Teyana Taylor On Injectables, Defining Beauty, & Black Girl Magic

Women of color are often told that they’re lucky they don’t appear to age. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting older, the misconceptions and stigmas around BIPOC wanting to get injectables is something R&B singer and actor Teyana Taylor wants to change the conversation around.

“[Getting injectables] is not gonna take me back to [looking] 16, 17, or 18,” Taylor tells me over Zoom. “It's just gonna smooth out my frown lines...and that's simply what I use it for: to smooth out my frown lines. I'm very happy with my results, but I don't feel like it made me any younger because I enjoy aging.”

For that reason, the “Gonna Love Me” singer has collaborated with facial aesthetics injectable Xeomin to become its newest brand partner. Together, Xeomin and Taylor hope to expand the brand’s message of defining beauty on your own terms with the “Beauty on Your Terms” campaign. “Beauty is so much more than just the looks. It's [about] what’s within,” she says. “Having grace, the power of prayer, having a relationship with God, meditating — those are all different things. Confidence is what I feel makes me beautiful.”

Xeomin, a botulinum toxin type A, is an FDA-approved injectable that temporarily improves the look of moderate to severe lines between the eyebrows (aka glabellar lines). Similar to other known neurotoxins, such as Botox and Dysport, it results in smoother skin for a couple of months. While it may sound contradictory to be a fan of injectables while also claiming to enjoy aging, Taylor says that the two can ideas can co-exist.

“I’m still Black girl magic. [Getting Xeomin] didn't make or break anything. It simply fixed something that I wanted to be fixed,” she says. “Every day I'll wake up to two pure, genuine babies telling me how beautiful I am [and] that gives me the confidence. It took me a long time to get to this place...I'm a Black queen. I am magic. I'm a super mom; I'm a superhero woman in general. We are superheroes. The things that we can create are like none other,” she says. “So that's what beauty is to me.”

Should you choose to dive into the world of injectables (because it’s all about personal choice), she stresses the importance of seeing a trusted doctor who will walk you through the steps and debunk any myths or misconceptions. For BIPOC especially, being told that injectables aren’t safe for them or that getting injectables will look unnatural causes many to either be scared of getting treatment or feel shame for wanting to. Going to a professional who is also a person of color will not only alleviate those anxieties but also be a safe space for you to turn to.

Taylor credits board-certified dermatologist Dr. DiAnne Davis for helping her through the process of getting injectables for the first time and making her feel comfortable. Even though Taylor always does her research before doing anything, she says seeing a doctor of color made a world of difference in seeing that there is a way to do injectables without overdoing it.

“What's promoted [by social media and mainstream media] is the overdoing,” she says. “It is being promoted so much that [people] are missing out on [the more positive end of] what Xeomin actually does, or what injectables actually do.”