You remember the screaming? Maybe not literal screaming, but the digital kind. Back in November 2019, if you were on YouTube, you couldn't escape it. The hype was suffocating. People weren't just buying makeup; they were buying a piece of "the process." The Shane Dawson Conspiracy palette wasn't just another Jeffree Star Cosmetics drop—it was a cultural moment that, looking back from 2026, feels like a fever dream.
It basically broke the internet. Literally. Shopify, the platform hosting the Jeffree Star Cosmetics store, couldn't handle the millions of people trying to checkout at the exact same time. It was a mess. A glorious, lucrative, $54 million Media Impact Value kind of mess.
The Strategy That Fooled Us All (Or Did It?)
The marketing wasn't a commercial. It was a nine-part documentary series called The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star. Honestly, it was genius. Shane Dawson, who basically knew nothing about makeup, took us through the "raw" and "scary" world of the beauty industry. We saw the board meetings. We saw the panic when $1 million worth of product was stolen in a warehouse heist. We even saw the price negotiations.
When Jeffree told Shane he could make $10 million from the deal, we weren't just viewers anymore. We were investors in his success. People didn't just want the Shane Dawson Conspiracy palette because the colors were good—though shades like "Food Videos" (that neon yellow) and "Sleep Paralysis" were genuinely cool—they wanted to help Shane win.
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What was actually in the box?
The main palette was a chunky, heavy black box with pyramid studs and metal clasps. It felt like a treasure chest from a 2010s conspiracy forum. Inside were 18 shades that were, frankly, a weird mix.
- Ranch: A metallic silver that everyone used once and then ignored.
- Diet Root Beer: A matte brown that actually became a daily staple for people.
- Pig-ment: That signature "Shane" pink.
- Illuminatea: A deep, forest green that looked way better in the pan than on most eyelids.
There was also the Mini Controversy palette, which famously had its "Put It Back!" emerald shade added later after fans complained it was missing a pop of green from the documentary.
The Fallout and the "Morphe Scrub"
Then came 2020. The "Dramageddon" fallout, the resurfacing of Shane’s older, highly problematic content, and the eventual "cancellation." It was fast. One day, the Shane Dawson Conspiracy palette was the hottest item in the world; the next, Morphe had scrubbed every trace of it from their website.
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They didn't just stop selling it; they acted like it never existed.
Jeffree Star Cosmetics kept it on their site for a while longer, but the magic was gone. You can't sell a "conspiracy" when the person behind it is the one being investigated by the internet. It shifted from a collector's item to something people hid in the back of their vanity drawers.
Is the Shane Dawson Conspiracy Palette Still Worth Anything?
If you’re looking to find one now in 2026, it’s a weird market. You won't find it at retail stores. It’s officially discontinued. On sites like eBay or Poshmark, prices are all over the place. Some people are trying to sell "New In Box" palettes for $90 or $100, hoping for "vintage" nostalgia. Others are practically giving them away for $20 just to get the space back in their closet.
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Honestly? Most of these palettes are now well past their expiration date. Most powder eyeshadows have a PAO (Period After Opening) of 12 to 24 months. We are years beyond that. If you buy one today, it’s for the packaging, not the pigment.
The Legacy of the Collab
The real impact of this palette wasn't the makeup. It changed how influencers sell products. It proved that "documenting" a product's birth is 10x more effective than a 30-second ad. But it also served as a warning to brands: hitching your entire launch to a single, volatile human being is a massive risk.
Modern brand collabs are much more "IP-focused" now. Brands would rather collab with Wednesday or Squid Game than a YouTuber who might get "cancelled" by next Tuesday.
Check your own collection for safety.
If you still have an original Shane Dawson Conspiracy palette, check the texture and smell. If it's changed, or if you see any "fuzz" (remember the ribbon fiber scandal?), it’s time to toss it. If you’re a collector, keep the box, but maybe don't put those five-year-old pigments near your eyes. For those looking to scratch that nostalgia itch, look for "dupe" shades from brands like ColourPop or even Jeffree’s newer solo palettes, which often carry similar formulas without the 2019 baggage.