Why Tati Westbrook Took A Break From YouTube

Of all the random internet rabbit holes that people find themselves falling down, for some reason, YouTuber/influencer drama seems to top the list. While there are countless versions of these battles, few are as iconic as Tati Westbrook vs. James Charles. The battle launched multiple 40-minute videos, filled to the brim with screenshots and receipts. What was perhaps most shocking was Westbrook's involvement. Prior to posting her since-deleted expose of Charles, Westbrook was never involved in any drama or even minor conflict on YouTube.

Many saw Westbrook as the mother-figure of YouTube. Having started her channel back in 2011, she was a veteran of the platform. There was a time where Tati Westbrook was simply known as Glamlifeguru, the YouTube beauty sensation that consistently delivered honest, genuine reviews, and stunning tutorials. On May 10, 2019, that all changed. Westbrook's battle with James Charles was a tangled web. What seemingly began with Westbrook being hurt by Charles advertising a vitamin brand that wasn't hers spiraled into her sharing a since-deleted video that called out Charles' alleged behavior (via Elle).

This led to a back-and-forth of the two parties denying claims, exposing screenshots, and it even got some involvement from other YouTubers like Nikita Dragun and Jeffree Star backing them up (via Cosmopolitan). It all ended with Westbrook posting a since-deleted video on June 30, 2020 apologizing to Charles and claiming she was manipulated by Star and Shane Dawson (via Insider).

Well, for a couple of months there, things got wild and ended with radio silence. Tati Westbrook stopped posting anything anywhere, until a year later on June 17, 2021, where she finally shared a video and broke her silence. In the video, Westbrook briefly referred to the feud calling it, "the past event that seems to want to follow me everywhere I go" (via YouTube).

Westbrook chose to address another big reason she took a break, which was her very public legal battle with her business partner. She claimed, "There was no way that I could just come back online and start reviewing makeup and promoting Halo Beauty while there's this big lawsuit thrown around the internet." The beauty guru claimed the legal battles were so damaging that they had to sell their house, and she and her husband James Westbrook ended up separating and almost getting a divorce.

It's good to see that Westbrook is in a better place with her husband now and ready to rejoin the platform she once dominated. She has since been posting regularly and providing her classic content that her fans have missed.