social media. The unfortunate part about that is that people can do amazing artistry that they post to social media but that doesn’t always guarantee you’re getting a seasoned individual that knows how to work in a professional work environment.
Also, when I first came into the industry, having an assistant, or being an assistant, was crucial to your success. Assisting the right person can really prepare you and teach you how to be a business person as well as handle yourself in professional work environments. I do believe that the younger generation has become super successful much faster than my generation through the world of makeup because of social media. It is amazing. However, there are a lot of people who are not prepared professionally nor do they have the work that they need because they didn’t assist with anyone.
How has social media affected your career or work?
Social media has impacted my career because it took a while for people to notice that I was there. The old model of finding people through an agent, and with a portfolio is a thing of the past. Sometimes you’re counted out of jobs because people don’t see your body of work on social media. People don’t see the vast diversity of your clientele on social media. They see what you want to post.
I didn’t really understand that in the beginning because I was posting about life and you know my job experience, but I wasn’t necessarily using it as a portfolio tool, which it has become. I do believe in the beginning I may have suffered a little bit as an artist and didn’t grow to be seen by younger celebrities or clients, because they were looking for artists on social media and meanwhile I wasn’t showing them my artistry.
Do you have a signature style?
Absolutely. My signature style is the glow girl. That’s what I’ve been known as since I was written about by Sephora.com in 2004. And that’s what I have done is create this beautiful, radiant glow for my clients, even for my male clients and grooming with the skin just really looks buttery and beautiful and smooth. So that is my signature makeup style — glowing skin. A lot of those signature looks have been seen in a multitude of hip-hop and R&B videos, which I’ve done over 150 to-date.
What type of work do you find most satisfying?
I love editorial work though it is not great financially because there’s not a lot of pay in it but I’ve always loved editorial work. I also love album packaging. Those are areas that I really thrive in because I love to be creative and I love to really push the envelope for my artist and clients.
Do you have a project that you’ve done that you are especially proud of?
I am especially proud of all my world tours with Alicia Keys and as well as her album, packaging and music videos. I’m also very very proud of all of the work I did in television and film, especially on Empire and Hidden Figures. Those really stand out because Empire broke all kind of records and made history in the world o f television.
Do you ever get stuck creatively?
Yes, I get stuck creatively. Everyone gets stuck at some point in time. The thing that gets me stuck is stress. If I’m highly stressed I kind of shut down a little bit because I need to be able to navigate my emotions my mind my spirit through the space o
what I’m feeling. When I sit down and just start doing makeup on myself and video tutorials mindlessly, like I did during the pandemic that becomes cathartic for me, and it becomes a form of therapy. It becomes the factor that makes me unstuck.
What project did you have the most fun working on?
I really enjoyed working on Empire. It was such an amazing experience, and I walked away with so many people who are like family because that was a show that lasted six seasons. I also really really enjoy working on Netflix Survival Of The Thickest. It was truly an amazing experience because Michelle Buteau created an environment that was like 70% women running departments. It was phenomenal to see so many women in major position but then also she had people from all walks of life, the entire LGBTQ+ community was represented on the show. I worked with so many different amazing people and characters.
What project was the most challenging?
One of the most challenging projects I worked on was The Best Man: Final Chapters. It was really challenging because we were coming into a franchise and there’s a lot of weight when you’re coming into that type of project and you’re new. We had a lot of responsibility on us and Malcolm D Lee and Dominique Telson took a big chance on me as a department head and I’m really grateful for it. The main thing that was challenging with this project was you have eight leading characters and these leading actors are all well known, big names in their own right. So it was like catering to eight people as a personal — but rightfully so, they deserved it. They are icons, and I appreciated the opportunity, but it was challenging because you have to split yourself so many different ways to accommodate everybody to make sure everyone is happy , that’s always hard. The end result of the show though was beautiful and my eight legends look phenomenal.
Do you prefer one type of work to another?
I prefer working in TV and film more now at this age. When I was younger, I loved running around after new musical talent and that was great at that point in my life. But now, at my age, I really enjoy, the schedule, the normalcy of pay, the benefits, the pension. Those are things that are great plusses to working in the world of television and film because you do not have that type of stability when you’re a young freelance artist and no one really tells you about that.
What would your clients say is the best thing about working with you?
I would hope they would say that they love my artistry for sure, and me as a person. I’ve actually had some of my clients say that to me in written words, because for a lot of the shows that I’ve had to department head, I need referrals and I’ve actually hit up some of my clients to write referrals for me, and through that process I’ve been able to see what they think of me as a person and as an artist, and it makes me smile inside that I’ve made people happy and joyous.
Whose work do you admire?
I love so many artists. Are you kidding me? There’s so many but I’ll try to list out a few. Danessa Myricks, Sheika Daly, Wendy Miyake, Sir John, Merrell Hollis, Erin Paterson, Ariel Tejada, Rania Zohny, Latisha Rankin, David Grant.
What’s next for Ashunta Sheriff?
We are launching some new great products at my line Ashunta Sheriff Beauty and I’m working on a few TV show concepts I created as well as a book that celebrates the contribution of hip hop music in the beauty space and pop culture over all. A lot of those video vixen looks back in the day have become the template for modern day beauty.
Words Michael DeVellis
Photos Courtesy of Ashunta Sheriff
