Derek Chadwick of Messy White Gays Reveals His Secret to a Stage-Ready Glow

Derek Chadwick’s life has come full circle. He’s back in his hometown of New York for Messy White Gays, his off-Broadway debut, and the 30-year-old has linked back up with Urban Outfitters, the brand that gave him his first modeling gig, now as a partner through his inclusive beauty line, Chaddy. “Everything just feels so surreal right now,” he says. Chadwick rarely has a moment to rest, but his glowing skin would suggest otherwise. Whether he’s hopping on a call with Interview an hour before his show’s opening or conceiving of new beauty products, the Scream Queens hunk remains fully booked. “Whatever makes me feel confident, I want to pass that along to other people,” he told us in this week’s installment of Face Card, where he sounded off on everything from lip plumpers to tanning water, L.A. to New York, and even his bygone dreams of becoming a chemist.

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DEREK CHADWICK: Sorry, this has been such a crazy, crazy day. Thank you so much for your patience.

KENNEDY ENLOWSMITH: Of course, no worries. I know Messy White Gays is just opening. How’s that been going for you?

CHADWICK: Oh my god, it’s been so fun. It’s such a different experience for me, because I’ve never done theater. We opened previews this week. 

ENLOWSMITH: That’s awesome. So, this is a column called Face Card, where we’ll focus on beauty. So, I was wondering if you could walk me through your skincare routine. What products do you use on a daily basis?

CHADWICK: I’m really, really simple with things. I use the Neutrogena foam cleanser, and then I use the Oxygenetix moisturizer. It’s so good, it literally supplies your skin with oxygen throughout the day, and lets it breathe. Then I use the Bioassance eye cream, the Niacinamide one, because it has clean ingredients and it’s very simple. And I use an AHA/BHA from Drunk Elephant every other night.

ENLOWSMITH: Awesome. I know you also have your own brand as well.

CHADWICK: Right.

ENLOWSMITH: I saw that you started the brand to be inclusive of everyone, regardless of gender, and to challenge beauty norms. I’m wondering, what does an inclusive brand mean to you?

CHADWICK: I wanted to make a brand that anyone would feel comfortable using. That’s why we started off with one lip product. I always personally felt really confident when my lips were bigger at events, and doing red carpets. But I hated how dry and sticky they left my lips. My lips would dry out so bad, and I’d always have to take another moisturizing lip product with me. So that’s how I came up with the first product, the Chaddy Matte Lip Plumper. 

ENLOWSMITH: I know for a lot of men it can be hard to get into beauty. How has being openly queer influenced your experience in building your brand?

CHADWICK: I would say it influenced the brand by me not being scared, I guess. To post about beauty, because I just didn’t care. Whatever makes me feel confident, I want to pass that along to other people. When the brand first launched, we had a lot of LGBT people come in. But so many straight guys will reach out to me and be like, “Hey, I feel insecure about my lips. I’m wondering, does this product actually work? And how does it work?” I honestly love that because it’s been opening it up to beyond what I think people initially thought or even that I thought it would be.

ENLOWSMITH: Totally. I know you have modeling and acting experience, as well. Do you feel like that has shaped your desire to create your own business, or your approach to beauty?

CHADWICK: Again, it’s all about what is going to make you feel comfortable in these uncomfortable situations. It doesn’t feel like, “Oh, my God, a lip product’s really going to change my demeanor,” but you really underestimate when you have a really good hair day, or when your lips look really good, or you feel really tan, or you feel sun-kissed… Those are the best days for me. I wanted to recreate that for people.

ENLOWSMITH: Totally. On that note, what tips would you give to men who want to get into makeup but don’t know where to start? 

CHADWICK: I would say the best thing to start with is brow gel. Every guy should always have brow gel, regardless of their sexual preferences. I feel like a bronzing stick–one that you can highlight your jaw, your cheekbones, your nose, and maybe a little bit above your lip–is very important. Obviously, a good moisturizer. And a little concealer under the eyes goes a long way.

ENLOWSMITH: Awesome. Do you have any current favorite beauty influencers that you feel inspired by or that you’ve learned from?

CHADWICK: Patrick Ta has always been a muse to me. I love seeing how he’s grown his brand over the last 10 years. Being around him and that energy was extremely motivating in starting the brand, and coming up with new ideas, new flavors. I saw how hard he worked, and it made me want to work even harder to get to the level he’s at.

ENLOWSMITH: He’s great. I know you mentioned the Tanning Water product earlier. What was the process behind creating it?

CHADWICK: I wanted something that was going to be extremely light and almost refreshing when you put it on, and something that was a fun experience to use. I’d seen a lot of other tanning foams, but the Tanning Water is so unique because it’s very lightweight. You can either moisturize first, or you mix the drops with your moisturizer. I prefer to moisturize first and then use it, because I feel like it helps not get into the creases of your face. And you only need a tiny amount. You just pat it on your face, and it gets such even coverage. We wanted to make sure that it was acne-safe and had really clean ingredients. We also added other stuff that also helps brighten your complexion, so that it’s not just tanning you, but it also will help smooth your texture. 

ENLOWSMITH: What’s the process of making the formulas for these products?

CHADWICK: So we start with an idea at Chaddy, and then we bring it to the chemists. They’re honestly amazing and so smart. We keep working with them until we get to a place where we’re like, “Oh, this is great.” They’ll give us the first sample, and then we keep honing in on it until it’s perfect. But I cannot speak highly enough about the chemists. If I could go back in time, I would become a chemist.

ENLOWSMITH: That’s so cool. I wanted to ask about trends. I know a lot of guys have been posting a lot about looksmaxxing. What are your thoughts on that?

CHADWICK: I’m all about looksmaxxing. I feel like you got to experiment. Recently, I was trying out a mustache. I can grow a beard, but I prefer to be clean-shaven, because I feel like it accentuates my jaw better. And my hair was long recently, and I loved it. I didn’t realize that my hair texture was really curly. But then one day I woke up and was like, “I need a break.” So I buzz cut it, and regretted it instantly. It’s crazy how a haircut can completely change the way that you look.

ENLOWSMITH: Yeah. I think the buzz cut looks great, though.

CHADWICK: Thank you. 

ENLOWSMITH: Also, I wanted to get your thoughts on some of your other favorite products. Do you have a current favorite fragrance?

CHADWICK: I love Le Labo. I hate to give them that, but I love Santal 33. I like Santal the best because it smells completely different on every single person, because it blends with your pheromones. People don’t even know that that’s the scent that I’m wearing.

ENLOWSMITH: Yeah. I feel like subtle scents are so much nicer than something that’s in your face. I was wondering, is there a skincare trend that you can’t stand right now?

CHADWICK: I think when people don’t wear sunscreen. I feel like people should always wear sunscreen because they underestimate the sun. Even in New York, where it’s hidden by the buildings.

ENLOWSMITH: Totally. I was wondering what your thoughts are on morning shedding?

CHADWICK: Wait, what is that?

ENLOWSMITH: It’s like where you put a bunch of products on your face and sleep in it and then shed it in the morning.

CHADWICK: I did not know that that’s what that was called, but I do that automatically in L.A. I will wash, and then use the moisturizer with the AHA/BHA, and then lock it in with face oil. Sometimes I’ll even use petroleum to lock it in. In L.A., Glass Skin is the best skin ever. I’m too scared to do that here in New York right now. Maybe around Thanksgiving, I’ll try. 

ENLOWSMITH: I feel like you have to have such tough skin to be in New York because it’s rough out here.

CHADWICK: Honestly, I’m definitely always double cleansing here, because it’s so dirty. 

ENLOWSMITH: Totally. As it’s getting colder, what are your winter beauty trend predictions? 

CHADWICK: I probably will start using face oil again. People underestimate face oil, and I think they’re really scared of it. But squalene oil won’t clog your pores, because your skin already naturally makes it. That’s really great to layer at the very end, on top of your moisturizer.

ENLOWSMITH: Totally. Thank you so much for speaking with me and taking the time out of your day. I know you’ve been super busy with the show coming up.

CHADWICK: I know. Thank you. I know it’s 6:30, it’s like 7:00 right now. I’m about to go on stage.

ENLOWSMITH: Whoa. Well, good luck.

CHADWICK: Thank you so much.