EARLY START

Growing up in the countryside of Brighton, Jojo found escapism in video games and related to the depictions of men and women as androgynous, fantasy creatures. These images made an impact on Jojo’s creative identity, learning to draw by looking into character art and how the games files created the 3d models. This led to an exploration into different aesthetics.

Jojo began to explore the LGBT scene at an early age and was photographed frequently for exhibitions and art projects. These photos led to a platform on MySpace with over 300,000 followers by the age of 15, which attracted an editor from Dazed and Confused magazine who invited JoJo to cast for both a cover and a lookbook for McQueen’s McQ line. Shooting many editorials and walking in London Fashion Week, JoJo decided to use the moniker Joseph Harwood as a deliberately masculine label to guard against confusion around their gender identity. Traveling to Tokyo at 17, Jojo corrected a makeup application during a photoshoot and the photographer suggested that Jojo would be great to work with as a makeup artist. This was a life-changing moment and returning to the UK, Jojo began to seek out employment within the beauty retail world. Having little experience and looking naturally androgynous, this was met with many pushbacks. Finally, MAC cosmetics Brighton invited Jojo to assist in a masterclass hosted by Terry Barber which allowed Jojo to see an insight into the professional world of beauty.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Attending a course with the Prince’s Trust, the Enterprise scheme allowed Jojo to gain access to properly learn to monetize both working as a makeup artist and how to begin designing a cosmetic line. Jojo invested in prototype makeup brush designs and joined a trans-orientated YouTube channel called 5AT, where social media was beginning to bypass a lot of employment gatekeepers by allowing trans people to earn an autonomous income. Harwood became renowned as a social media pioneer, adopting a mermaid image and developing merchandise, hair products, and makeup artistry lessons.

In January 2013, Jojo began to create tutorials on the social media platform YouTube, these were high quality technique videos with unique themes and a sketchbook approach. There was no mainstream recognition for gender ambiguous people in the UK on social media, and there was no representation within beauty, but Jojo changed that and quickly became the first trans person to have videos peak the millions. This led to a loyal audience, and then to collaborate with premium beauty brands, (L’Oreal, Liz Earle, Artis, MAC, Illamasqua etc.) The YouTube channel JHCosmetics evolved with individual verticals of digital content, from celebrity transformations, anatomical breakdowns, imaginative monster looks, and LGBT blogs. By June of 2013 Harwood had become the go-to creative makeup artist in the UK for both celebrity makeup and creative gender non conforming looks. Over 100m views across tutorial content alone, Harwood was the largest openly trans beauty creator in Europe, going viral on The Daily Mail, Buzzfeed and over 90 publications who covered the transformations and work.

In 2014 Harwood entered the first incarnation of America’s Got Talent on social media, the You Generation Competition, and won with a gender-focused art piece video. This was awarded a six-figure cash prize however Syco did not treat Jojo with the same type of media promotion that other franchise winners received, the payment was made before the end of the competition was completed and the contest footage was subsequently removed from all social media platforms, as if to minimize the accomplishment. This was covered in Fast Company for the first time in 2018.

BEAUTY

Moving to America to pursue work as a celebrity makeup artist, Harwood collaborated with World of Wonder, the producers of RuPaul’s Drag Race on multiple conventions, panels and online shows. They also became key support as the multi-channel network for Perfect Androgyny, a YouTube platform Harwood built to give light to over 50 gender transient people who have gone off to build their own phenomenal social media platforms. Jojo was featured as the Google Home page in tribute to David Bowie, created three campaigns with YouTube and the UN on ocean pollution as a result of the beauty industry, and was a guest contributor to the YouTube 2016 End of Year Review.

Now an established makeup artist, Harwood became aware of the barriers still in place in the beauty industry for trans people to reach leadership roles, so began to work on retraining as a product developer. Partnering and launching skincare, beauty tool, and colour designs across the UK market with different brands, Jojo was then approached to work on a transgender-focused makeup line called Jecca Blac. This was a L’Oreal Innovations project and the partnership was announced on Forbes, sharing information about the pioneering work Harwood had done to create a go-to resource for trans people in beauty.

Co-designing both of the face products, branding, a how-to guide and the marketing materials, this launch was met with critical acclaim in 2018 and became globally available as an accessible, inclusive product line, for and by trans people. It was featured in every major fashion publication within the UK from Vogue, to hitting the number one spot in Elle UK’s Pride list and won several awards consecutively. Jojo was invited to speak about their story internally at Out @ L’Oreal, then to partner with the PUIG umbrella on how to create a more inclusive environment for their many brands, which involved ten ateliers in both Paris and Barcelona. In the pandemic, Harwood was then invited to share their experience with the Estee Lauder Corporation, with the president and vice presidents of Estee Lauder, and open the inclusivity ERG to usher in a wave of support for LGBT people within the various brands. Jojo was then invited to become a member of the British Beauty Council in 2021 and is a member of the board of Diversity and Inclusion, to help navigate the obstacles we face still in the beauty industry.

VERTICALS + INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ORIGINALS

Jojo created several digital signatures now commonplace on beauty social media, from a how-to 'basics’ series, breaking down each feature of the face, (this encompassed hair-drawn brows, the cut in nose contour by bringing the under-eye highlight to exaggerate the line of the nose contour, and the mermaid, doll eyed aesthetic). Further concepts introduced were the ‘boy to girl’ phenomena, which was created to flip the script on content that was wrongly perceived to have an adult undertone, monster tutorials created from sketchbook work and photo-realism celebrity transformations. These are NFT protected original ideas that combined greenscreen effects, filters and were created and imagined by Jojo between 2008-2016.

A proud voice for the trans community, Jojo wanted to shine a light on the dangers and concerns surrounding plastic surgery, as this is something that has been unregulated and sought out as an affirming option for many trans-identifying people. Investigating the stories of our pioneers and warning of the dangers of silicone and ‘quick fix’ solutions, Harwood has the leading plastic surgery investigation series with over 50 partnerships, interviews, and documented treatments.

ADVOCATE WORK + ACHIEVEMENTS

Google approached Harwood to be involved as a YouTube product tester, to consult and feedback on the changes that needed to be made across the algorithm for LGBT people and the new functions on the platform. This allowed JoJo to learn a deeper insight into how trans people had begun to be minimized on social media, which was very alarming as it was an oasis in a very difficult employment climate for the LGBT community. Looking into a lack of representation in multiple areas, Jojo launched a new lifestyle platform focusing on bringing a queer voice into under-represented lanes, focusing on vegan food and content across Lifestyle, Growth, Beauty, and Travel. JHournal is a thriving, innovative publication hub that shows LGBT people as valuable in a variety of different content types.

Harwood works with many charities that focus on environmentalism, including an ambassador position with Veganuary and writing sustainable recipes for the World Food Program. A proud ambassador for the Prince’s Trust for a number of years, in 2022 Jojo was recognized by the trust for their trailblazing achievements and consistent support by receiving a Princes Trust Award nomination. Harwood has been shortlisted for multiple lists and accomplishments including the National Diversity Awards and as a 2021 spot for the 30 under 30 Forbes list, for Media and Arts.

JoJo is the CEO of Joseph Harwood ltd., Creative Director of JHournal, and Creative Director of the Team Baron Group (including Agitprop Studio, Team Baron Management, and Team Baron Brands.)

EDUCATION 

At 9 years old JoJo was credited with the highest CAT score in their school year group and was invited to participate in a jumpstart GCSE program which took place the following year at Mile Oak Primary School. Passing mathematics at the age of 10, Harwood was then elevated to the Aim Higher program and was invited to attend both high school education at Portslade Community College, and Level 6 lectures in Bio-Chemistry at Sussex University. 

At 16 Harwood studied five A-Levels, Graphic Design, Fine Art, Photography, German, and Biology at Varndean College, before completing a (Fashion Design) Art Foundation BTEC Diploma at City College Brighton and Hove. Leaving with a portfolio of gender-neutral clothing, Harwood then applied and was accepted at Central St Martins to study Menswear Fashion Design. Jojo discovered a brand new course at London College of Fashion where there was a newly integrated MSc in Cosmetic Science introduced that year. Not having multiple science entry qualifications, Jojo appealed the entry requirements and was given a glowing reference by the Professeur de Parfums, Roja Dove. Jojo was then invited to participate in a summer school to show acumen which was completed and accepted, and subsequently attended and studied the MSc in Cosmetic Science, combining both the artistic experience of a creative director with the knowledge of a chemical formulator. 

Jojo has also multiple minor qualifications in French, Spanish, Pattern Cutting, Design and Health, and Safety.

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

SHORT BIO

Joseph Harwood is a British, gender non conforming artist and beauty expert. A pioneer on social media Jojo became the first transgender person to brand and monetize beauty content in the UK, reaching over 100m views across LGBT content and beauty tutorials. Winning the digital version of America's Got Talent, Simon Cowell’s the You Generation Competition, Harwood went on to be featured in the YouTube Year in Review and the Google HomePage, to create campaigns for the UN on plastic pollution as a result of the beauty industry and is a Prince's Trust ambassador. Now a trained cosmetic formulator, Harwood’s focus today combines product design in the beauty industry with inclusivity, creating IED guidelines within corporate structures and insight into digital media.