Interview

TALKING TO… James Mac

The Glow Up finalist, educator and industry advocate tells us how makeup became his anchor, and why tenacity and visibility matter more than ever

James MacInerney – better known across the industry simply as James Mac – has just stepped off a flight from Milan Fashion Week when we speak with him. He’s tired, running on adrenaline, and very much in demand. Yet as he sits down to talk, there’s an immediate sense of presence which is typical of Mac: thoughtful, candid, and very generous. For an artist whose career spans fashion weeks, television, education and live stages, it’s striking how often Mac returns to one central theme – grounding himself.

“I’ve always been a creative child. I’ve always been a creative artist,” he says. “I decided to become a makeup artist when I trained in a makeup academy in Ireland in 2017.” That decision set off a fast-moving journey. Nine years on, Mac describes himself not just as a makeup artist, but as “a creative director and a manager of my own freelance brand”. His work now covers fashion editorial, creative events, education and masterclasses. “It’s funny how the path has kind of spun me into doing more conversations like this,” he adds, referring to media interviews. “It’s gone beyond the makeup brush.”

That expansion – from artistry into advocacy and education – has not happened by accident. It’s been shaped by Mac’s experience of working in an industry defined by pressure and scrutiny, while also living with Tourette’s syndrome.

Living visibly with Tourette’s

“Tourette’s has been part of my life for mostly all my life,” Mac explains. He began showing symptoms at around three or four years old, experiencing involuntary motor tics. “Mine is a motor neuron disorder where I have these involuntary stims and ticks specifically in my neck, only to the right.” He adds, with characteristic humour, “Can you imagine ever looking to the left? Who would ever want to do that?”

Humour aside, growing up with Tourette’s – particularly in rural Ireland – was complex. “It was hard enough growing up queer in rural Ireland, but to then throw Tourette’s into the pot…” he says, trailing off. For Mac, one of the biggest challenges has been misunderstanding. “I wish that people might have known the separation – that there are two types of Tourette’s. I don’t have coprolalia, which is the verbal form.”

He’s acutely aware of how pop culture has shaped public perception. “Do you remember Pete Bennett from Big Brother?” he asks. “He was the first public figure on TV living with Tourette’s.” While that visibility was important, it also created a narrow stereotype.

This is why Mac’s ongoing Tourette’s Tuesdays series on Instagram has become such an important outlet. “If you’re unsure of anything, ask,” he says. “There’s no bad question because I know it’s coming from a place of love.” For him, curiosity is inclusion. Silence, or whispering behind someone’s back, is not.

Makeup as a focus

For Mac, makeup has never just been about aesthetics. It has been a tool for self-regulation and expression. He recalls a pivotal creative milestone during the Covid pandemic, when he produced a gallery exhibition of 25 artistic makeup works.

“In those unlimited days of time allowance in Covid, I was doing looks that took me 12 hours,” he says. “What I noticed in the depth of those hours was that the Tourette’s almost evaporated. It was that connecting to my artistic flair and that stimulus when I actually realised this is as much of a thought process as a makeup look.”

That state of being ‘in the zone’ is something many artists recognise. “When I get in the zone – and I think we share this as artists – this is what really helps me living with Tourette’s,” Mac explains. “That’s why makeup is a passion, why I’ve kept it as my career.”

He doesn’t romanticise the industry, however. Fashion weeks, television sets and live events can send his nervous system “out the door”. The difference now is awareness. “I have to be accountable for small little daily practices,” he says. “Makeup has helped me realise and educate myself so much more about living with Tourette’s.”

The power of mindset

Mac’s appearance on season two of BBC reality television competition show Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-Up Star marked a major turning point. But for him, the most important moment came early in the show. “This is going to sound odd because it was week one when I was in the red chair,” he says, referring to the head-to-head elimination challenge where one contestant leaves the show. “It definitely gave me fire in my belly.”

At the time, he was battling internal narratives about what was possible. “I definitely had this portrayal of living with Tourette’s as a ‘lesser than’ and that I couldn’t have a sustainable career or I didn’t have the space to be a makeup artist… like, how can I do both?” Under the pressure of cameras and competition, something shifted. “I remember saying, ‘I’m not going home.’ And that was a fight or flight where I fought for myself.”

His assessment of the competition is refreshingly honest. “I would say skill was 50% of Glow Up,” he says. “It’s your mindset as much as what you learn.” Letting go of ego allowed growth. “It’s the first time I ever spoke publicly,” he says.

Watching the show back was confronting. “I’d never recorded myself or seen myself on camera because I’m always looking away,” he explains. Seeing his Tourette’s discussed onscreen was emotional. “I went so red; finding out more about myself, seeing myself in action. But I can’t deny what it did for other people. It’s taken me half a decade to realise that it helped people to have representation.”

Regulation and resilience

Ask Mac about mental health in the beauty industry, and he doesn’t hesitate. He leads with breathwork – literally. “Take a deep breath, hold it, and then exhale slowly,” he says, guiding us through the exercise. “You can’t tell me that didn’t help you feel more relaxed.”

Breathwork, he explains, is simple but powerful. So too is understanding the nervous system. “We are all so hyperstimulated,” he says. Mac has explored a range of approaches, from somatic floor-based yoga to lymphatic treatments, all with the aim of activating the parasympathetic nervous system. “It gives me an opportunity to feel more regulated.”

The key, he stresses, is consistency. “Five minutes,” he says. “This is a wild industry, but you have to be responsible for these things if you want to be your best self.”

That responsibility underpins his definition of tenacity. “My stick-with-it-ness to be a makeup artist living with Tourette’s syndrome is because of that tenacity and accountability for prioritising my welfare and my wellbeing.”

Inspiration beyond trends

When asked about inspiration, Mac looks beyond social media and trend cycles. “I’ve always gone into contemporary art museums, and look to my family and friends and the untold stories,” he says. “I’ve lived about six different lives.” He describes drawing inspiration from people he meets while teaching internationally, translating their stories into conceptual makeup designs. “You are an alien girl, or from another planet,” he recalls telling a model during a masterclass. “I put that into her character the next day.”

Looking forward

The future, for Mac, is firmly rooted in education and storytelling. “I love to educate and teach,” he says. “I want to bring my masterclass programme around the world.” Stage work, once daunting, now feels natural. “I feel so much more comfortable on stage, and I never thought I would have that stage presence because of the Tourette’s.”

Alongside this, he’s developing new platforms for conversation. “Very soon I want to start a podcast about your superhero power,” he says. Tentatively titled The Things That Make You Tick, the concept centres on challenge and growth. “People always know your ‘up there’ moment. It’s the ‘behind the closed doors’ parts they want to know more about.”

Tourette’s Tuesdays will continue and, he reveals, there’s a book on the horizon, “I am going to connect my whole life story to date, what it takes to be tenacious in the industry.”

As he prepares to attend a film premiere straight after our chat, Mac reflects on perspective. “What would my 11-year-old self say?” he asks. The answer, perhaps, lies in the reassurance he now offers others. “Everyone has a path,” he says. “My story is the Tourette’s. Everyone has a reason why they’re here.”