Nikkie de Jager-Drossaers (; born 2 March 1994), known online as NikkieTutorials, is a Dutch
make-up artist
A make-up artist, also called a makeup artist, and often shortened to MUA, is an artist whose medium is the human body, applying makeup and Prosthetic makeup, prosthetics on others for theatre, television, film, fashion, magazines and other simil ...
,
model
A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , .
Models can be divided in ...
and
beauty YouTuber. She gained online popularity in 2015 after her YouTube video "The Power of Makeup" became popular and inspired many other videos of people showing their faces with and without makeup.
Career
De Jager first began uploading videos to
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
in 2008, at the age of 14, after watching MTV's ''
The Hills'' while sick and being inspired by
Lauren Conrad's makeup. She then began searching YouTube for tutorials to recreate the look and was inspired to begin creating her own.
After uploading videos for about two years, she enrolled in makeup coursework at B Academy in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
. She then signed to Colourfool Agency in 2011, and began working as a professional makeup artist.
In the autumn of 2013, she became the head makeup artist for the
RTL 5
RTL 5 is a Dutch free-to-cable television channel that was launched on 2 October 1993, during the 4th anniversary of its sister channel. It mainly broadcasts American films and hit series but also reality shows, comedy, travel, international show ...
show ''I Can Make You a Supermodel'' with Paul Fisher.
De Jager left Colourfool Agency at the beginning of 2014 to work as a
freelance
''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...
hair and makeup artist.
''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine named De Jager one of the top ten beauty "
influencer
A social media influencer, or simply influencer (also known as an online influencer), is a person who builds a grassroots online presence through engaging content such as photos, videos, and updates. This is done by using direct audience intera ...
s" in 2017.
In 2017, she also won the award for "YouTube Guru" at the
Shorty Awards
The Shorty Awards (also known as "The Shortys") are awards for outstanding and innovative work in digital and social media content by brands, advertising agencies, and creators. The awards, which generally focus on short-term content, honor achiev ...
and the award for "Choice Fashion/Beauty Web Star" at the
Teen Choice Awards
The Teen Choice Awards were an annual awards show that aired on the Fox television network between 1999 and 2019. The awards, based on a popularity vote that could be overridden by the producerswho reserved the right to choose the winnerscovered ...
.
In 2017, De Jager uploaded a video reviewing a foundation produced by a Prague-based cosmetics brand and spoke about the company using her image, specifically a screenshot from her "The Power of Makeup" video, to sell their products on social media without her permission. She expressed disappointment in the company's actions, feeling they had lied to their followers as she was not wearing any of their products in the photo of her they had used to promote their company.
In January 2019, it was announced that De Jager would serve as the Global Beauty Adviser for
Marc Jacobs Beauty. The brand stated in a press release that "in this newly created role, Nikkie will be integrated into the brand’s product development process, as well as share her incredible talent and expertise to expand unique content and artistry around the world on both Marc Jacobs Beauty and her own channels."
On 12 June 2020, it was announced that De Jager would become a
goodwill ambassador at the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
.
On 23 September 2021, De Jager launched her cosmetic brand, Nimya, after having developed it for three years. The brand featured three products upon launch: Moisturizer/Primer Hybrid, Setting Spray, and Cooling Ice Stick and glow Serum, as well as a minifan to go with the products.
Collaborations
De Jager has collaborated with beauty brands like OFRA Cosmetics and
Maybelline
Maybelline New York (formerly The Maybelline Company and Mabelline and Co.), trading as and commonly known as simply Maybelline ( ), is an American multinational cosmetics, skin care, perfume, and personal care company, based in New York City. ...
.
Her line with OFRA Cosmetics in 2017 included liquid lipsticks and a highlighter palette.
In December 2019, she collaborated with
Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...
, promoting her makeup brand
Haus Laboratories.
In August 2020, De Jager launched her own eyeshadow palette in collaboration with the brand Beauty Bay.
Personal life
On 13 January 2020, De Jager shared YouTube video titled "I'm Coming Out", in which she publicly came out as
transgender
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
. She stated that she was being blackmailed by someone who threatened to expose this. She began her transition in her teenage years.
De Jager got engaged to Dylan Drossaers in August 2019. The two got married on 6 September 2022.
On 8 August 2020, De Jager and Drossaers were robbed at gunpoint in their house in
Uden. The
Dutch police
The National Police Corps (), colloquially in English as Dutch National Police or National Police Force, is the centralised, national law enforcement agency of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and its sole police force. Constituted under the prov ...
reported one other resident suffering superficial injuries. The police launched an investigation shortly after, and later stated that arrests were made during the investigation.
Television

In September 2017, De Jager was a participant in the Dutch game show ''The Big Escape''. In January 2019, she participated in the nineteenth season of the popular Dutch reality game show ''
Wie is de Mol?''. She was eliminated from the competition in the third episode. In 2019, and again in 2024, De Jager also appeared as a guest judge on
BBC Three
BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
's version of ''
Glow Up''. In September 2020, she returned to ''Wie is de Mol?'' for a special
20th anniversary season. She went on to become the winner of this season.
After her coming-out video became popular in January 2020, De Jager was a guest on ''
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Ellen DeGeneres. The show ran for nineteen seasons from September 8, 2003, to May 26, 2022, in which it broadcast 3,339 episodes. It was produced by ...
'', where she talked about her experience coming out as
transgender
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
. She later spoke out about her experience on the show while being interviewed on ''
De Wereld Draait Door'', stating that she was treated differently from other guests, and that the show's host,
Ellen DeGeneres
Ellen Lee DeGeneres ( ; born January 26, 1958) is an American former comedian, actress, television host, writer, and producer.
She began her career in stand-up comedy in the early 1980s, gaining national attention with a 1986 appearance on '' ...
, was "cold and distant".
On 10 February 2020, it was announced that De Jager would be the online host of the
Eurovision Song Contest 2020, which was planned to be held in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...
. The event was later cancelled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
; De Jager subsequently appeared in the replacement show ''
Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light'', broadcast on 16 May 2020, where she reported the show's online content live to the public. On 18 September 2020, she was confirmed to return as a co-host of the , having been promoted to regular host from the previous year's role of online host. She was the first transgender person to host the contest.
In September 2020, De Jager was announced as a guest judge on the ''
Drag Race Holland'', the Dutch version of ''
RuPaul's Drag Race
''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...
''.
In May 2024, Nikkie De Jager was intended to be the Jury Spokesperson for the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
at
Eurovision 2024.
Following the controversial
disqualification of the Dutch contestant,
Joost Klein
Joost Klein (; born 10 November 1997), also known mononymously as Joost, is a Dutch musician, rapper, singer, and former YouTuber. Mainly a hip hop artist, his songs and performances often include influences of electronic music, such as drum a ...
, De Jager later withdrew from her role, and the Dutch broadcaster
AVROTROS
AVROTROS () is a Dutch radio and television broadcaster that is part of the Dutch public broadcasting system. It was founded in 2014 as the result of a merger between the Algemene Vereniging Radio Omroep (AVRO) and the TROS, Televisie Radio Omro ...
opted not to replace her.
Awards and nominations
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:de Jager, Nikkie
Living people
People from Wageningen
Dutch YouTubers
Beauty and makeup YouTubers
Dutch make-up artists
YouTube channels launched in 2008
1994 births
Transgender women artists
Dutch female models
Dutch LGBTQ models
LGBTQ media personalities
LGBTQ YouTubers
Dutch LGBTQ artists
Dutch transgender women
Participants in Dutch reality television series
Dutch women television personalities
Contestants on Dutch game shows
YouTube vloggers
People from Uden