Rihanna's Lipstick Allegedly Gave a Woman Sexy Bad Girl Herpes
A 28-year-old woman who walked away from a May 7 Rihanna concert with a face full of herpes is suing MAC Cosmetics, alleging that she contracted the virus from a shade of special Rihanna-themed lipstick she sampled at a MAC popup shop she visited while attending the singer's performance at the Barclays Center.
According to the New York Daily News, Starkeema Greenidge claims in her lawsuit that the tube of bright red "Riri Woo" lipstick a MAC representative applied to Greenidge's lips was not properly sanitized after being used on other, evidently disease-ridden, attendees. Two days after the show, Greenidge developed a cold sore, which a doctor diagnosed as herpes.
Greenidge says the infection led her to miss work for two weeks (so if you're wondering where your friend Starkeema was for those 14 days in the middle of May, she was off having herpes), and is seeking compensation for lost wages, as well as "mental anguish and emotional distress."
MAC has issued a statement confirming the company is reviewing the claims.
Greenidge told the News she's suing the company to improve the hygienic conditions of free samples in the future.
Until that glorious golden age, a good rule of thumb is: don't go to a basketball arena and put on the public lipstick you find there.
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