Before Bretman Rock became a trendsetter, he had to search for his personal style first.
The 24-year-old—who skyrocketed to fame at the age of 14 for his viral beauty videos—has always used hair, makeup and fashion as creative tools to be his most authentic self.
"My gender expression has always been very interesting," he told E! News in an exclusive interview. "It's also very cool to watch myself discover how I wanted to express my gender. Fashion and makeup and hair help with that."
He added, "And ever since I started growing out my hair, I'm like, 'Oh my god, I'm more Bretman Rock than I ever felt my entire life."
The influencer, whose shoulder-length tresses are serving Farrah Fawcett vibes, explained that he's never followed gender norms.
"Growing up broke helped me with never looking at the label," he said. "I was going to put on whatever my mom found at the swap meet. I was always wearing women's and men's clothes at the same time."
As he put it, "Every aspect of vanity helped me find my gender expression. I owe so much of my identity to makeup, fashion and hair."
And while Bretman's platform has allowed him to live unapologetically and inspire others to follow suit, he admitted that there are drawbacks to being in the public eye.
"The biggest thing that I learned is there is a version of me outside of social media," the MTV reality TV star explained. "People tend to forget that fame is not who I am, it's part of my job."
Soon, the internet sensation will find himself in the spotlight even more as he shares more of his personal life in his new memoir, You're That Bitch.
"I put so much of myself out there and when this book comes out, I'm going to be an even bigger open book," he revealed. "Because I post my life every day, I lose a sense of privacy and people think they have the right to it."
However, as Bretman noted, the downside to being so open is "learning the boundaries of fame and knowing when to let people in."
And by being true to himself, Bretman has discovered he's really what he refers to as that bitch.
"Being that bitch is definitely a state of mind," he explained. "And it's not really who I am 24/7. But be patient with your life and with yourself. Sometimes it takes a while to get into that state of mind and you also have to enjoy the process."
You can shop Bretman's memoir, You're That Bitch: & Other Cute Lessons About Being Unapologetically Yourself, Feb. 14.