Jamal Kendall Is Helping Deeper Skin Tones Find Beauty On A Budget

Finding affordable beauty products is one thing. Finding affordable products that actually work for melanated skin tones can be another.

That’s where beauty influencer Jamal Kendall comes in.

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With more than 200K followers across TikTok and Instagram, Kendall has built an online community around making it easy for beauty lovers to find products without having to pay top prices.accessible. His videos take us through his beauty hauls as he searches the aisles of drugstore and low-cost retailers for products that deliver on deeper complexions.

Whether he’s helping beginners learn how to beat their face or sharing products that can give skin a glass-like finish, with or without a full face of makeup, Kendall keeps dark melanin skin at the center of the conversation.

Sadiaa Black Beauty Guide caught up with Kendall at Black Beauty Roster 2026 Beauty Show to talk about what Black beauty means to him, what consumers should expect from brands and where makeup beginners should start.

For Kendall, Black beauty begins with representation.

“Black beauty just really means representing and celebrating all different types of skin tones, all different skin types, and really just keeping inclusivity at the forefront,” explained Kendall.

It wasn’t that long ago that Black consumers regularly struggled with products that left our deeper skin tones looking ashy, gray or orange. Shade ranges have expanded, but Kendall believes the next generation of beauty shoppers should look closely at whether brands are consistently serving them. And inclusivity, he says, shouldn’t begin and end with foundation.

“I think that whenever you’re looking at a brand, whenever you want to be dedicated to the brand, you should really just make sure that they’re being inclusive across the board,” Kendall said. “Not just with the foundations or the concealers, but really just being inclusive throughout each and every shade range and each and every launch.”

For consumers with deeper skin tones, that distinction matters. A brand may offer an extensive foundation range while leaving deeper complexions with fewer options in concealers, blushes, bronzers or other categories.

Kendall also wants shoppers to pay attention to the bigger picture.

“I feel like that is the [true] inclusivity,” he said. “And if a brand has all those, the girl is tea.”

His approach to beauty is also a reminder that finding products that work doesn’t necessarily require starting with the most expensive items in the store. For someone putting together their first makeup collection, Kendall recommends starting with accessible products and learning what works before trying to build an entire routine.

“I would recommend go to Ulta and start in the drugstore section,” he said. “Pick out a few concealers, get with the worker in there, and just honestly start with what makes you comfortable.”

That’s similar to how Kendall began his own makeup journey.

“I first started out with concealer,” he said. “Build your way out.”

For beginners, especially those who have spent years trying to find products made with their complexions in mind, that may be the most useful advice of all. You don’t need the biggest makeup bag or the most expensive products on the shelf to get started.

Start with what works for your skin, learn as you go and build from there.