Christina Aguilera Goes Makeup Free For Photo Shoot, Talks Female Empowerment
Christina Aguilera lays herself bare in the latest issue of Paper Magazine, opting to go makeup-free and open up in a revealing interview.
All 'Stripped' Down Once More
Aguilera, 37, has been in the spotlight since her days in The Mickey Mouse Club in 1993. Since then, her fashion and makeup style have been dynamic from her pop princess midriff-baring look to the gritty "Dirrty" period to her retro-inspired dramatics.
These days, the former The Voice coach is partial to more minimalist hair and makeup, as she showed at the American Music Awards in November 2017.
The Change singer embraces the nude look even more in a photo shoot with Paper Magazine. It's a little jarring to see Aguilera without her signature smoky eyes and bold red lips, but here, she foregoes all the war paint and opts to let her natural beauty shine through.
A post shared by Christina Aguilera (@xtina) on Mar 26, 2018 at 10:59am PDT
In the cover, Aguilera is as natural as she's ever been with her freckles, tousled blonde hair, and soft features all on display and unconcealed.
"I've always been someone that obviously loves to experiment, loves theatrics, loves to create a storyline and play a character in a video or through stage," the award-winning singer tells Paper about her ever-evolving look. "I'm a performer, that's who I am by nature."
"But I'm at the place, even musically, where it's a liberating feeling to be able to strip it all back and appreciate who you are and your raw beauty," Aguilera adds.
Still, don't expect this no-makeup style to stick for very long. After all, if there's one thing the RuPaul's Drag Race guest judge is known for, it's her ever-evolving style.
"I mean, I'm a girl that likes a beat face, let's not get it twisted," she points out good-naturedly.
On Female Empowerment And Young Artists
Aguilera has left her place at the NBC hit reality competition The Voice — a decision rooted in her constant desire "to go explore, be an artist, create, and transform" — but she remains entirely in the know and supportive of young artists in the industry.
The increasingly progressive nature of the entertainment business means that new musicians — especially female musicians — get to make their mark without getting as much flak as Aguilera received for her more provocative exploits in her 2002 album Stripped.
"Either women are not sexual enough or we're not fulfilling enough of a fantasy for you, but then if we're overtly sexual or feeling empowered in a certain kind of way, then we're shamed for it," she recalls how difficult it was to walk the fine line back then.
While Stripped was an iconic part of her career, it's important to note that critics were hard on her attempt to be true to herself at the time. Still, Aguilera brushes off the criticisms and remains proud of her work with "Dirrty" and the rest of the album.
"Madonna had to go through it in her day, and she paved the way for my generation to come up," she points out, advising up-and-comers to always be fearless in breaking boundaries and unafraid of criticism. "And paying it forward, now a younger generation is coming up and I'm loving what I'm seeing. It's so incredible."
