Selena Gomez has heard all about the internet’s obsession with her 2016 era — and she has a message for anyone hoping she’ll bring it back.
The Rare Beauty founder, 34, is looking ahead rather than trying to recreate the version of herself from a decade ago.
In People magazine’s latest cover story, Gomez opens up about aging, beauty and why she’s perfectly happy letting her old looks stay in the past.
“Getting older has been so much fun. I’m not scared at all. I love getting older,” said Gomez, who is receiving the inaugural Beauty Impact Award for her mental health advocacy.
“Yeah, things are going to change and things are going to sag, but you’re alive… I think age is just a number in many ways.”
Her smoky 2016 makeup looks still regularly resurface online, but Gomez admits the nostalgia can get a little intense.
“I got to be honest, the 2016 throwbacks and all of it is so much fun, but people get really intense. I always make this joke where I think people want to freeze me in time to that period of my life,” she noted.
“I don’t know… maybe it was probably more interesting because I’m now chilling, which is great. But it was such a hectic period in my life… of course I had to rock a smoky eye. I was trying to be cool!”
These days, Gomez is embracing a softer approach to beauty.
“Now I do a smoky eye, and it just looks a little different,” she shared. “I think people always want me to look the way I did, and that’s just not going to happen.”
And honestly, Selena seems more than ready for the internet to catch up.
2026-09-17 10:22:00
