Dressed in a soft pink sweater that matches the pink logo of cosmetic brand Benefit, the 17-year-old Bretman Rock sat on a pink-painted chair, surrounded by cameras and a captivated audience of journalists.
Bretman’s brash voice that we’ve come to love from his viral videos was missing, replaced instead by a relaxed timbre. If we weren’t two feet away from him, his voice would’ve been drowned out by the hordes of screaming fans outside Benefit’s SM Megamall boutique.
At this meet-and-greet, the young star kept himself hydrated by drinking a popular brand of iced tea. Several bottles lay on the table, except that its labels were torn off to ensure that he wouldn’t inadvertently endorse the brand—and with good reason, given his immense social media influence.
Born in the Philippines, Bretman moved to Hawaii and eventually rose to fame when his hilarious makeup tutorials started making their way around the Internet.
(READ: Six degrees of separation from Bretman Rock)
His blend of real techniques, NSFW language, exaggerated facial expressions, wisecracks and charm led him to amass nearly 5 million followers on Instagram.
His YouTube videos have over a million views and he reportedly gets paid $5,000 for a sponsored post. He casually
direct messages other celebrities like Zendaya and Ariana Grande.
Named by his father after two wrestlers (Bret Hart and The Rock), Bretman may be a nobody in sports, but he’s definitely a social media heavyweight.
Inquirer Super met him at the Benefit event for a brief Q&A, Bretman speaking in Ilocano in some parts. (Watch the video HERE.)
How old were you when you migrated to Hawaii?
I left Cagayan when I was seven years old.
Have you always been into makeup?
I got into makeup a little less than a year ago, like nine months. I guess I’m a natural at it. I just watched YouTube videos.
You got into makeup application pretty quickly. Are you good at drawing as well?
I don’t draw. Maybe stick figures.
When did you realize this could be a career for you?
I still don’t. I’m just taking it day by day, I don’t like planning ahead ’cause I don’t wanna jinx myself and I still don’t think it’s a career for me even though it pays. I feel like, when you’re having too much fun at your job, it’s not really a career… I think of it more as a “just for now” kind of thing.
My dream job, to be honest… I always thought I was going to be behind the camera. I thought I would be dressing up artistas, but now I’m the one being dressed, now I have my own stylist. It’s so weird.
How similar or different are you from Bretman Rock on cam?
I like to think of it more like an alter ego. If you meet Bretman Rock, you’re not going to meet the Instagram Bretman Rock, you’re going to meet the more timid, calmer Bretman Rock, yeah.
So you don’t really hit your sister?
Ummmm…
Is your mom really like that in real life?
Yeah, she’s like that, even off-camera. Ilocano moms, yeah.
How did your partnership with Benefit happen?
I’ve always been using Benefit. Benefit’s Gimme Brow is actually one of my first brow products… I didn’t really wanna do anything dramatic to my brows because they were already thick. Gimme Brow just thickens them a little bit more, so I fell in love with it. We contacted each other and fell in love with each other. I was going to meet the Philippine team when I was at Benefit’s San Francisco headquarters but I was there only for a day.
What was your first makeup purchase?
I’m pretty sure it was an eyebrow product, too—powder
—but then I used it only once because the shade was too light for me. That was my first-ever makeup purchase from the drugstore.
How did you get into makeup?
It all kind of happened by accident. I was going through a phase in which I made my eyebrows thin, and then I went through another phase where I thought I was a gangster, so I plucked a line through my brows. I did that and I over-plucked them, and then I was like, “Oh God, I’m a hot mess.”
I was in the third grade then, my mom thought I was crazy, but I was like, “Oh God, I need to fix this,” and I used a marker at first. I borrowed my mom’s makeup bag and used mascara to fill it in, and that was my first-ever experience with makeup.
If you could put makeup only on one part of your face, which would you choose and why?
Oh my gosh. Why would you ask me that? Probably my eyebrows, because they’re the frames of your face, they’re what give you expression. If you didn’t have brows and you were mad, no one would know it.
Are you planning to pursue a showbiz career in the Philippines?
I want to, now. Oh my goodness, I was never treated like this in Hawaii. I love the fans here, I feel like I’m best friends with everyone, I feel so close to them. I’m not saying I’m not close with my fans in Hawaii, but everyone’s so heartwarming here and they really know Bretman Rock.
Showbiz is definitely an option. I don’t really wanna choose between the United States and the Philippines. Whichever gets me first. So, Star Cinema, Dreamworks, I wanna do a movie. Or a teleserye, how cool would that be? Actually, I was going to do “Maalaala Mo Kaya,” but I said my life is not interesting enough. I’m still young, my life has just started, so I don’t have a story yet. No pancit story! (He’s referring to his popular video where he pretends to act out the overused pancit scene in Pinoy dramas.—Ed.)
I was on “It’s Showtime” and it was so fun. But I wish Ate Anne (Curtis) and Ate Vice (Ganda) were there. I met Ate Anne after, she was so cool and perfect. I hope to meet Ate Vice, too. I’ll be back in May and December.
What was the craziest thing a fan has done to get your attention?
I was swimming once in the beach in Hawaii… in the middle of the ocean this girl came up to me and she didn’t have a waterproof case or anything for her phone.
She started swimming toward me with her phone out and she asked if we could take a selfie. And I was like, “Of course!” I couldn’t say no to that because she swam towards me. I was like, “Girl, you are crazy!” She was really cool, but she couldn’t wait for me to get out of the water.
Were you wearing makeup while you were swimming?
I had my eyebrows on. I always have my eyebrows on. Even when I’m showering, they’re on. I was born with drawn-on eyebrows.