It’s hard to imagine Ivy Coco Maurice as anything other than confident and vivacious. With her gorgeous big curly hair and stunning features, one could assume this content creator and community organizer’s life was nothing more than a cake walk, but it wasn’t.
In the second installment of Complex and Sephora’s Beauty Beyond the Surface series, Ivy speaks candidly about growing up as a West Indian, West African chubby kid “who always had a cool dance move in my back pocket.” Ivy says she was always adored at home, but as she got older acne became an issue, which led to cruelty in school.
“I’ll never forget in high school, whew,” Ivy says taking a moment. “I really liked this boy, and he came to one of my basketball games to support me and he came with his friends, and they’re all laughing at me. One day, I was like ‘why are they laughing?’ And [the guy] said: ‘The nickname they have for you is pizza face’ My heart just sank.”
“Acne is a rough topic to talk about,” Ivy continues. “Acne comes with hyperpigmentation. It comes with tears. It comes with having to find a routine that works for you.”
As the daughter of beloved actress, Emmy award-winner Sheryl Lee Ralph, Ivy credits her mother with helping her learn more about skincare, self-love, and her privilege as a light-skinned Black woman. Watch the video above to hear about the valuable lessons imparted to Ivy, and how she puts those learnings into practice now.
