MAC Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 Lipstick and Lipglass

For those who don't already know about MAC's Viva Glam program, it is a series of lip products of which 100% of the entire selling price goes to the MAC AIDS Fund. Since its inception in 1994, there have been six lipstick shades added to the permanent Viva Glam line-up (aptly named Viva Glam I to VI, though IV was discontinued this year), but MAC also appoints celebrities every year to be their Viva Glam ambassadors to help raise HIV/AIDS awareness. Every Viva Glam lip product that has been launched since 2010 has been named after the celebrity ambassador(s) of the year, with Lady Gaga and Cyndi Lauper in 2010, Lady Gaga again in 2011, Nicki Minaj and Ricky Martin in 2012, Nicki Minaj again in 2013, Rihanna twice in 2014, Miley Cyrus twice in 2015, and Ariana Grande twice in 2016. For 2017, MAC has appointed Taraji P. Henson as their Viva Glam ambassador. For those who don't know her, Taraji P. Henson is an actress, author, and singer best known for her roles in Hustle & Flow and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, for which she received an Academy Award nomination. She currently stars in the TV series Empire, for which she won a Golden Globe award. To date, MAC's Viva Glam campaign has raised $450 million globally to help men, women, and children infected and affected by AIDS and HIV.
Tomorrow, we will be seeing the launch of Taraji P. Henson's second Viva Glam lip shades. As usual, Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 will come in both lipstick and lip gloss form. Both are limited edition and will be available for six months going forward (subject to change). As with all MAC lip products, they are vanilla-scented but taste-free. Each Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson Lipstick 2 comes in special edition red packaging with the signature Viva Glam red metal casing and Taraji's signature printed in black around it. Each Lipglass, which has been newly redesigned for 2017, now comes in a larger clear tube with a red cap and Taraji's signature printed in red around it. Each lipstick contains 3 grams of product, and retails for $22. Each Lipglass comes with a doe-foot applicator, contains 3.1 grams of product, and retails for $21. As they are for charity, none of the Viva Glam lip shades are redeemable as free products in the Back to MAC recycling program.
Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 Lipstick
Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 Lipglass
Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 Lipstick and Lipglass

Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 Lipstick is a medium-deep warm copper-bronze with copper pearl in a Frost finish. This is a new and limited edition shade, and will be available for six months going forward. It has a soft and creamy texture, and goes on smoothly and evenly. It has high pigmentation and opaque colour pay-off. It is more brown than "O", more brown and less shimmery than Jupiter, and darker and more brown than Bronze Shimmer.

Viva Glam Taraji P. Henson 2 Lipglass is a medium golden bronze with gold and bronze iridescent micro-shimmer in a glossy finish. This is a new and limited edition shade, and will be available for six months going forward. It has a slightly tacky texture, and it goes on smoothly and evenly. It has medium pigmentation with semi-sheer buildable colour pay-off. It is darker and more bronze than Goldfinch, more golden than Oh Baby, and more golden than Beaux.

Those who love their frosty browns will love Taraji's second Viva Glam lipstick shade — it gives off a Soul Train meets early '90s vibe. It won't appeal to everybody, but it is widely flattering and very wearable; it'll be a gorgeous dark bronze on fairer skintones and a stunning pearly nude on darker skintones. MAC discontinued all of their brown frosted lipsticks over the years, including shades like Shag, Shitake, Coconutty, Chintz, and Fetish, so this shade fills the void that is now in MAC's permanent lipstick range — there's no real dupe for Viva Glam Taraji 2. But now that metallic lips are having a moment, this shade is really on-trend right now. It's a classy, modern shade, and definitely representative of Taraji P. Henson herself. This launch also sees a Lipglass that complements the lipstick. However, the Lipglass has a much stronger yellow/gold base so it will generally flatter those with warmer undertones  — if worn alone, it can make those with pink undertones look sallow. Either way, the sparkly finish and semi-opaque colour pay-off does offer a different look on its own while also looking gorgeous layered on top of the lipstick; it's also a great option if you're looking to make a lipstick look warmer.
While this is not Taraji's first collaboration with MAC (they had an online exclusive collection last year that sold out within hours), it feels like MAC went a completely different direction with picking her as this year's Viva Glam ambassador — and definitely not in a bad way. Since 2010, they've picked controversial musicians for their Viva Glam campaigns (e.g. Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande, etc.), but they've gone a different route with Taraji P. Henson, who is first and foremost recognized for her acting career. She's not as well-known as the aforementioned celebrities, but is widely respected for her work and has received many accolades for it. She has made it known that this cause is near and dear to her, and I think her passion and integrity makes her one of the perfect celebrities to spearhead the Viva Glam campaign. The MAC AIDS Fund is one of the most effective charities I have ever seen a cosmetics company identify with, and it still blows my mind that MAC helps this charity on a daily, on-going basis with their Viva Glam program. Not only that, but they don't just donate a portion or the proceeds to this cause — it's 100% of the selling price of any Viva Glam product. This is a really worthy cause, so if you're not personally a fan of these, it's worth checking out any of the other Viva Glam shades that may be more wearable or flattering on you.