James Charles, a beauty YouTuber, has confessed to sending two 16-year-old boys sexually inappropriate messages.

The 21-year-old makeup artist, who counts the Kardashian-Jenner sisters among his famous pals, released a video titled “holding myself accountable” in response to charges made by two minors.

Mr Charles, who has over 25 million YouTube subscribers, released a statement in February claiming that a youngster he had been contacting on Snapchat was 18 years old.

‘Today’s video is going to be from the heart and I’m going to focus on what happened – all of the conclusions that I’ve come to – and most importantly holding myself accountable for my own actions,’ he stated.

‘First and foremost I need to say sorry. I owe a massive apology to anybody that I’ve hurt or anybody that I made uncomfortable with my actions.’

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Both lads added him on Snapchat, which led to a “flirty conversation,” according to Charles, until they both informed him they were 18 years old. When Charles discovered that both lads were minors, he “immediately blocked” them, according to Charles.

He also said that his first response was ‘so stupid,’ and that after ‘self-reflected,’ he understood that he had ‘f**ked up.’

“These conversations should’ve never happened, point-blank, period. There is no excuse for it, there is no ifs, ands or buts and I take full responsibility for that.”

He emphasized that as an adult, he now understands that it is his “job and responsibility” to verify the ages of those with whom he is conversing, but that his “desperate” desire for romantic connection led to his “reckless” ignorance and unwitting abuse of a power dynamic between a celebrity and his fans.

The influencer concluded the video by stating that he would “reflect and further educate” himself on the themes by taking a break from social media.

The video, titled “Holding myself accountable,” has received over 3 million views on YouTube.

Charles rose to online fame owing to his makeup lessons, and in 2016 he was crowned CoverGirl’s first male spokesmodel. He’s subsequently risen to prominence in the beauty industry, having developed multiple makeup products, presided over the Instant Influencer judging panel, and cooperated with high-profile celebrities on his YouTube channel. Charles’ resignation as host of Instant Influencer season 2 was revealed last month, but no explanation for his departure was offered, according to Variety.