Michelle Wolf on Freckles, Curls and Putting Your Foot in Your Mouth
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah contributor, who recently celebrated the premiere of her first HBO comedy special, discusses freckles, curls and putting your foot in your mouth.
Photo: NBC/Getty Images
Q: You've talked about how people have assumed you're African American even though you're white—do you get that a lot?
A: I didn't until I moved to New York. I think it was actually a pickup line once. But even now on some of my Instagram posts, people will ask, "Are you black or white?"
Q: Do you feel awkward about answering?
A: The more we're open to talking about race, the better. A lot of white people shy away from discussing it, but we need to. I think a lot of us are just ignorant, and sometimes there's no other way to learn than by putting your own foot in your mouth.
Q: You also get a lot of comments from Daily Show viewers about your hair. Why do you think that is?
A: Red hair isn't all that common, and I think it's still a big deal for people to see other people with curly, natural hair on TV. When I was growing up, there weren't a lot of redheads on television. I had Annie. And I was a big fan of the show Felicity with Keri Russell, who had curly hair. All my friends had straight hair. My mom has straight hair. No one really knew what to do with mine.
Q: Do you ever straighten it?
A: I have, and people say, "Oh my God, that looks so good." And I'm like, "Well...curly is okay, too." I know it's a superficial thing, but I do feel like my hair kind of goes with my personality.
Q: What would you say the curly redhead personality is?
A: Bubbly, fiery, fun—and a little crazy.
Q: What's your haircare routine?
A: I'm still working on it. Thank God for black women doing YouTube videos because there aren't many white people online showing you how to deal with curly hair. I love the Cantu Shea Butter Curling Cream, which I found in a Walmart in Kansas when I was on the road.
Q: You have freckles, too, which are having a moment. Did you always embrace yours?
A: I usually forget I have them—but I don't want to cover them up with foundation. I mostly just use bronzers and highlighters. My face looks weird if you can't see my freckles. A girl in school once told me she could feel them when she touched my face, which made me feel weird. But then she got acne, so...
Q: As a woman, do you feel pressure to talk about beauty and your appearance in your stand-up?
A: No, it's just naturally part of my life. This whole trend on social media—women of every shape and size posting pictures, talking about how they're confident—that's great, but it's still focusing on how we look rather than on our abilities. If you need to feel beautiful, super. I hope you do. But also, let's get good at math. Let's become computer scientists. Even though it's nice that we're heading in the everyone-is-beautiful direction, I wonder, do we really need to be beautiful at all?
From top left, clockwise:
1. Wolf prefers highlighters and bronzers. When she wears foundation, though, she blends two blends on her tough-to-match skin. She mixes Dior Airflash Spray Foundation in Medium Beige and Honey Beige, $62 each; Dior.com.
2. Mixed Chicks Leave-In Conditioner, $17; MixedChicks.net
3. Cantu Coconut Curling Cream, $6; Target.com
4. Lancôme Dual Finish Highlighter in Sparkling Pêche, $39.50; Lancome-USA.com
5. Wolf loves the Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer, $18; Sephora.com.
6. Charlotte Tilbury Beach Stick in Ibiza, $45; CharlotteTilbury.com
A: I didn't until I moved to New York. I think it was actually a pickup line once. But even now on some of my Instagram posts, people will ask, "Are you black or white?"
Q: Do you feel awkward about answering?
A: The more we're open to talking about race, the better. A lot of white people shy away from discussing it, but we need to. I think a lot of us are just ignorant, and sometimes there's no other way to learn than by putting your own foot in your mouth.
Q: You also get a lot of comments from Daily Show viewers about your hair. Why do you think that is?
A: Red hair isn't all that common, and I think it's still a big deal for people to see other people with curly, natural hair on TV. When I was growing up, there weren't a lot of redheads on television. I had Annie. And I was a big fan of the show Felicity with Keri Russell, who had curly hair. All my friends had straight hair. My mom has straight hair. No one really knew what to do with mine.
Q: Do you ever straighten it?
A: I have, and people say, "Oh my God, that looks so good." And I'm like, "Well...curly is okay, too." I know it's a superficial thing, but I do feel like my hair kind of goes with my personality.
Q: What would you say the curly redhead personality is?
A: Bubbly, fiery, fun—and a little crazy.
Q: What's your haircare routine?
A: I'm still working on it. Thank God for black women doing YouTube videos because there aren't many white people online showing you how to deal with curly hair. I love the Cantu Shea Butter Curling Cream, which I found in a Walmart in Kansas when I was on the road.
Q: You have freckles, too, which are having a moment. Did you always embrace yours?
A: I usually forget I have them—but I don't want to cover them up with foundation. I mostly just use bronzers and highlighters. My face looks weird if you can't see my freckles. A girl in school once told me she could feel them when she touched my face, which made me feel weird. But then she got acne, so...
Q: As a woman, do you feel pressure to talk about beauty and your appearance in your stand-up?
A: No, it's just naturally part of my life. This whole trend on social media—women of every shape and size posting pictures, talking about how they're confident—that's great, but it's still focusing on how we look rather than on our abilities. If you need to feel beautiful, super. I hope you do. But also, let's get good at math. Let's become computer scientists. Even though it's nice that we're heading in the everyone-is-beautiful direction, I wonder, do we really need to be beautiful at all?
From top left, clockwise:
1. Wolf prefers highlighters and bronzers. When she wears foundation, though, she blends two blends on her tough-to-match skin. She mixes Dior Airflash Spray Foundation in Medium Beige and Honey Beige, $62 each; Dior.com.
2. Mixed Chicks Leave-In Conditioner, $17; MixedChicks.net
3. Cantu Coconut Curling Cream, $6; Target.com
4. Lancôme Dual Finish Highlighter in Sparkling Pêche, $39.50; Lancome-USA.com
5. Wolf loves the Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer, $18; Sephora.com.
6. Charlotte Tilbury Beach Stick in Ibiza, $45; CharlotteTilbury.com
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