Serena Williams retired from tennis in 2022, and she gave birth to her second daughter in 2023. She’s spent much of this year losing the baby weight, traveling, launching her new skincare/beauty line and just generally being herself. Serena has always been extra and open on social media, and she’s always posting a lot of stuff and giving her fans a view of her personal life. Because she posts so much, people have been talking about her evolving look in the past few years. Personally, I don’t like the blonde hair that much on Serena, but she loves it. But there have been several people loudly discussing whether or not Serena “bleaches her skin,” because in some of her social media photos, she does seem to look a bit lighter. Instead of just rationalizing it – maybe it was the lighting, maybe it was her makeup – those people have been loudly pouring scorn on Serena. Well, she clapped back this week.
Serena Williams denied rumors that she bleached her skin while calling out the “haters” who claimed she did. During an Instagram Live on Monday, Dec. 2, the 23-time Grand Slam champion, 43, addressed claims that she purposely altered her complexion after she recently shared a video of herself at a school event with her husband Alexis Ohanian and their two daughters Olympia, 7, and Adira, 15 months. While doing a makeup tutorial for her Wyn Beauty (pronounced “win”) brand, the former athlete saw the perfect opportunity to weigh in on the topic.
“And then I put just that neutral color, that is actually my skin color, and no, for you haters out there, I do not bleach my skin,” Williams said as she applied her glam.
“There is a thing called sunlight, and in that sunlight, you get different colors,” she continued.
The tennis star explained that she was volunteering at her daughter’s play in the now-viral video from late November, and was wearing “stage makeup” when she recorded the clip. “Yes, I’m calling you out on this because it is ridiculous,” Williams said, before stating that she is proud of who she is. “Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, she bleached her skin.’ I’m a dark, Black woman, and I love who I am, and I love how I look,” the pro athlete continued, adding that that type of alteration is “just not my thing.”
Williams has no issues with others who may lighten their skin, but she reiterated that it’s not a procedure she’s interested in doing. “And if people do it, that’s their thing, and they have every opportunity and they should. I don’t judge, but you guys do,” she said. “But that’s what this world is about, and I stay in my lane — the non-judgy one, and I keep it. But no, I actually don’t bleach my skin, so can we just kinda clear that up?” she concluded.
I don’t think she’s bleaching her skin at all. I love Serena fiercely, but I think the larger problem is her terrible makeup in general, plus some lighting issues and airbrushing issues. Many of us groaned when she launched Wyn Beauty, because Serena doesn’t know what the hell she’s doing in the beauty field. Plus, I think that as Serena has aged (and she’s not playing tennis full-time in the sun anymore), she’s taking better care of her skin, which means sunscreen, etc. That’s playing a part too.
Photos courtesy of Serena’s IG.