Rihanna wowed at the Oceans 8 premiere in London in a golden metallic gown with an off-the-shoulder design that showcased her intricate tattoos.
The singer-turned-actress is known for her penchant for inkings, racking up an impressive 25 so far. Here’s what they all mean…
Rihanna looked stunning at the premiere and her dress showed off her tattoo perfectlyCredit: AFP or licensorsShark on her ankle
The shark on Rihannas ankleCredit: Instagram
RiRi acquired this jawesome tat from celeb tattoo artist Bang Bang in September 2016.
Rumour has it that she got the inking in Drake’s dressing room in Miami.
The hearsay is that her toothy design was inspired by a toy shark that Drizzy gifted the popstar on a date to a Toronto aquarium.
Stars on back of her neck
The stars on the back of her neckCredit: Splash News
This intricate design is one of her most well known and was once again created by celeb fave Bang Bang.
The trail of different sized stars forms a stunning cosmic system down the cape of her neck.
And they serve as a constant reminder to her ex Chris Brown who has a matching tattoo behind his ear.
1988 on her ankle
The 1988 on her ankleCredit: Getty
The Bajan babe has the number inked on her ankle just in case she ever forgets what year she was born.
The dramatic gothic font was inscribed on her once again by – you guessed it – Bang Bang.
Cross on her wrist
The cross on her wristCredit: Coleman-Rayner
An elaborate cross adorns the inside of Rihanna’s wrist as a gesture towards her faith.
The star is said to have gone to Bang Bang’s studio in the Big Apple at midnight to request the intricate design – and only emerged with her new inking five hours later at the crack of dawn.
Polynesian tattoo on her left handCredit: Instagram
As the saying goes – when in Rome – but in RiRi’s case it was when in New Zealand.
While visiting the land of the Kiwis, the popstar took home a permanent souvenir – an customised tattoo done in the Maori Ta Moko ‘stick and poke’ way.
The traditional technique uses a chisel and mallet to embed the ink into the skin.
Henna-style tat on her right hand
Henna-style tattoo on her right handCredit: Instagram
The strong-minded pop-star certainly knows what she wants.
She was said to be unsatisfied with her Maori tattoo on her hand so flew Bang Bang out to the Dominican Republic to ink over it with her now-staple henna style tat on her right hand.
Nefertiti, the Egyptian Queen on her ribcage
Queen Nefertiti on her ribcageCredit: AFP – Getty
Quite appropriately for the stunning singer, Nefertiti is a universal symbol of female beauty.
RiRi added the regal design to her growing collection in 2013.
The Goddess Isis on her waist
Goddess Isis on her ribcageCredit: Instagram
This saucy design is perhaps one of her most recognised among fans.
The Egyptian Goddess Isis is hard to miss as she spreads her wings across the underpart of Rihanna’s chest.
The Goddess was celebrated as the ideal mother and wife and family-loving RiRi chose this inking to commemorate her beloved Grandmother Dolly.
She let Bang Bang off for the day and got the tat in London’s Soho.
Music notes on her foot
Music notes on her right footCredit: Capital Pictures
This is where RiRi got a taste for the tats as it was her first ever one.
She opted for music notes – a treble clef and sixteenth note – which were inspired by her love of music
Falcon on her ankle
Falcon on her ankle to cover up her previous music notesCredit: Instagram
Bang Bang was back on duty for this falcon tat which was used to cover up her first ever inking above – a pair of music notes.
The bird was inspired by a 2,300-year-old faience falcon on display at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Tiny cross on her collarbone
Tiny cross on her collarboneCredit: Instagram
This dainty design again symbolises her faith in God though sceptics initially accused the tattoo of having links to the Illuminati.
It’s said that she opted for the small size for practical reasons – to cover it up with Jewellery if she feels like hiding it.
Tibetan script on her back
Tibetan prayer on her backCredit: Instagram
The sensual singer opted to get the Tibetan word for ‘lover’ inscribed on her lower back.
The star has never spoken out about her motivation behind the choice of word but it’s safe to say it’s an ode to the people she loves and who love her.
“Thug Life” on her knuckles
“Thug life” in white ink on her knucklesCredit: Instagram
Edgy RiRi got a semi-permanent white inking of ‘Thug Life’ across her knuckles as a tribute to the late Tupac Shakur.
Tattoo artist Mark Mahoney gave her the bold design in January 2012 – but it only served as a transient statement because the white ink fades over time.
“Rebelle Fleur” on her neck
“Rebelle Fleur” on her neckCredit: Getty – Contributor
The French for ‘rebel flower’ was inscribed on her neck by her old favourite Bang Bang.
At the time many questioned whether it should have read ‘fleur rebelle’ to be gramatically correct.
But Bang Bang shot back saying: “Rebelle Fleur translates to rebel flower, NOT rebelious flower, its 2 nouns so in that case fleur does not HAVE to be first!”
Arabic quote tattoo on her left rib
Arabic writing on her ribCredit: Instagram
The tat reads “Al Hurria fi Al Maseeh” in Arabic, which in English translates to “Freedom in God.”
It’s not known the exact time when the star got this inking, but her Saudi beau Hassan Jameel incidentally speaks Arabic – so he’ll have no trouble translating the tat.
Gun on her right rib
Gun on her right ribCredit: Splash News
For a change Bang Bang created this design. He reportedly even got flown over from New York to L.A by Rihanna for the inking.
Some criticised the tattoo as insensitive and glorifying violence at a time when gun crime is rife.
But the artist defended his design, arguing that it just represents Rihanna’s strength and power.
“Never a failure, always a lesson” quote on her right shoulder
Quote on her right shoulderCredit: Getty – Contributor
The aspirational singer got the motivational tat which represents her life motto.
And she’s not only positive-thinking but forward-thinking too, she got the inking written backwards so that she could read it in the mirror.
Tribal dragon claw on her hand
Tribal dragon claw on handCredit: Instagram
This is the first time she got a Maori tattoo using the traditional technique.
The claw represents ‘aroha’ – love- and mana – strength.
And it is again a constant reminder of her ex Chris Brown who has the same tattoo on the same hand.
Roman numerals on her shoulder
Roman numerals on her shoulderCredit: Getty
In a touching tribute to her long time confidante and manager Melissa Forde- Rihanna got her best friend’s birthday inked onto her shoulder in Roman numerals in 2008.
Melissa repaid the favour by getting a matching tattoo of Rihanna’s birthday.
“Shhh” on her finger
“Shhh” on fingerCredit: Instagram
One of her more humourous designs is a ‘Shhh’ on her shush finger.
The cheeky singer often takes snap of her shushing the camera with the comical tattoo on her right index finger.
“Love” on her finger
“Love” on her fingerCredit: Getty – Contributor
To match her cheeky ‘Shhh’ design, the popstar has a ‘Love’ tatt on her opposite hand – which she got in L.A in 2008.
Skull and crossbones on her ankle
Skull and crossbones on her ankleCredit: Getty – Contributor
So far the music maestro has only gone monochrome – this is her first coloured tattoo to date.
It’s one of her first designs – she got the inking in Miami in 2008, opting for a pink and red bow to feminise the more deathly skull and crossbones.
Sanskrit prayer on her right hip
Misspelt Sanskrit on her hip
By the rule of probability it’s likely that there was going to be a slip up somewhere along the way of her 25 tattoos.
And here it is – in a bit of a blunder RiRi thought she was getting this Sanskrit prayer by Sanatana Dharma on her hip – “forgiveness, honesty, suppression and control.”
But her inking was misspelled and what she actually got translates to “long suffering, truthfulness, self-restraint, inward calm, fear and fearlessness.”
Star on her inner left ear
Star on her inner earCredit: Splash News
In a moment of spontaneity and a celebration of friendship, RiRi and her visiting friend got matching tattoos in New York.
The singer explained:”My best friend from Barbados was here so we had to do something crazy.”
She added:”She got one too.”
Pisces symbol behind the ear
Pisces symbol behind the earCredit: Splash News
One of her earlier tats is her star sign behind her right ear.
Just as she has her birth year tattooed on her body in case she forgets, she also has the symbol for Pisces- in case it ever escapes her memory.
It was done by a famous Brazilian artist who takes bookings for up to three years in advance – luckily for Ri he happened to be in Tokyo at the same time as her.
