Life & Style | For Huda Kattan, beauty has become a billion-dollar business

From a humble start of leaving the world of finance to write a beauty blog, Huda Kattan now has become one of the most recognizable names in makeup around the world.

The 36-year-old Iraqi-American now runs her eponymous empire Huda Beauty, a makeup line valued at $1.2 billion that has fast become a favorite among A-list celebrities and artists around the world.

Her personality has been key in connecting to the public via social media, a major driver for her makeup known for its vibrant color and contouring popular among Arab women. She’s part of a growing vanguard of lines built around personalities, an expanding business model as more-established brands face slower sales.

“I do think the idea of makeup as a form of self-expression will just grow even more,” Kattan told The Associated Press in Dubai. “I don’t think it’s going to be about beautifying anymore.”

Kattan reaches customers through a YouTube channel where she uploads all her makeup tutorials. Her brand’s Instagram account boasts more than 39 million followers, along with her seven million followers on Facebook.

Trump calls for Spicer votes on ‘Dancing with the Stars’

President Donald Trump is trying to influence votes on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.”

Trump this week tweeted that viewers should vote for former White House press secretary Sean Spicer. The president called Spicer a “good guy” and wrote “he has always been there for us!”

Spicer tweeted his thanks with instructions on how viewers can cast votes.

Spicer has been paired with professional dancer Lindsay Arnold as they compete for the mirror ball trophy.

He says he’s doing it “to have fun and make it a really good experience.”

Trump supporters have embraced Spicer, but opponents have criticized the program for inviting him.

Spicer told USA Today there’s no question a “huge” amount of his votes come from Trump supporters.

Queen Latifah to receive Harvard black culture award

Music artist and actress Queen Latifah is among the honorees being recognized by Harvard University this year for their contributions to black history and culture.

Harvard is set to award the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal to Queen Latifah and six other recipients on Oct. 22, according to the Cambridge, Massachusetts, school’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research.

Other honorees include poet and educator Elizabeth Alexander, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Lonnie Bunch III, poet Rita Dove, co-founder of Black Entertainment Television Sheila Johnson, artist Kerry James Marshall and Robert Smith, founder, chairman and chief executive of Vista Equity Partners.

The award is named after Du Bois, a scholar, writer, editor, and civil rights pioneer who became the first black student to earn a doctorate from Harvard in 1895.