On social media, Genai Nakama appears confident and self-assured. The 21-year-old creative and model’s feed is filled with ‘fit pics,’ showcasing her graphic tee, sneaker-filled closet, and mirror selfies. It’s hard to believe that this rising star was once unsure about her appearance.
As a brown Latina whose features didn’t exactly match western media representations of Latines—light olive skin and Eurocentric features—Genai Nakama often felt outcast. “As someone who often did not see myself in those shown on large platforms growing up, I think I went through a long period where I felt very alone. This is especially true coming from a family of diverse cultures,” Nakama tells REMEZCLA.
Nakama grew up in a multicultural home in the East Los Angeles neighborhood of El Sereno. (She’s a fourth-generation American of Japanese and Mexican descent.) Despite not always feeling represented by the industry, she’s still had an affection for beauty and the routines of the generations of women who raised her. As a 7-year-old, Nakama would wake up in the early morning hours before school to play around with her grandmother’s makeup in the bathroom pantry while the adults in the house were still asleep. “I would put on as much as possible without it being super noticeable, but a 7-year-old wearing black liner on her waterline and burgundy lipstick wasn’t exactly discrete,” she reminisces.
The goal is to take up space in industries where brown women have previously not had the same opportunities to hold space.
Now much older, at an age where it’s more socially acceptable to experiment with makeup, Nakama takes great pleasure in her daily beauty ritual (and grandma’s influence is never too far away). Her routine often consists of deciding which shade of brown lip liner best fits her mood. She adorns herself in gold jewelry—nameplate chains and gold hoops not excluded—taking inspiration from the chola aesthetic first forged by Mexican-American youths in Southern California.
In addition to makeup, Nakama is also a self-proclaimed skincare fanatic —a passion she developed after working in the modeling industry. “Being on set, wearing heavy makeup, and working long hours, has made me appreciate the importance of a good, soothing skincare routine,” she says. Her routine consists of Dermalogica’s PreCleanse and Dermalogica’s Intensive Moisture Balance.
Not only has beauty allowed Nakama to showcase her culture by emulating the women who came before her, but it’s also helped her feel more comfortable in her appearance. While before, she was ashamed of the thick dark hair on her face and body she’d inherited (“I remember I used to come home after school and bleach the hair on my face so that it wasn’t as noticeable”), now she accentuates these aspects of herself. “The game was changed when I got the NYX [Professional Makeup The] Brow Glue. I felt that I could accentuate and compliment my brows rather than feel the need to alter them,” she tells REMEZCLA.
As a model and creative, Nakama is on a mission to make sure other young brown Latinas also know that they are beautiful and deserving of the spotlight. As someone who often felt erased by the media, she wants to push the narrative that more than one type of Latine exists by taking up as much space as she can. “The goal is to take up space in industries where brown women have previously not had the same opportunities to hold space. I want to help pave the way for future generations while highlighting my culture along the way and being authentically me.”
Belleza Remix is a Remezcla platform presented by Ulta Beauty that celebrates Latine beauty through the diverse cultures, countries and rituals that make us all unique. Genai’s story is just one of many perspectives of Latinx beauty. Shop Genai’s Beauty Picks below.
