Meghan’s Makeup Artist On The Royal Wedding Moment That ‘Completely Changed The World’
Daniel Martin, the renowned makeup artist responsible for Meghan, Duchess of Sussex’s glowing wedding day look, shared in an interview published yesterday his reflections on attending what would become one of the most-watched royal events in history.
He especially pointed to the particular moment that, for him, signified a great progressive turn in global BIPOC representation.
Speaking to People, Martin openly recalled sitting in St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, where the wedding was held, as a rendition of Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me” by the Kingdom Choir reverberated throughout the chapel walls.
Daniel Martin, the renowned makeup artist responsible for Meghan, Duchess of Sussex’s glowing wedding day look, shared in an interview published yesterday his reflections on attending what would become one of the most-watched royal events in history. He especially pointed to the particular moment that, for him, signified a great progressive turn in global BIPOC representation.
Speaking to People, Martin openly recalled sitting in St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, where the wedding was held, as a rendition of Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me” by the Kingdom Choir reverberated throughout the chapel walls. It was then that the profundity of the moment fully registered: He was at a royal wedding for soon-to-be Duchess Meghan, a woman of color, enjoying gospel music sung by presumably the first Black group to take part in a royal wedding in the institution’s millennial history.
“I just remember being in the church. I was sitting in the back where the choir was at. When they started singing, it literally resonated through our bodies. I remember sitting there and taking it in. ‘Wow, what an incredible opportunity to have such diversity in this particular church,’” said Martin.
The moment marked a groundbreaking milestone, serving to largely undermine the once-unshakeable bounds of archaic, Eurocentric Western tradition notoriously upheld within the British monarchy. “That type of music, those voices had never been sung in that church before,” Martin added. “The centuries of the family, the centuries of people who started in that church or who had services in that church were predominantly Caucasian. And then, here’s this one moment where this harmony of humanity happened—that completely changed the world at that moment.”
As for his own involvement in the wedding, Martin conceded that it had never before occurred to him that he, too, reached a historical milestone for the AAPI community. “My participation in it as an Asian American, I didn’t really think about it. For me, it was just helping my friends feel as beautiful and comfortable on her wedding day,” he said. “I’ve never thought about it in that context … what an incredible opportunity to just let everyone know or just show people, Hey, we are a global society. Anything is possible.”
The renowned makeup artist, who works with the likes of Bella Hadid, Jessica Alba, and Gemma Chan, first met Meghan back in 2011 at the Upfronts in New York City. Martin said that they instantly connected, and he became her go-to for press tours and photo shoots.
Meghan’s sentiments on her relationship with Martin have been nothing short of mutual. In 2014, the duchess wrote endearingly of Martin in her now-defunct beauty blog, The Tig, to which Martin had then been a regular contributor. “Getting dolled up requires hair and makeup. Hair and makeup require a glam team. The best half of that equation is undoubtedly celebrity makeup artist Daniel Martin,” she wrote. “I love this man, and not in that industry way of saying you ‘love’ someone as casually as you order your macchiato. I actually love this guy.”
The two maintained their relationship throughout the years largely via text messaging, which is allegedly how Meghan had also asked Martin—with the inclusion of bridal emojis—to be her makeup artist on her special day. “[Texting]’s how we communicated a lot … and she has the best memes,” Martin shared.
Martin added in his People interview that it’s in large part due to his authentic, personal relationship with Meghan that he doesn’t mind being solely known in association to the Duchess of Sussex. “I’m always going to be Meghan Markle’s makeup artist for the rest of my life. Which is totally fine because we’re friends,” he said. “I think if we didn’t have a personal connection, it would definitely be different.”
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