Tattoos Dedicated to our Favorite Artists: Tribute or a Cover Up in 20 Years?
“She was a kid who had the box tattooed on her arm” Give Yourself a Try (2018)
Tattoos. A permanent marking whose meaning could denote everything from a tribute piece to a close family member that passed or something you got blackout drunk in Vegas at 22.
I currently have four tattoos, two of which are a tribute and symbolize two artists who’ve had a large impact on my life. Harry Styles and the 1975.
The first and my first tattoo in general I got in January of 2023 and is a nod to Harry’s 2019 album Fine Line.
It’s a fine line Fine Line piece. I’m sorry subtlety is not in my wheelhouse.
Running my life on impulse a thought like “will I regret this” wasn’t even something in my mind when I was originally thinking of getting the tattoo. I’d been a fan of Harry since 2011 when he was in One Direction and Fine Line was an album that I connected with brutally during the pandemic. On days where I’d get off work and immediately start working on a paper for class, songs like “Canyon Moon” and “Fine Line” were much needed distractions during days that often felt apocalyptic.
After seeing Harry during Love on Tour in November of 2021 it confirmed in my mind that this tattoo was a must. It may be rooted in my obsession with live music but after being in that arena with Harry and thousands of other masked up fans in the middle of the pandemic my eyes were opened to how much his music meant to me.
Once I found an artist in my hometown who worked on fine line pieces and more than a couple Instagram and Pinterest deep dives an appointment was set.
As I was lying on his chair getting the tattoo and looking up at the ceiling I remember he asked me about the piece and why I was getting it for my first.
“His music means a lot. Music in general means a lot. But not even his music really. Harry means a lot. His perspective on gender and gender identity through fashion and clothing is fascinating and inspiring,” I remember rambling.
“Sick dude,” he responded without looking up.
For months after the question of the Harry tattoo would be brought up into conversation with friends.
“Would it feel weird if he ever got cancelled?”
“Well girl in that situation I better get used to long sleeves,” I’d respond.
But I mean that’s a valid question. I don’t know Harry at all. Sure I’d been a fan of him for more than a decade but I don’t know him personally. And with how quick the Internet is “Harry Styles cancelled” could be trending on Twitter at any second of any day. And what if it’s because of something disgustingly horrible? And I’m just waking up every morning looking at my forearm with a reminder of a horrible mistake.
I also need to remind you that this isn’t my only tattoo that’s a tribute to one of my favorite artists.
I have a 1975 box tattoo with a little hat referencing one of my favorite songs of theirs “Sincerity Is Scary”.
I got the box tattoo in September of 2023 and similarly to the Harry tattoo it wasn’t something I thought too much about before getting it. Getting a box tattoo is a sort of rite of passage for 1975 fans and it was my time to join the cult.
But unlike Harry, Matty’s name (especially last year) does often land on the trending page of Twitter. And whilst I still to this day have no regrets of getting the tattoo it can be exhausting to open Twitter and immediately go “Oh God. What happened this time?”
At the end of the day I don’t really have a Matty Healy tattoo nor a Harry Styles one. I have two symbols representing works of art that influenced me drastically. These two artists changed my life in so many ways I can get into but I’ll put it simply. I would not be where I am, who I am, without Harry Styles and the 1975. And if in 20 years I look at my arm and go “I regret this” who cares. That’s something I have to deal with in the future. As of right now I’ll be getting more tattoos dedicated to works of art that have influenced me and not thinking twice.