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Why Jeffree Star's viewers are left cold by his new 'apology video'

Why Jeffree Star's viewers are left cold by his new 'apology video'

Influencer extraordinaire and make-up mogul Jeffree Star has finally sat down on his giant gold crushed velvet tufted couch to address the unprecedented level of drama swirling around him for the past weeks.

The new video, released last night, was Star's first since the controversy around him and BFF Shane Dawson kicked off again and they started to get called out for a slew of problematic past behaviour.

Conversation around Star and Dawson heightened last month when fellow YouTuber Tati Westbrook released an explosive video accusing them of "manipulating" her into filming her 2019 video "Bye Sister", which led to the (brief) cancellation of controversial YouTuber James Charles.

(We know this is a little confusing, here's a complete lowdown of what went down, if you want to catch up.)

Star has been uncharacteristically silent throughout the whole debacle, and fans and detractors alike were wondering when he might return.

It had got to the point where he had no choice but to address the accusations made against him, and the resurfaced content people were calling him out for.

In a 10-minute video entitled "Doing What's Right", Star speaks about the allegations, saying:

I didn't try to take anyone down, I'm not a villain in a movie, this isn't a Netflix series with a crazy storyline. I know it sounds like it and trust me I'm sure I'd watch it as well, but this is my real life and a lot of things that are happening and being said are false.

Star also reiterated his previous commitment to staying out of drama, saying he wouldn't be revealing any receipts, and that he was speaking to lawyers about any further action.

In relation to other influencers, Star said he was sticking by Dawson, and that although the two of them didn't approve of each other's past behaviour, they would remain friends.

He also apologised to James Charles, saying:

If I was really close with someone I should have had the ability to just call them and ask and say 'hey, these were the things that were being said to me'. Instead I didn't. I let people really gas me up, get me going behind the scenes and I really fell for a lot of things and I got caught up in the hype.

It's disgusting, it's awful and none of it should have happened.

In one segment, he speaks about the Black Lives Matter movement, saying that given everything that's going on in the world, YouTube drama doesn't seem like it should be a priority.

While in principle people agreed, others were angry at what they deemed an example of someone using tragic deaths to detract from their own shortcomings.

Especially since he didn't link to any resources or highlight any ways he's attempting to effect real change.

And in general, people didn't think Star was taking the accusations levelled against him seriously enough.

People were also unimpressed that he used the opportunity to tease an upcoming product launch.

Aside from linking to the video, Star's only further interactions with fans are a tweet saying "Hi, how are ya?" and a series of pictures (mostly of his dogs and make-up products) uploaded to Insta stories.

Shane Dawson has yet to publicly comment on the video.

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