Why Manny MUA Dove Headlong Into the Divisive Vaccine Debate

It’s not every day you're asked to collaborate with the president. For beauty entrepreneur Manny Gutierrez—known as Manny MUA—that day came this spring when President Joe Biden’s team sought him out to shoot a video with the president and his chief medical adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci, about Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy. “I was so shocked—the president knows who I am?” Gutierrez, Adweek's Digital Creator of the Year, says. “But I believe in science. I believe in the work. I was excited to get people more knowledge about the vaccine.” Gutierrez, who is vaccinated against Covid-19, states several times in the YouTube video that resulted from the collab that he’s not pushing people to get a shot, but that he wants to arm those on the fence with more information. “Baby, if you’re going to be a strict anti-vaxxer, my video with Biden is not going to change that,” he says. In the 10-minute video with Biden, Gutierrez quizzes the president on everything from the latest plans for a vaccine passport to what beauty product Biden would take on a desert island (answer: sunscreen). “So you know something's good up there in his head," Gutierrez tells Adweek. If I don’t have time or I don’t like the product, I won’t do the sponsorship. You have to be honest with the audience.Manny MUA In a bid to reach younger audiences who are hesitant about getting the vaccine, the president hosted virtual town halls with other influential creators that month, but the White House tapped Gutierrez for his broad appeal. With 4.8 million YouTube subscribers, over 4.1 million Instagram followers and 1.3 million on TikTok, Gutierrez's likability comes across in his quick-talking videos in which he tests products, delivers tutorials and riffs with other creators on beauty and beyond. But the video with Biden and Fauci taps into some of Gutierrez's interests beyond a sense of social obligation: Were he not creating content, he says, he'd “probably work in the medical field.” Polarizing topics Born Manuel Gutierrez Jr. in 1991 in California, Gutierrez started posting YouTube makeup videos in 2014, gaining pace while working at Sephora. In 2017, he was named the first male brand ambassador for Maybelline. In 2015, he made the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, before launching cosmetics brand Lunar Beauty for men, women and everyone in between. He’s endorsed products for Clinique, ASOS and Estée Lauder. But there have been "dramageddons," as the beauty creator industry terms them. In 2018, Gutierrez was canceled following a rift with other YouTube creators, lost thousands of followers and hit pause on social media for a while. But choosing to join the discussion on vaccines, which is proving to be a hot-button, divisive issue, exposes any creator to another level of online hostility. Case in point: The video with Biden, with over 560,000 views, spurred support as well as vitriol, reflecting the polarizing nature and misaligned incentives of a lot of tech platforms. On YouTube, the video has more dislikes than likes (33,000 to 24,000). A scroll through the 12,500 comments shows why Gutierrez stopped reading them after the first day. Many are paranoid, with assertions of propaganda and negative vaccine side effects, alongside a sprinkling of congratulations. Yet, he says, he would do it again. More than ever, internet platforms amplify shady corners of the human experience. Facebook faces more regulatory heat than ever since The Wall Street Journal’s Facebook Files series alleged the social network prioritizes profits over people's safety, pointing to Instagram’s assault on mental health and Facebook’s threat to democracy domestically and abroad. Building a career creating content on digital platforms and tackling polarizing issues like vaccine hesitancy with the president takes a thick skin—or a full face of makeup. “I was definitely nervous [about speaking with Biden], but in that setting, if I am glam, I know I can make it happen,” says Gutierrez. “I can turn it on, I’m in the zone. It’s like a little force. Getting to play with makeup gives you that freedom; it’s fun.” Teaching glam Letting other people tap into that force sparked Gutierrez’s success and spurred philanthropic projects. Pre-pandemic, he ran an in-person makeup tutorial for young homeless LGBTQ+ people for the Los Angeles LGBT Center. This year, he gave virtual makeup tutorials for U.S. women in the military deployed overseas as part of a project with the charity United Service Organizations. “They don’t have time to focus on themselves when they’re so focused on defending the country,” he says. “People who are constantly helping others, being able to give them some attention and help them feel more beautiful is really cool to me.” Gutierrez views the future of Covid-19 vaccine rates with optimism and a dash of realism. People will have their own opinions; as long as they’re given the best resources—free vaccines, free Uber rides to centers, access to as much information as possible—there’s only so much a president can do, he believes. Otherwise, Gutierrez's day is taken up with podcast recordings, shooting videos for social media and Lunar Beauty, plus appearances on Netflix’s Glow Up: Britain's Next Makeup Star, Disney+’s The World According to Jeff Goldblum and NBC’s The Kelly Clarkson Show. Currently, he stars as host and mentor in the Snap Original series Coming Out. Next up are Halloween and holiday-focused product launches for Lunar Beauty, so for Gutierrez, preserving energy comes at a premium. “Oh, I say no all the time,” he says. “I used to really be a people pleaser, but I have to protect my energy and my time. If I don’t have time or I don’t like the product, I won’t do the sponsorship. You have to be honest with the audience.” Check out the rest of the 2021 Hot List here.

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Why Manny MUA Dove Headlong Into the Divisive Vaccine Debate, at the Urging of the President

Adweek's Digital Creator of the Year is on a mission to spread the science behind Covid vaccination

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