'Bling Empire' 's Kane Lim on Becoming the Face of Fenty Beauty— and His Friendship with Rihanna!

"I have developed this newfound confidence because of this opportunity," Lim tells PEOPLE of his new gig

Published on May 9, 2022 04:43 PM

Kane Lim Fenty Beauty campaign — Photo: Fenty Beauty & Fenty Skin

Fenty Beauty's got some new bling!

On Monday, Rihanna's billion-dollar brand announced Bling Empire's Kane Lim as the newest Fenty Face. The Netflix star, 31, will serve as the first Southeast Asian ambassador for the brand and will appear in a new campaign that will debut in Sephora's Singapore's flagship store this month.

"This has been very humbling," Lim tells PEOPLE of his new partnership. "I have developed this newfound confidence because of this opportunity."

While Lim is known for his glamorous persona on camera, the real estate developer and philanthropist hasn't always been so sure of himself. "I don't know if people know this, but I suffer from a lot of insecurities. So, this partnership means a lot for me in terms of self-confidence. People look at my Instagram and think differently but that's because you can curate and edit these posts, but with a campaign... it's different. It's more real. It was nerve-wracking... When I did the shoot, I was like, 'Oh wow.' This was the first picture where I actually didn't need photoshop, which is incredible."

He adds: "This is exactly why I'm doing this. I would like to show that everyone suffers from insecurities, and we are here to face those issues head on."

Speaking to how the partnership came about, Lim says he and Rihanna, 34, have been direct messaging each other on Instagram for years.

"When season one of Bling dropped, She was like, 'So, when is season two coming out?' From there, we'd DM emojis and fun stuff. She's the sweetest person and when this came about I said, 'You helped me a lot.' This just means so much to me."

Furthermore, Lim says his role as brand ambassador is crucial in uplifting and celebrating both the Black and Asian communities.

"Conversations about me working with Fenty first came about during the height of both the Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate movements. [Rihanna] is one of the few huge icons that really marched with us and that meant a lot to us. I told her, 'This is bigger than the brand, this is bigger than Fenty. This is bigger than me, this is bigger than you. It's elevating both communities. The more people see us together, the more it breaks stigmas.'"

Lim is also looking to change the stigma around men and skin health.

"I think a lot of times Asian men don't feel comfortable discussing skincare and beauty and for me to be able to say, 'Hey, I'm using foundation' and wearing it proudly is very powerful. It's breaking barriers."

In addition to the cultural impact, Lim says the collaboration feels organic because he's endorsing a brand he truly loves.

In campaign images, Lim wears the Fenty Beauty Eaze Drop Tint, Liquid Killawat Fluid Freestyle Highlighter in Hu$tla Baby 2.0, Brow MVP Sculpting Wax Pencil & Styler as well as the Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer. He also prepped his skin with the brand's Total Cleans'r and Hydra Vizor Invisible Moisturizer.

"Eaze Drop is my absolute favorite to use for a five-minute face. It taught me I can just use my hands and it just feels so natural, but provides good coverage," Lim tells PEOPLE, adding that he actually does his own glam for Bling Empire.

Lim says his family also approves.

"My parents were visiting me recently, and my dad was like, 'Where's the Fenty? Where's your Cookies N Clean [Mask]," Lim says in reference to Fenty's whipped detox mask that is made with salicylic acid and charcoal.

Outside of his work with Fenty, Lim has a lot on the horizon.

When asked to describe season two of Bling Empire, Lim shares it's filled with "drama" and of course high fashion.

"The new cast member Mimi has the best closet. She's bringing the bling this season... I think her first party cost like a million dollars or more. It's over the top," Lim says.

Keeping with the glitzy theme, Lim is launching his own brand, BLING, which stands for "Because Life Is Never Guaranteed."

"It's going to be clothing, it's going to be a little bit of accessorizes, but it also symbolizes my life journey."