Jewelry, Symbolism & Art Unite in Kendrick Lamar’s Tiffany & Co Crown
Every now and again, a sure-to-go-down-in-history piece of art is created. And this certainly seems to us to be the case for the result of Grammy winner rapper and composer Kendrick Lamar’s collaboration with Tiffany & Co—the perfect Crown of Thorns.
Inspired by Tiffany & Co designer Jean Schlumberger’s piece, the Thorns brooch, Kendrick Lamar commissioned Tiffany’s and co-designed his very own crown of thorns. Joining jewelry, symbolism, and art, the piece serves as a symbol of the artist’s newest project and fifth album, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers. The crown first appears on the album cover (photo above) and then worn by Lamar on the album’s 2022 world tour.
Read on to learn more about the work that went into this one-of-a-kind headpiece that speaks volumes in the rapper’s groundbreaking performances.
The Design
Kendrick Lamar’s Tiffany Crown was designed by the artist himself, with the help of Dave Free from co-owned media company pgLang. The process was so thorough it took around 10 months to come to fruition.
Once designed, Tiffany & Co’s expertise in jewelry craftsmanship came into play. Over the course of 1,300 hours, four highly-skilled artisans handcrafted 16 individual crown parts and 50 thorns in high-polished titanium and hand-placed over 8000 pavé diamonds to create this headpiece that is sure to be part of history.
The one-of-a-kind custom crown also features the words “Mr. Morale” engraved on the inside—a reference to Lamar’s album title, Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers.
For a Behind the Scenes look at the creation of Kendrick Lamar’s Crown, check out Tiffany & Co’s video here.
The Meaning Behind the Thorns
The addition of Kendrick Lamar’s crown to his album cover and performances worldwide was full of intention. Wearing a crown of thorns symbolizes humility and sacrifice for another, a message Lamar sent loud and clear during his 2022 world tour.
Especially at his June show at Glastonbury, where he performed as both artist and activist art when at the end of the show, he literally “bled” from his forehead while announcing, “They judge me; they judge Christ. Godspeed for women’s rights.” The renowned UK festival took place just after Roe v Wade was overturned, thus offering up the perfect stage for the artist to make his stance known on the matter.
Later in the same month, Kendrick wore his crown again as a symbol of his project while performing on the runway at Louis Vuitton’s Men Fashion Show in memory of Virgil Abloh.
Through his persona, Kendrick works to share the power of religion and spirituality in life. Spreading the message that humans are both sheep and preachers of their reality. And in the words of Kendrick, to “sit down, and be humble,” as he states in his hit song “HUMBLE“.
Feature image copyright of Renell Medrano for Kendrick Lamar’s album cover “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers”
Words by @madforyou_lhm
