Lil Uzi Vert's Most Outrageous Piercings—Including Their New Knuckle Studs
The rapper is famous for his out-of-the-box piercings.
By Dan Koday | February 5, 2021
Rapper Lil Uzi Vert is all smiles thanks to his new pink diamond, valued at $24 million
Have you ever coveted a diamond so much (join the club!) that you knew you wanted to wear it all the time? That was certainly the case for rapper Lil Uzi Vert's pink diamond purchase of $24 million, which he had inserted into his forehead via a piercing and now, his knuckle piercings.
Yes, you read that right. This is not a story we can make up, folks.
Their knuckle piercings were spotted in an Instagram post from professional body piercer Jessica Proctor, who described the process as "an amazingly unique and one of a kind project." The piercings, which were done at the Maria Tash storefront in Bal Harbour, Florida, feature four studs, two round brilliant natural diamonds surrounded by a pave halo, and two star-shaped studs.
A post shared by Jessica Proctor (@piercedbyjp)
In February 2021, The 26-year-old rapper, whose real name is Symere Bysil Woods, announced with a video on Instagram that they have just purchased a natural pink diamond that he will permanently and prominently display on their forehead. The rationale: when a stone is this pretty, you want to make sure everyone sees it.
"I've been paying for a natural pink diamond from Elliot for years now. This one stone cost so much I've been paying for it since 2017," wrote the rapper. "That was the first time I saw a real natural pink diamond."
The Elliot he's referring to is jeweler Elliot Eliantte, known for crafting custom diamond jewels for the most shimmering of celebs, including recent pieces for Khloe Kardashian, Hailey Bieber, Lil Pump, Roddy Ricch and many more.
Of course, when you get a giant diamond that looks like it's been implanted on your forehead, it's natural to expect some questions. Luckily for their fans, Lil Uzi took to Twitter to clear up some specifics on the precious gemstone after posting his announcement.
A post shared by Elliot Eliantte (@eliantte)
According to Lil Uzi Vert, the diamond is 10 carats, but really just shy of 11 carats. In the highlights on Eliantte's Instagram page, you can see the jeweler placing the stone on Lil Uzi Vert's head. It appears to be about the height of a quarter and it's a sparkling marquise cut—a wise and refined choice for a gent if we do say so ourselves.
Your natural diamond helps provide access to education
for children around the world, including over half a million children in rural communities.
When asked why they didn't just get the stone placed on a ring, Lil Uzi Vert joked that people would have made more fun of them for losing a ring than getting a diamond implanted into their skin. Fair.
As an avid car collector, the rapper specified that the diamond is worth more than all of their cars and their home, combined. "My Bugatti can't even pay for it… all my cars together, plus [the] home," the rapper wrote on Twitter.
Through a round of Instagram stories, the rapper also explained how the pink diamond is secured. "I just got a long bar in it because I just got it pierced and the swelling, when the swelling goes down, I'll get a short bar so it won't move." Presumably, this means that Lil Uzi Vert's pink diamond is secured through a simple skin piercing on their forehead, and the bar of the piercing going through a minimal setting on the bottom side of the diamond, which explains a lot. While the rapper is using a smaller bar to secure it right now, the jewel will be more secure once the piercing is upgraded with a larger bar setting after the initial swelling goes down. Based on the rarity of pink diamonds, we're just glad it will be safely attached.
Speaking of the diamond's rarity, one of their fans noted that $24 million would mean that Lil Uzi Vert paid nearly $2 million per carat, which corresponds to the rarity of a pink diamonds, and to this one's quality.
How rare are "pinks", exactly? It is estimated that only about 500 gem-quality pink diamonds of any size are left to be discovered. Pink diamonds were formed billions of years ago from extremely high pressure and temperatures in the earth's mantle, just like other natural diamonds. Pink diamonds, however, are exposed to much more pressure than other natural diamonds, and the result is their stunning hue. In fact, the shade of pink is the most important factor when it comes to evaluating a pink diamond; the more intense the pink color, the rarer the diamond and thus, the more valuable.
About 90 percent of pink diamonds were found in the Argyle Mine, which is located in western Australia. The mine was closed in November 2019 after its resources were exhausted, which only serves to compound the rarity of these one-of-a-kind stones. This rarity is a contributing factor in pink diamonds' value, as they can cost up to 20 times or more than a white diamond of the same size and equivalent clarity rating.
Lil Uzi Vert isn't the first celebrity to fall in love with pink diamonds—though they clearly have an affinity for them judging by their other jewelry. Margot Robbie has a pink diamond engagement ring, which is probably an homage to her native home of Australia. Jennifer Lopez also donned an iconic pink diamond engagement ring—which arguably accelerated the desirability of the color among celebrities—when she was engaged to Ben Affleck. And who could forget the perfectly light-hued pink diamond engagement ring worn by Blake Lively?
It's clear that in addition to rarity, pink diamonds also possess star power. And while you may or may not be keen on wearing a giant stone on your forehead, we'd definitely say Lil Uzi picked a stunner.