Your Ultimate Guide to Drake's 55+ Tattoos

In November 2016, Drake got a skull with flames emerging out of its head on his left shoulder with the word "Unruly" written beneath it. The single-needle design was done by the famous LA-based tattooist Dr. Woo. It's dedicated to Drake's friend and fellow musician Popcaan, who often references the term "Unruly" in many of his songs, having released a joint album with Anju Blaxx titled "Unruly" in 2012. The two close friends turned their mutual artistic appreciation into a professional partnership when Popcaan later signed with Drake's record label, OVO Sound, in 2018.

In March 2017, Drake unveiled another interesting ink on his Instagram. He got an image of a Drakkar Noir bottle on the top of his left shoulder. The popular men's fragrance by Guy Laroche is likely a callback to the rapper's old Twitter handle, @drakkardnoir.

In remembrance of the late fashion designer, Drake got a portrait of Virgil Abloh inked on the inside of his left forearm above his wrist in December 2021. The touching tribute, inked by Gangatattoo, captures the iconic image of the beloved entrepreneur throwing a Louis Vuitton kite down the runway in 2018. The black-and-white design includes intricate attention to detail, showcasing even the shadow of Abloh's pose.

Placed horizontally on his left anterior forearm parallel to the crease of his elbow, Drake got a quote tattoo broken into four consecutive lines, reading, "Everything happens / for a reason / sweet / thing." Inked by Dr. Woo in 2014, the design features small font text in capital letters. The meaning behind the script isn't known.

Believe it or not, two text-message bubbles have also made it into the rapper's tattoo collection. The texts, inked directly above his outer left wrist, read: "I'll kill u" and "I miss u." Though who exactly these very specific messages are for — or from — remains a mystery.

In 2015, Drake stopped by Dr. Woo's studio to get an intricate imitation of the CN Tower on his left triceps. The geometric design features delicate circular shapes and straight lines and beautifully pays homage to Drake's hometown, Toronto.

Drake memorialized his late friend Anthony "Fif" Soares, who passed in 2017, by getting his face portrait inked on his left bicep. "FOREVER FIF," it reads above the ink.

Drake's Mother's Portrait Tattoo

Drake dedicated another piece of ink to his mother with a portrait of her on the right side of his back.

Drake's Uncle and Grandma's Portrait Tattoos

On the upper central part of his back, Drake got the portraits of his late uncle and maternal grandmother. They gleefully posed for the picture while hugging. The heartfelt family portrait was done by Nikko Hurtado in 2012.

Drake's Harry Potter Portrait Tattoo

Drake is a huge self-proclaimed Potterhead, and to solidify his love for the universally beloved wizarding world, he got a portrait of Harry Potter and his pet owl, Hedwig, on the lower right side of his back.

Drake's Songbird Tattoo

Drake's tattoo collection mostly features black and gray pieces, except for a couple of colorful exceptions. The eye-catching songbird design that sits on his left shoulder blade is one of the few colored-ink designs. The red, brown, black, and white bird is in flight, flapping its wings open, with "XO20" written in black and red beneath it. The letters "XO" might be a reference to The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye), whose record label's name is XO.

They also mention this in the duo's 2012 collaboration, "Crew Love," with the lyrics reading, "That OVO and that XO is everything you believe in, I know." The same song also features the lyric "Tell them I'ma need reservations for twenty," likely referencing Drake's number of close friends, which might explain the "20" in the tattoo.

Drake's Aaliyah Portrait Tattoo

A portrait of the late R&B singer Aaliyah is situated directly below the songbird tattoo on his back. Drake has never shied away from expressing his admiration for Aaliyah and her inspiring artistry, which translated into this ink tribute in 2011.

Drake's Noah "40" Shebib Portrait Tattoo

Drake has another portrait dedicated to his longtime music-producing collaborator and close friend Noah "40" Shebib, which sits on the lower left side of his back.

Drake's "I Love You" Tattoo

On the left of Aaliyah's portrait, he has the words "I Love You," followed by another unknown word, which is hard to read. The script tattoo is prefaced with a peace sign and ends with the female gender symbol. The script tattoo runs vertically down the length of his back. The inspiration behind it remains unspecified.

In 2018, Drake unveiled his biggest tattoo yet: a massive owl at the center of his chest that's chasing a mouse. The hyperrealistic design extends from his clavicles and almost entirely covers his upper torso. It's likely another nod to Drake's OVO store.

Drake has been a longtime admirer of Sade Adu, so, as is par for the course, he honored her by getting her portrait on his body. He got the first portrait of the British singer-songwriter on the left side of his torso in March 2017 with the words "With Love Sade X" scribbled below it. Then, a few months later in June, he added another portrait of the "Kiss of Life" singer right above the former, filling out the surrounding area with scenic clouds and a palm tree.

A portrait of Denzel Washington from the 1990 musical dramedy "Mo' Better Blues," where he's looking ahead intently while holding a trumpet, is placed on the lower right side of Drake's torso.

Located on his top right shoulder, Drake has a gorgeous purple-pink hibiscus flower design with a bee sitting at its center. The ink is lifelike imagery of the rapper's 2017 mixtape "More Life," the promotional visuals for which included similar pink flower emoji.

A portrait of Drake's father, Dennis Graham, can be seen on the back of his upper right arm, which he got in 2014. The rapper initially had a strained relationship with his father following his parents' divorce when he was just 5 years old, however, since then, the father-son duo have reconnected and grown closer. In 2017, Graham returned the sweet gesture and got a massive face portrait of Drake on his shoulder, which the rapper poked fun at on his social media in 2022.

Drake also added a tiny Virginia Black whiskey bottle (which he co-owns) directly above his dad's portrait with a tiny addition symbol connecting the two designs. Right below the two tattoos, he got an equal sign and added a smiling portrait of his own face from when he was a kid.