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Ari Kytsya has 4.6 million followers on her primary TikTok account (@notburnttoasthehe) and another 2.4 million on her main Instagram account. She has various secondary accounts where she cumulatively has millions more followers, too. She posts lots of things other big-time creators do, including trending dances, get-ready-with-me videos and posts of her hanging out with her boyfriend — who happens to be the rapper Yung Gravy. But she also posts looks inside her life as a “bop,” or a “mattress actress,” also known as an adult film star.
When it was announced through TikTok and Instagram posts on both Kytsya and the brand’s pages that she was partnering with the 29-year-old makeup brand Urban Decay, the comments, for the most part, embraced the collaboration.
On TikTok, Kytsya’s post featuring the campaign — where she declares that we are in a “blandemic,” plagued by boring makeup — has 5 million views and over 206,000 likes. A comment declaring “FINALLY BRANDS WORKING WITH ARI OMG” has over 40,000 likes. Another says, “Honestly this is such a huge deal for SW’s. MASSIVE pull, Ari!! Major freaking deal.” Another: “this is epic for feminism.” And many commenters have stated their plans to buy Urban Decay for the first time in 15 years. Of course, not everyone is stoked. “No more Urban Decay for my daughters. Thanks,” one commenter wrote. But, they must have missed the fact that, back in 2023, the brand, which has always leaned into edginess, tapped Chloe Cherry, a former adult film star, to front the campaign for its Vice Lip Bond Backtalk collection.
“Our love for Ari came from the transparency with which she shares her place in the industry,” said Anika Majithia, Urban Decay’s global gm. “She’s so open with her audience about the realities, the joys, the risks and the downsides of her industry, and it’s really those values of expression, femininity, true authenticity and being a girl’s girl that stuck out to me.” Plus, rather than her job, Majithia said, “We knew her more for being a makeup idol with a super unique look.” Kytsya’s lips, in particular, have spawned many recreation videos on TikTok.
For Kytsya’s part, she said she didn’t think the outreach from Urban Decay was real — which is not surprising: She often starts PR unboxing hauls by saying, “So, brands never work with me cuz I’m a mattress actress.” But in her most recent post, she says, “But Urban Decay took one for the team. … We’re in a revolution! The industry girls are finally getting recognized!”
“At the end of the day, we are just girls. We’re just real people. And, I am still just a regular content creator,” Kytsya told Glossy. “There’s so much space for girls in the [adult film] industry to work with brands, because we’re probably some of the realest people out there.”
When asked if she received pushback for casting Kytsya, Majithia said it was her call to make. “We thought it through and decided she was the perfect person,” she said.
The concept for Kytsya’s campaign was developed internally by Urban Decay’s four-woman social team. “My team came to me with this vision of battling the bland through Ari,” Majithia said. The brand’s Instagram bio currently reads, “anti-bland makeup. born to perform. built in LA.”
“The idea was to nod to this idea of censorship — which is very real at the moment, across a few industries — [and to speak to] who gets a seat at the table in makeup conversations,” she said.
Kytsya, however, is just the beginning of a new chapter for Urban Decay.
It’s a pivotal moment for the brand, which, in recent years, has been overshadowed by newer makeup players — think Saie, Makeup by Mario and Danessa Myricks. But it has also had some major hits, such as its viral, 10-year-old Space Cowboy eyeshadow. The brand just unveiled a new logo, which can already be seen on its website. In August, a new Urban Decay gondola will hit 300 Sephora doors. Majithia called it a “modern expression of the brand.” Urban Decay has been owned by L’Oréal since 2012. For her part, Majithia joined last September, having been at fellow L’Oréal brand, NYX Professional Makeup.
A true shift, however, will come in 2026, Majithia said. This will be seen primarily through the products the brand releases next year. The brand will sunset certain existing products, and the focus will be on new launches and bringing back old icons.
But first, Urban Decay is taking a risk. Next week, the brand will relaunch its bestselling All Nighter Setting Spray, which is currently, the #1 Setting Spray in America, with one sold every 15 seconds, according to Circana data. Changing the formula of a bestseller always has the potential to upset loyal fans, but Majithia said the brand’s testing period ahead of making the change has left her feeling assured.
“In a study we did, thankfully, 100% of our current consumers said they felt even better about the new formula, which gave us confidence to go ahead,” she said.
The new formula provides a 22% finer mist, increases wear from 16 hours to 24 hours, and has a cooling effect, reducing the skin’s temperature by 3 degrees on contact. It will be available in three finishes — natural (the OG), matte and glow. Interestingly, the new version is also $2 cheaper than the original, at $34, versus $36.
“Over the years, lots of new setting sprays have come out. So we wanted to challenge ourselves to say that we are still the best. We have to stay the best,” Majithia said. Tara Yummy (3.2 million Instagram followers and 9.7 million TikTok followers) has been tapped as the face of the new All Nighter Setting Spray. “She puts self expression first. She’s so unfiltered and so real in everything she does. And she’s a party girl,” Majithia of the choice.
The brand will also bring back Gash — a red, sparkly eyeshadow — early next year. “Our community was begging for it,” Majithia said.
Right now, the brand is also gearing up for the release of a new iteration of its Naked palettes. They will not replace the original, famous ones, but they do represent an introduction to the new Urban Decay.
On Tuesday, images of the two new palettes were leaked by the popular beauty Instagram account @trendmood1, which has 1.8 million followers. Commenters were disappointed. One said, “Im sorry but they just posted about how makeup is too boring and not colorful……………….wheeeet??????? 🐈🐟🐟” The brand quickly issued a response, addressing the feedback head-on with an in-feed post. “We called out the bland — and we mean it. Here’s an uncensored look at what’s next from UD.”
Gash is teased in the post, and commenters are picking up on its return, with one writing, “ARE YOU BRINGING GASH BACK FROM THE DEAD?!!! IN THE YEAR 2026?? SOMEONE TELL MY MOM IT WASNT A PHASE AND I STILL LOVE GERARD WAY.”
On top of all of this, on July 14, Urban Decay introduced Lochie Stonehouse as its new Resident Global Makeup Artist. Stonehouse has 29,000 Instagram followers and counts Lorde, Billie Eilish and Troye Sivan as clients.
“[Urban Decay] is about self-expression and authenticity, but through the lens of uncensored femininity and all the various forms that can take,” Majithia said. “And there are a lot more exciting stories that we want to tell with very different people across the broad spectrum of femininity.”
Collabs of the week:
Sonsie Skin x Lorna Murray
Inspired by imagery from co-owner Pamela Anderson’s Architectural Digest shoot, Sonsie Skin has joined with hat company Lorna Murray on a co-branded sun hat.
“When my mom wore the Lorna Murray hat in her Architectural Digest shoot, we knew we had to create one of our own,” said Dylan Lee, Sonsie’s chief brand officer and Anderson’s son. “Protecting your skin, whether you’re in the garden, at the beach or just out on a daily walk, is so important.”
“It was so fun to create such a cute Sonsie sun hat with Lorna,” Anderson told Glossy. “It’s cheeky and beautiful, and rolls up tightly to go in a bag or suitcase without getting ruined. It’s practical and can be worn a few ways, and it has personality. It’s my new favorite.”
The hat is $165 and available on sonsieskin.com.
Cocolab x Oishii
Cocolab, known for its fun-flavored floss, has teamed with Oishii, known for its extremely expensive strawberries. At $22, the collaborative product — a toothpaste in the flavor Berry Jam Cocoshine — is, in fact, more affordable than a larger case of Oishii strawberries.
“People often associate good-for-you oral care with being weird or bland,” said Cocolab founder and dentist Dr. Chrystle Cu. “But we set out to make it a joyful, dare I say, exciting part of your everyday ritual. It was important that our nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste included everything that I, as a dentist, would look for — while still tasting irresistible.”
“And, for our juicy strawberry flavor, who better to partner with than Oishii?” she added, noting that “Oishii” means “yummy” in Japanese.
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