Tattoos are one way in which many people immortalize huge events or accomplishments in their lives that changed them or mean a lot to them, which is symbolized by them getting a tattoo. Gomez’s life has been full of successes, so has she chosen to get any tattoos to signify them?
Selena Gomez does have tattoos. While the exact amount of her tattoos is unknown, she often gets tattoos of small symbols or short phrases to represent big changes or important experiences she’s had.
Read more below to find out about Gomez’s many tattoos and their meanings.
Gomez’s First Tattoo
The first tattoo that someone gets often reveals if they’ll get more. If they weren’t sure about the tattoo in the first place, their experience with their first tattoo is the make or break moment.
If they have a good experience, it’s unlikely that they’ll just stop at one tattoo. As one woman who has gotten tattooed many times said, “There’s no such thing as getting one tattoo… [just] getting your first tattoo.”
So what was Gomez’s very first tattoo, the one that led to all the others? A tiny music note, located on the side of her wrist, is where it all started.
Why the music note? “I was named after a singer and music obviously is a big influence for me… And there’s music stuff with my mom that means a lot to me, too,” Gomez explained to E! Online.
Gomez’s mother, Mandy Cornett, now Mandy Teefey, was a stage actress and singer, and named Gomez after Selena Quintanilla, a renowned singer, songwriter, model, actress, and more, who was known as the Queen of Tejano music. After getting this first tattoo in February of 2012, she quickly added to the collection.
Important Symbols and Reminders
Tattoos are also a way of solidifying one’s identity, and to remind oneself who they are, especially for someone so famous and often speculated about in tabloids or other media. This is one way that Gomez uses her tattoos that she’s gotten in the past years, as well as representing family and other important people.
The second tattoo that Gomez got was later in 2012, as another tribute to a family member that many believe to be her mother. On the back of her neck, she got the Roman numeral “LXXVI,” which is what we know today as the decimal or base-10 number 76.
Gomez’s mother was born in 1976, and as the tattoo artist said, “The tattoo was a tribute to a family member who she said means a lot to her.”
After her second tattoo, the number of Gomez’s tattoos kept growing, and it was no longer clear in which order she got them.
For her half-sister, Gracie, who was born in 2013, she had a small lowercase letter “g” tattooed behind her left ear, and on the top of her right foot, she has “Sunshine” written to honor her grandmother.
Gomez has gotten many tattoos to represent her closest friends. In 2018, she posted on Instagram pictures of her and Ashley Cook, Courtney Lopez, and Raquelle Stevens getting matching number 4 tattoos to signify their friendship. “4, because you are my 4 for the rest of my life. I love you ladies,” was part of the picture’s caption.
She also got a number 1 with Courtney Lopez specifically, to show that they were each other’s best friend.
Her many other tattoos include a semicolon on her left wrist as a symbol of suicide prevention and mental health awareness, the Indian Om symbol on her hip to represent peace and mindfulness, and Arabic writing on her back that translates to “love yourself first.” To celebrate her newest album, Rare, Gomez had this tattoo placed below her right ear.
Watch the YouTube video below to check out Gomez’s latest tattoos and their meanings.