Janelle Monáe: Covergirl

Stunningly beautiful and unconventional neo-soul singer Janelle Monáe is apparently the new face of Covergirl, and the seamless ads create quite the hype.  From her red-hot lips and fingernails to her signature pompadour and tuxedo, Monáe’s new move is promising to push her into a more mainstream light, which is just what she deserves.

“Who, me?!”

Since her futuristic and fresh debut records the ArchAndroid and Metropolis: the Chase Suite, Monáe’s career has sidled on the periphery of popular: she’s the singer that everyone should know, but doesn’t quite yet.

No more tuxedo.

What I like about this new move is that Covergirl hasn’t made-over Monáe to look like someone else, or to be more “model”-esque than she usually is.  Though some of the shots are more glamorous with a change of wardrobe, they still allow the singer’s unique identity to shine.  Such honesty is commendable.

Some fans call this PR-move selling out, but obviously it’s more of selling-in for Monáe, who is overdue for a new release and might, undoubtedly, like to have a Gotye-moment.

This Covergirl announcement comes on the heels of Lady Gaga’s nightmarish new ads for her black-colored perfume, Fame.  Seems like every star gets their own beauty-plug these days.

But Monáe, with her bold and positive uniqueness, has the potential to blow the lid off of this trend and work the cosmetics world to her advantage.  Beauty has become the new stomping ground for female role-models, and rightfully so: if we women want to create our own culture of beauty, we have to reclaim the advertisements.

I’m hopeful about what Monáe has in store for the future.  We’ll be seeing much more of her in a big, big way, and not just in the pages of Vogue.